The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse by William Saroyan

First published: 1940

Type of plot: Wit and humor

Time of work: The early twentieth century

Locale: The Central Valley of California

Principal Characters:

• Aram Garoghlanian, a nine-year-old boy
• Mourad, Aram's cousin
• Uncle Khosrove, Aram and Mourad's uncle
• John Byro, a neighbor

The Story

"The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse" is narrated by nine-year-old Aram Garoghlanian, a member of an Armenian community living among the lush fruit orchards and vineyards of California. One morning Aram is awakened before dawn by his older cousin Mourad, who everyone thinks is crazy. Aram is astonished to see that Mourad is sitting on a beautiful white horse. Aram has always wanted to ride a horse, but his family is too poor to afford one. However, the Garoghlanian family is noted not only for its poverty but also for its honesty, so it is unthinkable that Mourad could have stolen the horse.

Nevertheless, Aram asks Mourad if he has stolen the horse, and Mourad invites him to jump out the window if he wants to go for a ride. Now Aram is sure that Mourad has stolen the horse, but he jumps up behind Mourad, and the two of them begin to ride out of the little town in which they live.

As they ride, Mourad begins to sing. Everybody in the family thinks that Mourad has inherited his crazy behavior from Uncle Khosrove, a huge man who can stop all discussions and arguments by bellowing at the top of his loud voice, "It is no harm; pay no attention to it." Khosrove once said this when told that his house was on fire. Although Mourad is not Khosrove's son, this fact does not matter to the Armenians. They think that it is Khosrove's spirit that Mourad has inherited, not his flesh.

When they reach the open country, Aram wants to ride the horse by himself, but Mourad reminds him that it is up to the horse. Mourad can ride because, he says, "I have a way with a horse." When Aram tries to ride the horse, he cannot control the animal, and it throws him. The two boys find the runaway horse, hide him in an abandoned barn, and go home.

That afternoon, Uncle Khosrove comes to Aram's house to smoke cigarettes and drink coffee. John Byro, an Assyrian farmer, also comes by for a visit and complains that his white horse was stolen last month. Uncle Khosrove roars, "Pay no attention to it." John Byro says that he walked ten miles to get to Aram's house, causing pains in his legs, and Uncle Khosrove again bellows that he should pay no attention to it. John Byro points out that he paid sixty dollars for the horse, and Uncle Khosrove shouts, "I spit on money." John Byro stalks out of the house.

Aram runs to his cousin Mourad's house and finds him fixing the wing of a hurt bird. His cousin has a way with birds. Aram explains that John Byro visited and that he wants his horse back. He also reminds Mourad that Mourad had promised to keep the horse until Aram could learn how to ride. Mourad says that it might take a year for Aram to learn how to ride, so Aram suggests that they keep the horse for a year. Mourad roars that the horse must go back to its owner and that no Garoghlanian could ever steal. He says they will keep the horse for only another six months.

For two weeks, the boys take the horse out in the mornings for rides, and every morning Aram is thrown, but he never gives up hope that he will learn to ride like his cousin. One morning the boys meet John Byro as they are putting the horse away. Mourad explains that he will handle the situation, as he has a way with farmers. John Byro asks the name of the horse, and Mourad tells him that it is My Heart. The farmer says that he looks exactly like the horse that was stolen from him and, after inspecting the horse's teeth, says that the boy's horse could be his horse's twin. As he leaves them, he points out that, "A suspicious man would believe his eyes instead of his heart."

The next morning, the boys return the horse to John Byro's barn. The farmer's dogs do not bother them because Cousin Mourad has a way with dogs. He presses his nose against the horse's nose, and the boys leave. That afternoon John Byro rides by Aram's house in his surrey to show Aram's mother the horse that has been returned. He says that the horse is stronger and better-tempered than ever. Uncle Khosrove shouts, "Your horse has been returned. Pay no attention to it."

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