Gladys Lister (1887-1957)

Australian author born in 1887 in Hawthorn in the state of Victoria. Gladys Lister was one of 10 children born to American immigrants who settled in Australia. She first studied painting but later turned to writing children's books. She also illustrated books.

Her stories include a short pony series which is interesting in that it is set in a number of different countries. She also wrote a non-pony series for younger readers in which one of the stories includes a Brumby.

Starlight Series:
A pony series which is also concerned with music and travel. Set in both Australia and England.

POSSIBLE READING ORDER:

1) STARLIGHT BELONGS TO ME
(COLLINS [UK] 1951)
ILLUSTRATED BY FRANK VARTY
Reprinted in hardback by original publisher.
As far as I know there was no Australian publication and the UK printing was the first edition.
SUMMARY: Pam loves music but also the beautiful Arab Starlight.

2) A STAR FOR STARLIGHT
(ANGUS & ROBERTSON  [AUSTRALIA] 1950)
(1st UK edition COLLINS 1953)
ILLUSTRATED BY FRANK VARTY
Reprinted in the UK by The Childrens Press.
SUMMARY: When Pam, a gifted young musician, wins a scholarship to the Royal College of Music in  London she is torn between fulfilling her musical ambitions and leaving behind her beloved horse Starlight. She sets off on a cruise ship with her family and her friend Daniel, planning to do some sightseeing in various countries before arriving in the UK. As they travel they meet a mysterious stranger and find out there are some nefarious plans hatching involving Starlight…
PONYMAD VIEW: This is rather an oddity. It is a bit of a mish mash of genres, from pony story to mystery to travelogue. The plot is extremely convoluted and even more unlikely. However on the plus side the backdrop of the various countries that are visited on the journey is interesting and the characters are likeable enough.
PONYMAD RATING: 2-3 HORSESHOES

3) QUEST FOR STARLIGHT
(ANGUS & ROBERTSON [AUSTRALIA] 1956)
(1st UK edition COLLINS 1953)
ILLUSTRATED BY FRANK VARTY
SUMMARY: Starlight and Pam are now together in England. Pam and English girl Joanne are united by their shared love of the horse.

Collectors Info:
Rather odd publishing history in that the reading order does not match the publishing order. Also the first book in the series was not actually published in Australia, but in the UK only. The other two were published in both Australia and the UK. Also, rather oddly, the UK editions of these are far easier to find than the Australian ones, even in Australia; in fact these two titles are a lot easier to find in the UK than in their native country. In both the UK and Australia, and also elsewhere, A Star for Starlight is by far the easiest of the trio to find and is usually quite cheap.

Other Horse & Pony Books:

LEAFY AND PRINCE BRUMBY
(DAWNFOX [AUSTRALIA] 1944)
ILLUSTRATED BY JOYCE ABBOTT
SUMMARY: Part the 'Leafy' series, a longer non-pony  fantasy series for younger readers. In this story Leafy meets an Australian brumby.

Collectors Info:
Harder to find and usually more expensive than the 'Starlight' books. Unlike them, it is much easier to find in Australia than the UK.