Phoenix by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

• Publisher: Dial Books
• Publication Date: March 3, 2026
• Reviewed from NetGalley e-galley
• ISBN: 9780593859865

When Harper discovers that her dad cheated on her mom with her best friend’s mother, her world implodes. Her parents are getting a divorce and Harper just can’t go to school where everyone seems to know what happened. Harper and her mother pack up and leave, moving to a new town and a tiny house that is part of a horse farm. Now Harper has to start all over again, but she is so sad about what has happened that she doesn’t know how to move on or change anything. Harper has never been around horses but finds that she understands them. When Phoenix is literally dumped at the farm, Harper decides to rescue him after one look in his eyes. Phoenix is underweight, underfed and had been left for dead, but with slow steps, Harper starts to rescue him and herself.

Bradley, author of award-winning books like The War That Saved My Life, shows herself to be a horse girl through and through. Readers will love the horse focus of the book, Harper discovering her love for them and how horses form a bridge forward. Among the lovely horse moments, Bradley demonstrates her writing skill as she weaves in Harper’s grief over her family’s changes, the difficulty of friendships in middle school, micro and macro aggressions, and just a touch of dog love too. Strong and confident writing as well as a deep horse-filled humanity make this a must-read.

Definitely worth the ride. Appropriate for ages 8-12.