Secretariat's Meadow: The Land, the Family, the Legend


Kate Chenery Tweedy - 2010
    Presents the story of how the Chenerey family came to breed and race Secretariat along with the history of the family and the land in which they bred racehorses.

Ephemeral


Andie Andrews - 2017
     It’s into this white-gloved arena that Clarissa Stamos, a reclusive, midlife romance writer is thrust when she decides to write a country-western romance. The only problem is—she’s never been on a horse. Clarissa signs up for riding lessons and finds relief from her troubled marriage and her darkest secrets in the company of horses who offer an intoxicating sense of freedom and daring. Before long, she impulsively buys an ex-rodeo horse who spurs her to take charge of her own destiny—or wind up in the dust. Complicating matters is an intriguing, Argentinian dressage trainer with secrets of his own. One part romance novel, one part literary fiction, one part love-affair-with-horses, Ephemeral is told from the viewpoint of a quirky, old cow horse who not only invites you into his world, but also shares his sensible and soulful outlook on human hearts and the meaning of true horsemanship.

Hold Your Horses: Nuggets of Truth for People Who Love Horses...No Matter What


Bonnie Timmons - 2003
    The pleasure of whoa. The surprise of the “unscheduled dismount.” And why, when jumping, to throw your heart over first. Drawing on her lifelong passion for horses and riding, award-winning artist Bonnie Timmons offers up a book full of whimsy and wisdom and a huge helping of giddy up. These are the truths as recorded by an astute observer:Of little girls who spend every minute after school mucking out the barn in hope of one trail rideOf the mechanics of riding: the walk, the trot, the canter, the gallop—a gait so fast your worries can’t keep upOf English vs. Cowboy-speak. Of Outfits and Accessories, and Good Horse-Keeping Tips, (including how to weigh your horse so you know how much to feed him: 1. Weigh yourself. 2. Weigh yourself holding your horse. 3. Subtract 1. from 2.)And finally, of knowing at the end of the day that when you hold your hoses, they will hold you right back

The Horse Whisperer


Nicholas Evans - 1995
    In a few terrible seconds the life of a family is shattered. And a mother's quest beings - to save her maimed daughter and a horse driven mad by pain. It is an odyssey that will bring her to...THE HORSE WHISPERERHe is the stuff of legend. His voice can calm wild horses and his touch heal broken spirits. For secrets uttered softly into pricked and troubled ears, such men were once called Whisperers. Now Tom Booker, the inheritor of this ancient gift, is to meet his greatest challenge.Annie Graves has traveled across a continent with her daughter, Grace, and their wounded horse, Pilgrim, to the Booker ranch in Montana. Annie has risked everything - her career, her marriage, her comfortable life - in her desperate belief that the Whisperer can help them. The accident has turned Pilgrim savage. He is now so demented and dangerous that everyone says he should be destroyed. But Annie won't give up on him. For she feels his fate is inextricably entwined with that of he daughter, who has retreated into a heartrending, hostile silence. Annie knows that if the horse dies, something in Grace will die too.In the weeks to come, under the massive sky of the Rocky Mountain Front, all their lives - including Tom Booker's - will be transformed forever in a way none could have foretold. At once an epic love story and a gripping adventure, The Horse Whisperer weaves an extraordinary tale of healing and redemption - a magnificent emotional journey that explores our ancient bonds with earth and sky and hearts untamed. It is a stirring elegy to the power of belief and self-discovery, to hopes lost and found again.

101 Jumping Exercises for Horse Rider


Linda L. Allen - 2002
    With straightforward instructions and clear arena maps, this guide can be hung on a pole and easily referenced from the saddle. In addition to clearly articulated goals and progressively difficult variations, each exercise also includes encouraging advice on what the rider should keep in mind while jumping. Saddle up and get ready to fly through the air with grace and confidence.

Album of Horses


Marguerite Henry - 1951
    The award-winning author of Misty of Chincoteague and King of the Wind describes in vivid detail the hardworking Shire, the elegant Lipizzan, the spirited Mustang, and many more. Each description is paired with a full color illustration by Wesley Dennis. This keepsake edition is a gorgeous addition to any collection of Henry’s books and a favorite for years to come!

Defining Gravity


Genevieve Mckay - 2017
    He controls her weight, her friends, and even her career path. And he doesn’t approve of anyone in their family thinking for themselves. When one impulsive decision ends in disaster, Astrid is grounded for the summer, forced to put her archery career on hold and take a menial job cleaning stalls at a posh dressage barn. It takes a little horse named Quarry and a quirky cast of characters to banish Astrid's unhappiness and show her that she is worth something. But when her father steps in, once again, everything Astrid has grown to love is threatened.

