A Boy, A Horse, and the Task of a Lifetime! A peasant boy is sent to find the best horse in the Duke's kingdom to add to the Royal Stable. This has never been done before! It is unheard of! A member of the royal court has always been given this task! But the boy says he will find the Duke a superlative horse. He travels the land and ignores many fine stallions brought before him, finally choosing one that has not even been groomed for showing! The Duke is furious but lets the boy test the horse in a chariot race against the best in his stable. Can he possibly win? The Superlative Horse adapts an ancient Taoist fable about character and courage grounded in an inspiring story. This book is also available from Echo Point Books as a hardcover (ISBN 163561984X) . Jean Merrill was the author of many books for children. She travelled to Asia in 1952 on a Fulbright Scholarship which is where the idea for The Superlative Horse originated. Many of her books revolve around the idea of the "little guy" overcoming long odds. Her book The Pushcart War was a finalist for the Newbury Award; it has been reprinted in dozens of languages. She lived on an old farm in Washington, Vermont, and in Randolph, Vermont.