What are good books and gifts for a horse-mad child?

For a horse-mad child, pair a pony book at the right reading level with something that brings real horses closer. A riding lesson, Pony Club membership or sponsoring a rescued pony all work, and a personalised book can put them in the story with a horse of their own.

The first thing you’ll want to know is whether they ride already. A child who has lessons every Saturday needs different things from one who’s never sat on a pony, so we’ve split the gift ideas that way. If you’re shopping for more than one child, our personalised Christmas gifts for kids guide sorts ideas by age. Aunties and uncles might like our Christmas gifts for a niece or nephew too.

The short version

1. Choose a horse book for their reading stage. You’ll find the ages below.
2. For a child who rides, give kit that’s theirs, like a grooming kit or riding gloves.
3. If they don’t ride yet, book a lesson at an approved riding school, once the parents say yes.
4. Sponsor a rescued pony for a child who can’t ride at all.
5. For a keepsake, choose a personalised story where their own horse turns out to be magical.

Horse and pony books by age

We’d choose a horse book by age first, however much they already know about horses. Under 5, it’s a picture book you read to them. Around 5, short illustrated chapter books let them try a page or two alone. From 9 the stories get longer, and a few are sad, so we’ve flagged the heaviest. The age bands you’ll see are BookTrust’s.

Up to age 5

BookTrust lists The Horse That Jumped by Thomas Docherty for ages 0 to 7. It’s a picture book about making time for adventures and for friends. You could pair it with a first fact book about horses and ponies, with big photos, for the toddler who wants to know the name of every breed.

Ages 5 to 8

• Spellbound Ponies: Magic and Mischief by Stacy Gregg (5 to 9). A magical ghost story starring a highway horse called Bad Bess, with pictures in every chapter. It opens a series of magical pony adventures.
• Meg and Merlin: Making Friends by Tanya Landman, illustrated by Sònia Albert (5 to 9). On her birthday, Meg finds a pony in her front garden and has to give him back. Short chapters, written with reluctant readers in mind.
• Pony on the Twelfth Floor by Polly Faber, illustrated by Sarah Jennings (5 to 14). A very cheeky pony and plenty of jokes.
• The Racehorse Who Wouldn’t Gallop by Clare Balding, illustrated by Tony Ross (5 to 14). Charlie is sure Noble Warrior can win the Derby and save the family farm.

Ages 9 to 14

• Finding Wonder by Lauren St John, illustrated by Levi Pinfold and Marie-Alice Harel (9 to 14). Roo can suddenly buy a horse, but the one she wants is stolen.
• Stableheart: Helping Hero by Nicci Johnson (9 to 14). Pres has moved to Birmingham to live with her aunt, and the story asks whether she and Hero the pony can help each other heal from a difficult past.
• War Horse by Michael Morpurgo, illustrated by François Place (9 to 14). Joey, a young farm horse, is sold to the army at the start of the First World War, and the reader sees the Western Front through his eyes. It’s the heaviest read here.

BookTrust’s list of books about horses and ponies (2026) has these and more, so you can read a short review of each and check its age band.

Gifts for children who already ride

If they ride already, you can give them kit that’s properly theirs. Here’s what we’d give:

• A grooming kit of their own. Fill a bag with a body brush, a curry comb and a hoof pick, and put their name on it.
• Winter riding gloves and long socks, because lessons in the cold months are chilly.
• A rosette board, or a riding diary to log every pony they ride.
• Model horses and a stable to set up at home, for the days between lessons.

Leave the riding hat to the parents and the riding school. The Pony Club says riders need a properly fitted riding helmet, and that most riding schools have helmets you can borrow for lessons (The Pony Club, learning to ride, 2026).

Gifts for children who don’t ride yet

Your gift can be the first step towards real horses for a child who’s never ridden. Just check with the parents before you book anything.

• A riding lesson. In the UK, the British Horse Society keeps a list of its approved riding centres (2026), so you can find one near them.
• Pony Club Centre membership (UK). They won’t need a pony of their own. The Pony Club says its Centres work with riding schools across the UK, so members ride the riding centre’s horses (The Pony Club, Centre membership, 2026).
• A rescued pony to sponsor. The horse charity Redwings runs an adoption scheme and says an adoption makes a great gift. You choose from its Adoption Stars, and the pack includes a certificate, a photo and rescue story, and three postal updates a year, one of them at Christmas (Redwings, 2026). It’s a lovely one for a child who can’t ride at all.
• A hobby horse, for galloping round the garden.

A book and a gift for a horse-mad 7 year old

For a horse-mad 7 year old, we’d pair an illustrated pony chapter book with one real-horse gift. Spellbound Ponies or Meg and Merlin would suit, and you could add a lesson at an approved riding school if the parents are happy.

If you’d like a personalised book, My Secret Unicorn from The Kids Book Company puts the child into the story with a horse or pony of their own. They rescue a hurt unicorn and find out their horse is magical. You choose from 8 children and 6 horses or ponies, and it’s made for ages 0 to 9. Read it together the first time if you can, then leave it by their bed.

Their own pony, in their own story

You can bring the pony they love into the book twice. First, pick whichever of the book’s horses and ponies looks most like the real one. That might be their own, the one they ride on Saturdays or one they say hello to over a gate. Then name the real pony in your message, which we print at the front for free. Say Jamie rides a pony called Biscuit. You might write ‘For Jamie, who’d ride Biscuit to school if we let him. Love, Auntie Kate.’ Now Biscuit’s in the book for good, right next to Jamie.

There’s a reason the horse matters so much in this one. My Secret Unicorn was inspired by Missy, a real horse in Colin’s care.

If the magic matters as much as the mucking out, have a look at our unicorn books and gifts, sorted by age.

How The Kids Book Company helps

Of our four personalised books, My Secret Unicorn is the one we’d give a horse lover. We ship anywhere in the world, so distance isn’t a problem. You can send the book to a different country from your billing address.

Every one of our books also has a free personalised digital edition through the Free Book Project. It takes you under five minutes to make, and there’s no credit card. You just create an account with your email so we can send you the PDF.

Create their free book.

Related questions

What’s a unique gift for a horse lover?

We’d pick something that brings real horses closer. Sponsoring a rescued pony through a horse charity, a lesson at an approved riding school or a personalised story with a horse of their own in it all work. Each one gives them a horse they can name, and you’ll hear all about it.

What’s a good gift for a child who has their own pony?

Kit for the pony and for them. Their own grooming kit, a headcollar and lead rope in their favourite colour, or a rosette board for the bedroom would all go down well. Check sizes with the parents first, and leave anything to do with safety, like a riding hat, to them.

What’s a horse lover called?

Someone who rides horses is an equestrian, though it’s a fairly formal word. In everyday British English, a child who loves horses is horse-mad or pony-mad, and you’ll usually know within a minute of meeting them.

What are good horse books for a 5 year old?

At 5, you’ll still be reading picture books aloud, such as The Horse That Jumped (BookTrust: 0 to 7). For reading together, try a first chapter book with pictures in every chapter, like Spellbound Ponies: Magic and Mischief (5 to 9).