Maya is a captive. In Grandmother's house in California, she is forbidden from playing or having friends, every word and action is strictly monitored, and even her memories of her mother have been erased--except within the imaginary world she has created. A world away, in the rugged Wyoming wilderness, a tobiano paint horse called Artemisia runs free, belonging only to the stars. The mother of a new foal and the lead mare of a harem band in a land where survival is precarious, she embodies the spirit of the wild--and she holds the key to Maya's memories. How Maya's and Artemisia's lives intertwine, like a braided rein, is at the heart of this richly drawn adventure about freedom and captivity, about holding on and letting go.
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There's much discussion of love—more specifically, the love between dog and owner. Buck feels more for Thornton than he ever has for a human before—including when he was leading the good life back in sunny California. He shows his love by biting Thornton gently. He starts hearing this same "call from the wild;" he has this yearning to go live in the woods and hunt and howl. To demonstrate how loyal Buck is, Thornton tells him to jump off a cliff. Buck starts to do it, but Thornton pulls him back. It was the least he could do.
The dogs finally finish their exhaustive journey. They’re in a shoddy state. They meet characters who become their new owners: Hal, Charles, and Mercedes. These people (especially Mercedes) have enough luggage for about eight people because they don’t know how to pack light. These wise old guys watching Hal, Charles, and Mercedes pack all their stuff onto the sled keep insisting their sled's too heavy.
Hal and Charles are arrogant, proud, and not so nice. They refuse to take advice, and the dogs aren’t able to pull the heavy load. Mercedes starts coddling the dogs, insisting that the men don’t hurt the dogs. |
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