Rex Dixon aka Robert Martin (1900-1971)

Popular British author of boy's adventure stories of the 1950s and 60s, not to be confused with Hardy Boy's author Franklin W. Dixon! Real name Reginald Alec Martin. He wrote a number of books under a variety of pseudonyms, including Robert Martin and E.C. Elliott. Most of them formed quite long-running series including the 'Kemlo', 'Pocomoto' and 'Joey' series. A lot of his stories feature horses, although none are traditional pony stories. The 'Pocomoto' books are a a cowboy/ranch series set in the American 'wild west' in which horses (and a burro!) feature prominently. One of the 'Joey' series, written under the name of Robert Martin, featured a pony, and a horse even appeared in one of the books in his 'Kemlo' science fiction series, written under the name of E. C. Elliot.

Unfortunately there seems to be little biographical information around regarding the author. If you do know anything of interest I would love to hear from you.

As Rex Dixon:

The Pocomoto Series:
Cowboy/ranching type series about a young orphan boy called Pocomoto who, when a baby, is the sole survivor of an Indian massacre, and is found and raised by two old prospectors. He has close bonds with his palomino Goldflash and his self-opinionated burro Horace. The series is mainly focused on the adventures he has with his friends and animals, but also explores deeper issues such as how an outsider like Pocomoto learns to fit in with normal society.

1) POCOMOTO: PONY EXPRESS RIDER
(NELSON 1953)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN
Reprinted in paperback by Merlin/Hamlyn

2) POCOMOTO: TENDERFOOT
(NELSON 1953)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN
Reprinted in paperback by Merlin/Hamlyn

3) POCOMOTO: BRONCO BUSTER
(NELSON 1953)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

4) POCOMOTO AND THE NIGHT-RIDERS
(NELSON 1953)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN
Reprinted in paperback by Nelson

5) POCOMOTO AND THE CANYON TREASURE
(NELSON 1954)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN
Reprinted in paperback by Nelson

6) POCOMOTO: BRUSH POPPER
(NELSON 1954)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

7) POCOMOTO AND THE L'IL FELLA
(NELSON 1954)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

8) POCOMOTO: BUFFALO HUNTER
(NELSON 1954)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

9) POCOMOTO: COWBOY CAVALIER
(NELSON 1955)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN
Reprinted in paperback by Nelson

10) POCOMOTO AND THE LAZY RIVER
(NELSON 1955)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

11) POCOMOTO AND THE SNOW WOLF
(NELSON 1955)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

12) POCOMOTO AND THE INDIAN TRAILS
(NELSON 1956)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

13) POCOMOTO AND THE ROBBERS' TRAIL
(NELSON 1956)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN
Reprinted in paperback by Merlin/Hamlyn

14) POCOMOTO AND THE SPANISH STEED
(NELSON 1957)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

15) POCOMOTO AND THE DESERT GOLD
(NELSON 1957)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN
Reprinted in paperback by Nelson

16) POCOMOTO AND THE CIRCUS FOLK
(NELSON 1957)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

17) POCOMOTO AND THE TEXAS PIONEERS
(NELSON 1958)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

18) POCOMOTO AND THE LAZY SHERIFF
(NELSON 1958)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

19) POCOMOTO AND THE LOST HUNTERS
(NELSON 1959)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

20) POCOMOTO AND THE TEXAS RANGERS
(NELSON 1960)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN
Reprinted in paperback by Merlin/Hamlyn

21) POCOMOTO AND THE GOLDEN HERD
(NELSON 1960)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

22) POCOMOTO AND THE WARRIOR BRAVES
(NELSON 1961)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

23) POCOMOTO AND THE MEXICAN BANDITS
(NELSON 1963)
ILLUSTRATED BY JACK HARMAN

Collectors Info:
Some of the books were reprinted in paperback, some by Nelson in their 'Nelson Junior' imprint, some by Hamlyn in their Merlin paperbacks imprint. I have marked those I know have been reprinted as paperbacks, but there may be others which I don't know about.
The books tend to vary a lot in availability and price. Generally the paperbacks are fairly easy to find and quite cheap, as are some of the hardback titles. Others, in particular Spanish Steed, Texas Pioneers, Golden Herd, Warrior Braves and Mexican Bandits, are much harder to track down and can be expensive.
Despite having an American setting, the books were published in the UK and are thus easier to find here than in America.

As Robert Martin:

JOEY AND THE MAGIC PONY
(NELSON 1958)
ILLUSTRATED BY T. R. FREEMAN
Reprinted by Nelson in hardback in 1959
SUMMARY: Part of the longer running 'Joey' series which is a general adventure series for younger readers about a boy called Joey, and is not otherwise about ponies. In this instalment Joey is spending a holiday on a farm in Somerset where a pony does feature.

Collectors Info:
Not a common title, but can be found without too much trouble in the UK and Australia. A lot harder to find however in the USA.

As E. C. Elliott

KEMLO AND THE SKY HORSE
(NELSON 1954)
ILLUSTRATED BY A. BRUCE CORNWELL
Reprinted by Nelson in hardback
SUMMARY: Part of the 'Kemlo' series which is a sci-fi adventure series set in space, following the exploits of the boy Kemlo and his friends. This title does however feature a horse, however I have not read it so I am not sure what the 'sky horse' actually is!
To find out more about the rest of the series click here

Collectors Info:
Fairly hard to find and can be expensive.