This Native American story is about a grandfather telling a young boy about a story he loves to hear; it is his story. The Grandfather tells his Grandsons birth and his struggle to survive in his small feeble body. The worried Grandfather knew he was close to death and took him to see the sunrise but, the baby never opened his eyes. A herd of blue horses stopped at the baby and brought life to him. He raised his arms to the blue horses and was named “Boy-Strength-of-Blue-Horses”. At that moment the boy grew strong. The Blue Horses gave him power to overcome. The boy was born with a “dark curtain in front of [his] eyes” which created obstacles for the boy. But the strength that he gained from the blue horses gave him the ability to feel the sky on his face and even race his horse. He overcame obstacles because he had the power of the blue horses and trusted his blindness. As the story of the boy’s life comes to an end a knot is tied on a rope; this is used to let the boy know that he knows the story by heart once the rope is full of knots because his Grandfather will not be there forever to tell the story he loves so deeply. I would use this book in a classroom discussion about inferences. This book never says that the boy is blind but makes several hints. For instance, blindness is referred to as a dark curtain and there is mention that he has to count the gallops that the horse makes as he trusts that it will take him back home.