The Horse God Built


Lawrence Scanlan - 2006
    . . "the horse God built."Most of us know the legend of Secretariat, the tall, handsome chestnut racehorse whose string of honors runs long and rich: the only two-year-old ever to win Horse of the Year, in 1972; winner in 1973 of the Triple Crown, his times in all three races still unsurpassed; featured on the cover of Time, Newsweek, and Sports Illustrated; the only horse listed on ESPN's top fifty athletes of the twentieth century (ahead of Mickey Mantle). His final race at Toronto's Woodbine Racetrack is a touchstone memory for horse lovers everywhere. Yet while Secretariat will be remembered forever, one man, Eddie "Shorty" Sweat, who was pivotal to the great horse's success, has been all but forgotten---until now.In The Horse God Built, bestselling equestrian writer Lawrence Scanlan has written a tribute to an exceptional man that is also a backroads journey to a corner of the racing world rarely visited. As a young black man growing up in South Carolina, Eddie Sweat struggled at several occupations before settling on the job he was born for---groom to North America's finest racehorses. As Secretariat's groom, loyal friend, and protector, Eddie understood the horse far better than anyone else. A wildly generous man who could read a horse with his eyes, he shared in little of the financial success or glamour of Secretariat's wins on the track, but won the heart of Big Red with his soft words and relentless devotion.In Scanlan's rich narrative, we get a groom's-eye view of the racing world and the vantage of a man who spent every possible moment with the horse he loved, yet who often basked in the horse's glory from the sidelines. More than anything else, The Horse God Built is a moving portrait of the powerful bond between human and horse.

Stud


Kevin Conley - 2002
    For the next one hundred and fifty days, the cries of stallions and the vigorous encouragement of their handlers echo through breeding country, from the gentle hills of Kentucky to the rich valleys of California.First appearing as an article in The New Yorker, Stud takes you into this strange and seductive world. We move from Lexington's Overbrook Farm, where the world's leading sire, Storm Cat, a lightly raced eighteen-year-old, brings in around thirty million dollars a year; to the auction halls, where sheiks and bookies (known more casually as the Doobie Brothers and the Boys) bid millions for Storm Cat's well-bred offspring. We visit Three Chimneys, where the twenty-seven-year-old Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew, a senior citizen by equine standards, makes a rousing return to active duty after spinal surgery, and stroll through Running Horse Farm, on the banks of the Rio Grande, where a nearly unmanageable colt, Devil Begone, has found peace and prosperity servicing desert mares like Patty O'Furniture.Cheap stud, top stud, old stud, wild stud, from the Hall of Fame horse to the harem stallion with his feral herd, Stud looks at intimate acts in idyllic settings (and the billion-dollar business behind them), providing a voyeuristic glimpse of just how human the equine world can be.

Beyond the Homestretch: What I've Learned from Saving Racehorses


Lynn Reardon - 2009
    In 2002, she quit her Washington DC–area office job and moved to rural Texas to open the racehorse adoption ranch LOPE (LoneStar Outreach to Place Ex-Racers). Since then, LOPE has helped transition more than 725 thoroughbreds into new homes. Though now the director of this high-profile organization, Reardon didn’t learn to ride until she was an adult. Here she presents a vivid inside look into the world of horse racing, complete with colorful horses, jockeys, trainers, and gallop girls, depicting the insights horses can offer when we reevaluate our relationship with them.In this riveting account, Reardon encounters dozens of unruly racehorses, all with special needs, unusual histories, and distinct personalities. As she fumbles to help them find new careers, they return the favor by becoming her most memorable mentors in horsemanship and life philosophy.Horses such as Tawakoni, the son of a Kentucky Derby winner, and Endofthestorm, the speedy bay who required an emergency tracheotomy, give Reardon an apprenticeship in facing fear and finding a new life. Reardon may have saved these horses’ lives, but she points out that they saved hers as well.

Saving Baby: How One Woman's Love for a Racehorse Led to Her Redemption


Jo Anne Normile - 2013
    But she fell in love with the young horse, who had literally been born into her arms. The breeder finally said she could keep the colt, whom she nicknamed "Baby" – but only if she raced him.It was difficult to take Baby away from the safety of his pasture. But Normile had made a promise. Besides, horseracing had always come across as a glamorous blend of mint juleps and celebrity, of equine grace and speed. It was a vision she found appealing.And she fell hard for it, this "Sport of Kings." She experienced a thrill every time Baby sprinted around the track, edging out other horses. But the magic that enchants is a veneer. For every Seabiscuit, there are tens of thousands of racehorses whose lives end in pain and despair, with indifference and corruption that runs rampant through the world of horse racing.Normile knew none of this. Not until an accident on a poorly maintained track. That's when everything changed. That's when Normile founded the most successful horse rescue in the country, an organization that would go on to save more horses than anyone else ever had. That's when she knew she had no other choice.Saving Baby is Jo Anne Normile's story of perseverance and passion. A heartbreaking and ultimately life-affirming book, it testifies to the transcending power of hope, and the unshakeable bond of love.

