Return to Chincoteague: New Book To Inspire the Next Generation
Written by Sarah Hickner | Image courtesy of Susan Friedland
Seventy-nine years ago, Marguerite Henry wrote a book that would capture the hearts of millions of children and turn a small-town fundraiser into a nationwide treasure. “Misty of Chincoteague” became more than a book; it was a piece of every horse-obsessed kid’s childhood. Now, Susan Friedland, a Marguerite Henry historian, and Cameron Rouse, a local equestrian artist, have created a picture book, bringing the excitement of that same pony swim to a new generation of readers.
Marguerite Henry Inspired a Generation
Marguerite Henry authored 59 stories over the course of her 55-year career, and her equestrian-themed tales are still beloved classics. “Misty of Chincoteague” is one of her most famous.
Readers of the novel held their breath as a Spanish galleon ran aground, spilling its cargo of ponies onto the uninhabited shores of Assateague Island, and dreamed alongside Paul and Maureen Beebe as they worked around their grandparents’ farm, saving every penny in hopes of buying their own pony on Pony Penning Day. And, when the Beebes lost the auction for Phantom and her foal Misty, only to be given a second chance at bringing them home, bookworms both young and old experienced the emotion jumping off the pages.
“I wanted to know who Marguerite Henry was as a writer and a horsewoman, so I dove into the research rabbit hole and never came out.” –Friedland
Susan Friedland’s Journey to Chincoteague
Susan Friedland was one of many people enchanted by Henry’s stories. She grew up near Chicago, Illinois, five miles from where Henry had lived and stabled the real-life Misty of Chincoteague. Friedland taught history before leaving the classroom to combine two of her great loves: horses and horse stories.
“I wanted to know who Marguerite Henry was as a writer and a horsewoman, so I dove into the research rabbit hole and never came out. Even though I never met her, through my local equestrian connections, I was able to meet people who attended Misty’s birthday parties and even rode Misty,” Friedland says.
She has published multiple works about Henry and the wild pony swim, and has become a familiar presence during Chincoteague Island’s Pony Penning week. The Museum of Chincoteague Island and Chincoteague Island Library often invite her to share stories from her research and the writing journey behind “Marguerite, Misty, and Me.” Part memoir and part biography of Marguerite Henry, the title has even been adapted into a middle-grade edition.
Cameron Rouse Creates Whimsy and Joy Through Art
Friedland and Rouse, introduced by a mutual friend, attended the 100th wild pony swim together last July. On a boat between Chincoteague and Assateague, Rouse experienced the magic of scenes that previously she had only read about. “It brought me to tears,” she shares about watching the ponies swim the channel. “It’s wild. I didn’t think I would care about it that much, but now I’m telling everyone to come! I can’t believe this is so close to where I grew up.”
Cameron Rouse took her passion for all things horses to the creative world of art and graphic design. She has created breathtaking paintings for local horse owners, manages social media accounts for professional equestrians, and most recently brought her art to the page.
“I’ve always loved drawing horses, painting horses, and even photographing horses — someday I’d love to start sculpting them!” –Rouse
With the 101st wild pony swim and auction around the corner on July 29, Friedland and Rouse recreate the magic of the pony swim in Friedland’s upcoming children’s picture book, “Swirl: My Wild Island Pony.”
Across 32 pages, readers will journey alongside a little girl who has always dreamed of having a pony of her own. They’ll meet Swirl, a sweet foal, and they’ll have a chance encounter with three sisters who purchase a foal through Chincoteague’s beloved “buy-back” tradition, returning her to the island so she can remain wild and belong, in a way, to everyone.
Rouse’s whimsical watercolor illustrations will have every horse lover wishing for a Swirl of their own.
“I’ve always loved drawing horses, painting horses, and even photographing horses — someday I’d love to start sculpting them! At pony club rallies growing up, I would be sitting in the tack room doing custom puffy paint hats, basically a custom little portrait of my friends and their horses on a ballcap,” Rouse says.
For her, seeing the wild pony swim in real life, along with the carnival and the auction, has helped her bring Swirl’s story and one of the country’s most beloved equestrian traditions to life.
Through Friedland’s storytelling and Rouse’s watercolor illustrations, the legacy of Marguerite Henry lives on, inviting a new generation of children to fall in love with Chincoteague’s wild ponies for the very first time. ML
Order your copy of “Swirl: My Wild Island Pony” at swirlpony.com.
Published in the July 2026 issue of Middleburg Life.