Paul Brown (1893-1958)

American author and illustrator, best known for his lovely illustrations of many equine books stories, but he did also write and illustrate some pony stories of his own. This page will be concentrating only on the books he wrote as this website is about authors rather than illustrators.

He was born in 1893 in Minnesota and began sketching from an early age. He was one of America's premier illustrators of books about horses and equine sports. He did not ride or own a horse but he spent innumerable hours studying them and was a big fan of racing, polo and horseshows. As well as the many non-fiction equestrian books he illustrated, there were also lots of children's stories. In the 1930s he began to write his own pony stories illustrated with his own work. These were mainly books for younger readers/picture books.

He also provided illustrations for numerous magazines and worked as a commercial artist for Brooks Brothers.

Because Paul Brown is one of the most sought after illustrators of equine books in America: most of the books he wrote and many that he illustrated are highly collectable and can be pricey.

Bud & Lynn Series:

1) PONY FARM
(SCRIBNER [USA] 1948)
ILLUSTRATED BY THE AUTHOR
Reprinted in paperback.
Also a German edition.
SUMMARY: Bud and Lynn live at Pony Farm where its lots of fun riding and watching the colts grow up and be trained.

2) PONY SCHOOL
(SCRIBNER [USA] 1950)
ILLUSTRATED BY THE AUTHOR
SUMMARY: Bud and Lynn's cousin Skinny comes to visit them at Pony Farm where he learns all about ponies.

Collector's Info:
The paperback edition of Pony Farm is fairly easy to find in the USA, though hardbacks are harder. Pony School is rarer and usually quite a bit more expensive. Not easy to find elsewhere, though the Pony Farm paperback should not be too expensive to import from the USA. There was also a German edition of Pony Farm which is reasonably easy to find there.

Other Horse & Pony Books:

CRAZY QUILT
(SCRIBNER [USA] 1934)
ILLUSTRATED BY THE AUTHOR
SUMMARY:  Picture book. The story of a piebald circus pony and his friends.

WAR PAINT AN INDIAN PONY
(SCRIBNER [USA] 1934)
ILLUSTRATED BY THE AUTHOR
SUMMARY: Picture book. Story of the wild pony War Paint who becomes the mount of an Indian brave.

PIPER'S PONY: THE STORY OF PATCHWORK
(SCRIBNER [USA] 1935)
ILLUSTRATED BY THE AUTHOR
Rare
SUMMARY: The story of Piper and his Shetland pony Patchwork.

MERRYLEGS THE ROCKING PONY
(SCRIBNER [USA] 1946)
ILLUSTRATED BY THE AUTHOR
Very rare.
SUMMARY: Picture book. The dapple grey rocking horse is bought for a family of unruly children.

SILVER HEELS
(SCRIBNER [USA] 1951)
ILLUSTRATED BY THE AUTHOR
Rare.
SUMMARY: Silver Heels is a Welsh Cross owned by Larry and Lorna. Not only can he teach beginners to ride but he can keep up with the big horses on the hunting field!

DAFFY TAFFY
(SCRIBNER [USA] 1955)
ILLUSTRATED BY THE AUTHOR
SUMMARY: Picture book. Welsh pony Taffy wants to be like the other animals on the farm. But eventually realises it is best just to be himself!

SPARKIE AND PUFF BALL
(SCRIBNER [USA] 1954)
ILLUSTRATED BY THE AUTHOR
Fairly rare.
SUMMARY: Sparkie Parker visits his uncle's ranch and learns to ride on the grey pony Puff Ball.

YOUR PONY'S TREK AROUND THE WORLD
(SCRIBNER [USA] 1956)
ILLUSTRATED BY THE AUTHOR
SUMMARY: Fictionalised pictorial guide to the equine history and breeds of the world. A Shetland pony tells the story.

Collector's Info:
In the USA rarity varies amongst these titles, though none are particularly common. The most easily found and cheaper titles are Crazy Quilt, War Paint and Daffy Taffy. Piper's Pony and Silver Heels are rare and can be fairly expensive. The hardest of the lot to find is Merrylegs and a copy of this title will usually be priced accordingly.
All the titles are very hard to find outside of the USA