Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry

First published: 1947; illustrated

Subjects: Animals, emotions, family, friendship, and nature

Type of work: Novel

Type of plot: Adventure tale, domestic realism, and psychological realism

Time of work: The 1940’s

Recommended Ages: 10-15

Locale: Chincoteague and Assateague islands, off the coast of Virginia

Principal Characters:

• Phantom, an almost-mythical Assateague mare
• Misty, her magical foal
• Paul Beebe, a boy living on Chincoteague Island with his sister and grandparents while his parents are in China
• Maureen Beebe, his sister, who is slightly younger but determined to participate equally in all activities that she shares with her brother
• Grandpa Beebe, the owner of the Chincoteague ranch, where he and his wife reared fourteen children and where they now corral and sell wild ponies from Assateague
• Grandma Beebe, the wise and kindly country matriarch

Form and Content

Marguerite Henry’s Misty of Chincoteague is a thrilling horse story with appeal to readers of all ages. Based on real personalities and true events, the novel occurs in the unusual setting of two little-known islands off Virginia’s eastern shore. Here, wild ponies, supposedly the offspring of shipwrecked Moorish ancestors, are rounded up annually. Pervaded by the salty, Atlantic atmosphere, the book discloses much about the unique lifestyle of Chincoteague islanders and of the free-running ponies that inhabit the neighboring isle of Assateague, which is described as “The Island of Wild Things” where no people live.

Part 1, “Before Misty,” describes the legendary Spanish galleon Santo Cristo swallowed alive by “a wildcat sea”—sparing only one Peru-bound stallion and his fourteen mares, which manage to resurface on the marshes of Assateague Beach. Part 2 recalls two of these survivors’ descendants: the ethereal Phantom and her foal, Misty. Paul and Maureen Beebe, two horse-crazy grade-schoolers, decide during an afternoon outing to Assateague that they will catch and financially claim the formerly elusive Phantom during Chincoteague’s annual Pony Penning Day.

Four months away from this July celebration, the children resolve to earn auction money by raking clams, gathering oysters, catching crabs, and cleaning chicken houses. They bargain with Grandpa to halter-break his colts for extra dollars. They wash and scrape clean a stall for Phantom, building a manger and scrubbing a rain barrel. When it is time for Paul to assist the volunteer fire department in securing the pony penning grounds, Maureen offers to do his home chores.

Many poignant moments in the novel are exquisitely illustrated by Wesley Dennis’ black-and-white pencil drawings. In chapter 6, “Pony Penning Day,” Dennis’ work highlights the unfolding excitement as, for example, Paul rides off at last to join the roundup team with Grandpa hooting, “Obey yer leader. No matter what!” Amid the thundering chase, Paul is instructed to pursue a straggler. Heeding Grandpa’s advice, Paul wheels into the thicket, where he discovers the very prize that he believes himself to have just relinquished: “A silver flash . . . looked like mist with the sun on it . . . just beyond the mist . . . a long tail of mingled copper and silver.” The flash is Misty, “brand new, too little” to allow Phantom to keep pace with her flock. Phantom, in response to her mate’s summons, leads Misty and Paul straight to the roundup team. Other challenges must be overcome: Paul must swim the channel with the ponies in order to keep Misty afloat, Paul and Maureen almost lose their purchase option on Phantom and Misty, and the ponies are temporarily missing as a result of a storm.

Eventually, ownership of both ponies for the ensuing year teaches the Beebes that, despite the love that they share with Phantom, her chance at happiness is with her mate on the wild island. Paul and Maureen realize that their happiness results from hers and from Misty’s joy at remaining in their human world as a loyal, permanent pet.

Critical Context

Marguerite Henry’s books are clearly classics that will hold a permanent place of honor in juvenile literature. They are timeless because of their universally important themes regarding relationships between animals and humans and because they appeal so immediately to audiences of all ages. Misty of Chincoteague was awarded the Newbery Medal and secured Henry’s status as a world-famous author. Motion picture versions of the novel and of several of Henry’s other animal stories, such as Brighty of the Grand Canyon (1953) and Justin Morgan Had a Horse (1945), have been enthusiastically received. Several sequels to Misty of Chincoteague have also enjoyed popularity, such as Sea Star, Orphan of Chincoteague (1949) and Stormy, Misty’s Foal (1963).

Henry’s style is careful, concise, and purposeful. Her dialogue supports her developments of plot and character, and she delights in the use of appropriate regional vernacular. Her works emerge from meticulous research and extensive travels, and her settings encompass many diverse areas of the United States and Europe. Henry has created charming characters from various horses, dogs, cats, birds, foxes, and mules. Her animal and human characterizations are convincing, the interactions between them utterly believable. Her imaginative works promote wholesome values and positive, optimistic outcomes. Henry’s gifts as a storyteller are supreme; her works win and retain the attention of their young readers.

Misty of Chincoteague resulted in the development of a burgeoning tourist industry to Chincoteague Island and its July Pony Penning events, as well as to Assateague Island, which was named a national wildlife refuge. The Chincoteague Pony Association and other organizations have sprung from the ever-escalating public interest that Marguerite Henry’s series has done so much to generate.