Sophie in the Saddle by Dick King-Smith

Sophie wants to be a lady farmer when she grows up, and she has a large collection of animals. She already has herds of insects, a rabbit and a cat and now she has a puppy too - Puddles the terrier has joined the family, named and trained by Sophie. In Cornwall for the summer holidays, Sophie feeds a Vietnamese pot-bellied pig, stays on a farm, meets some new friends and starts riding lessons. She also learns to swim, encounters an old enemy on the beach and has her first ever horseback ride on Bumblebee, a grey pony: she turns out to be a natural rider. When she learns that riding lessons are very expensive, she is sad to have to stop until next summer - but luckily Aunt Al comes to the rescue...The Sophie stories, written by Dick King-Smith, are perennial classics, loved by generations of children. Centred on the adventures of a confident, animal-loving little girl, they are perfect for any child who loves to play and explore the world around them.

Talking books are a really good way for children to appreciate tales, no matter if they are ok readers or just like a story read to them. Young kids can hear talking books in all sorts of spaces. A boy or girl can listen to an audio book walking to school. You can listen to an audiobook in CD format on a CD player or convert it to mp3 format and listen on an ipod, there are instructions on how to translate to mp3 here

Sophie in the Saddle by Dick King-Smith