The following version of the novel was used to create this study guide: Evans, Nicholas. The Horse Whisperer. Dell, December 15, 2009. Kindle.

In The Horse Whisperer, a novel by Nicholas Evans, Grace Maclean has decided she will never ride again after an accident that left her and her horse, Pilgrim, badly injured and Grace’s friend and her horse dead. Grace’s mother, Annie Graves Maclean, believed that for her daughter to heal, she needed to seek healing for Pilgrim, who had become violent and antisocial as a result of his experience. Annie sought help from Tom Booker, a horse “whisperer” able to communicate with horses and help them heal.

One snowy winter morning, Grace and her best friend, Judith, went out riding. They took a wrong path and had to ride down an access road to a mill to make their way back to the stables. As they were making their way off the road up a steep hill, Judith’s horse, Gulliver slid on ice and crashed into Pilgrim, sending them both into the roadway. Judith had fallen from Gulliver during the slide and gotten her foot caught in the stirrup. Before either girl could react, a tractor-trailer came around the bend in the road. The driver tried to stop, but put the vehicle into a jackknife. Pilgrim reared up at the truck as if to fend it off, throwing Grace from his back. Gulliver and Judith were caught between the jackknifing trailer and truck, killing them.

The truck had run over Grace’s right leg, and it had to be amputated. Grace’s physical injuries healed well, but her mother suspected she was not healing emotionally because she refused to ride again and avoided talking about Pilgrim. Meanwhile, Pilgrim also survived the crash, to the surprise of his veterinarian, even though the vet believed it would have been best to euthanize him. Pilgrim was traumatized and violent after the wreck. The vet had to take drastic measures to trap Pilgrim for any treatment, further traumatizing the horse.

Since Annie believed Grace’s recovery was dependent on Pilgrim’s recovery, she located Tom and flew him to New York to see Pilgrim. Tom was so angered by the conditions under which Pilgrim was being kept that he left without talking to Annie. Refusing to give up, Annie drove Grace and Pilgrim to Montana where Tom’s ranch was located. Because Tom could see Grace was hiding her interest in Pilgrim and because he believed he could help the horse, the daughter, and her mother, Tom agreed to work with Pilgrim. As Tom worked with Pilgrim, he developed a trusting relationship with Grace and Annie. Even though he knew Annie was married, the two had an affair.

In time, Tom was able to help Pilgrim heal. The climax of his recovery came when Pilgrim relented from his distrust and allowed Grace to ride him. During a party to celebrate Pilgrim’s recovery, Grace overheard gossip that her mother and Tom were having an affair. Grace was angry with them both for betraying her trust. She rode away on Pilgrim. She intended to ride to a mountain cabin where she knew her mother and Tom had spent time together. In retaliation, she planned to set fire to the cabin and die in the fire.

Instead, Grace and Pilgrim were accosted by a gang of wild horses, the leader of which fought with Pilgrim. Tom located Grace watching as Pilgrim and the lead stallion fought. He broke up the fight and sent Pilgrim to safety, but Tom remained to face the wild horse. As Grace watched, she believed Tom challenged the horse and then did not move to safety when the horse reared up, hitting Tom and killing him.

Months later, Annie, who had been unable to carry a baby to term after Grace, gave birth to a baby boy. He had Tom’s blue eyes. Annie believed it was the baby who healed her family after Tom’s death and her admission to Robert that she had an affair. Robert never asked if the baby was his, but he was slowly spending more and more time with Annie. Grace, meanwhile, was riding again. She had not only Pilgrim, but Tom had already arranged before his death for her to be given a foal the two of them had worked together to break.