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A heart-warming tale of unconditional friendship and loyalty

Horse in Boots

Jef Aerts

Fieke has struck up a deep friendship with old Olga and her horse Lasse. Lasse is a former circus horse who once burnt his hooves in a terrible accident, so he has to walk in leather boots to spare his tender feet. Olga makes Fieke promise to take care of Lasse if she dies. When that actually happens, it turns out to be more difficult than expected to keep a horse in a terraced house. Fieke goes in search of another solution, but she finds that she has competition. Lasse’s former owner, Baruso the clown, wants him back, whatever the cost. With the help of her new friend Vos, Fieke tries to hide Lasse. She is determined to keep her final promise to Olga.

A fine adventure with echoes of Astrid Lindgren
NRC Handelsblad

'Horse in Boots' is Jef Aerts' third powerful children's novel in a row. Aerts excels in combining adventure and excitement in poetic language full of subtle metaphors. The moving friendship between a girl, a horse and an elderly woman is rendered in a succint but richly evocative style. In his clear, figurative language, Jef Aerts convincingly shows how love and hate can lie close to one another and not everything is what it seems.

A subtle story about how intense the connection between humans and animals can be
De Standaard