'Roo Rescue! Noni the Pony Rescues a Joey by Alison Lester

Noni the Pony heads out one day with her buddies Coco the Cat and Dave the Dog for a leafy green trail ride.

But who is that sad little fellow with a long tail on the trail?

It's a wallaby joey, all on his own,
who says in a soft voice, "I want to go home."

The lost little joey is in luck. The three friends want to help, and Noni quickly comes up with a plan.

"We'll ask on the way.
Your wallaby mob can't be far away."

But Koala is drowsy and refuses to be disturbed. Wombat has been in asleep in his burrow and knows nothing. Platypus is so shy that when asked, she just swims away. Emu has eyes only for her five chicks, and the nocturnal Goanna, Quoll, and Possum are snoozing, uninterested in wandering wallaby mobs.

The little wallaby is too worried to smile, so Noni invites him to come home with her for awhile. The sun is fading and the little Joey is shedding tears when they reach Noni's home, but...

... the Joey sees... his mob of wallabies, looking for him.

The little lost Joey is found and is soon happily on his way home, in Alison Lester's sweet story of a lost and found little one, Noni the Pony Rescues a Joey (Simon and Schuster, 2019). Being lost from home and family is a common fear of youngsters, and Alison Lester's third book in her Noni series, is an upbeat rhyming narration, with her charming, well-rounded little spotted pony and pals ready to pitch in to help out in a reassuring story with a happy homecoming.

Other books by author-illustrator Allison Lester are Noni the Pony and Noni the Pony Goes to the Beach.

Trot with Me: Noni the Pony by Alison Lester

NONI THE PONY IS SHINY AND FAT.

HER BEST FRIENDS ARE DAVE DOG AND COCO  CAT.

Noni is the pony that every boy and girl would want to bring home. She loves to dance and gallop for the entertainment of the cows, ducks and hens, but her favorite fun is playing chase and hide-and-seek with her friends Coco and Dave. Coco even gets to go for a trot on Noni’s back.

But Noni is not just a fair-weather friend. If their day ever turns wet and gray, well, Noni has tales to liven up the day. She almost never frets or even has a fright...

BUT ONE IN A WHILE, SHE GETS SPOOKED IN THE
NIGHT!”

Well, who doesn’t? But when Noni snuggles up with her friends, what can go wrong?

THEN NONI THE PONY SLEEPS ALL NIGHT LONG.

Noted for her realistic illustrations of horses in Running with the Horses and Quicksand Pony, the admittedly Horse Crazy author-illustrator Alison Lester turns her talents this time to the youngest of horse fanciers in her newest, Noni the Pony (Beach Lane Books, 2012). Here Lester’s simple rhyming verse trots along on the page with as much zest as her subject, and her stylized drawings of this dappled equine move with an easy gait to tell the story of this pony’s playful day. Lester’s big-eyed pinto is sweet and perky as a pony should be, and the artist alternates a bright white background with varied full-color bleeds so that each page appears fresh and full of fun. Noni is a pony that every little horse lover can keep (with no stalls to sweep!).