Quincy Moves to the Desert

In this handsome sequel to Quincy Finds a New Home, the title character, a horse whose "coat was the color of a new penny," takes a cross-country trip from a New York State farm to his new home in New Mexico. After Quincy and his best friend Beau, a wise older horse, are loaded onto a horse trailer, a sequence of U.S. maps charts their journey. Beau shares tidbits about the horses they see from the window and the tasks those horses are performing: draft horses pull farm equipment in Pennsylvania Amish country, thoroughbreds race on a track in Kentucky, and a cowboy rides another horse at a Texas rodeo. Matthews's narrative moves ahead at a steady clip, and Beau imparts a good amount of information about different horses and their jobs to Quincy and, by extension, readers. Black's polished paintings are a highlight, and many scenes have a photographic crispness. The story ends with Quincy's question about what job he'll be given in New Mexico left unanswered%E2%80%94perhaps leaving the gate open for a follow- up tale. Ages 6%E2%80%9312.