The A Circuit


Georgina Bloomberg - 2011
    It's a world with its own rules and superprivileged lifestyles. Teens travel the circuit all year, showing horses that cost as much as some homes.Tommi, Kate, and Zara are all elite competitors on the circuit, but they come from totally different backgrounds. Tommi is a billionaire heiress trying to prove she has real talent (not just deep bank accounts). Kate puts the working in working student-every win has been paid for with hours of cleaning stalls. She's used to the grueling schedule, but Fitz, the barn's resident hot guy, is about to become a major distraction. And then there's Zara. She's the wild child of a famous rockstar, but she's ready to take riding seriously. Can a party girl really change her ways?Readers who enjoy peeking into the elite world of Gossip Girl or The A-List will feel right at home in this new series with its friendships, drama, and privilege set against the backdrop of competitive horseback riding.

The Byerley Turk: The Incredible Story of the World's First Thoroughbred


Jeremy James - 2005
    For years, many of the essential facts about this horse have been shrouded in mystery, but now author Jeremy James has combined extensive original research with an absorbing narrative to recount the Turk's heretofore untold story. The result is an epic account of the life of a magnificent animal, extending from the palaces of the Ottoman Empire to the streets of London and beyond, and featuring a fascinating cast of historical figures. "Men without horses are nothing," the author tells us, and the powerful bonds between horse and master lie at the heart of this story. It begins in 1679 in a remote Balkan village, where a seyis-a penniless groom-finds himself caring for a remarkable young foal. Believing it destined for greatness, and seeing a chance to escape his own humble circumstances, he begins schooling the animal in the disciplines of war.Hewing closely to the historical record, the author goes on to trace the fortunes of the Turk and its new master: In 1682, they arrived in Istanbul, where the horse was selected for the Ottoman Empire's renowned cavalry. Ridden as a battle charger in the Turkish sieges on Vienna and Buda, it was captured, along with its groom, by a party of adventuring British aristocrats and taken back to England in 1686. In London, it was bought by Captain Robert Byerley, who rode the Turk to Ireland (stopping along the way to take first place at the Downpatrick Races) to take on the Jacobite forces in several pivotal encounters, including the Battle of the Boyne.After a lifetime of adventure, the Turk was put to stud, initiating what was to become its greatest legacy: first foundation sire of the thoroughbred line. Thoroughly documented and certain to ignite debate within racing circles with its controversial claims about the horse's origins, The Byerley Turk is nothing less than groundbreaking. This sweeping narrative not only tracks the life of a single horse but provides new insights into the world it inhabited, conjuring the spirit of an entire era and offering a meditation on the immutable force of destiny.

Little Alf: The true story of a pint-sized pony who found his forever home


Hannah Russell - 2017
    Being quite so little, he was rejected by his herd, and the future looked bleak. A few fields over, a young girl was coming to terms with the fact that she would never be able to ride again. Unknowingly, they were about to change each others lives . . .The pony was Little Alf, a Shetland pony with dwarfism, and the girl, Hannah, who rescued him aged sixteen. From charity work and building a business together, they became constant companions, though there have been a few casualties along the way - mainly garden ornaments and the neighbors' vegetables.Little Alf is the story of their life together - the adventures and the mischievous behavior of the most adorable little pony.

Last Chance Mustang: The Story of One Horse, One Horseman, and One Final Shot at Redemption


Mitchell Bornstein - 2015
    After years of abuse, Samson had evolved into a hateful and hated, maladjusted beast until the day he found his way to a rural Illinois farm, an ill-equipped owner, and one last chance. Mitch Bornstein's task was to tame the violent beast whose best defense had become offense. He had twenty years of experience fixing unfixable horses, but Samson would be his greatest challenge. Through the pair's many struggles and countless battles, Samson would teach Mitch about the true power of hope, friendship, redemption and the inspiring mettle of the forever wild and free American mustang.Last Chance Mustang explains Samson's violent and antisocial behavior while addressing the remedial techniques employed to remedy these issues. The art of working with damaged horses is demystified. Though his story is sad, the reader is asked to respect Samson—not pity him. He has good and bad days, and he has a dark side. Like all of us, Samson is far from perfect. And his saga will move the reader to both tears and laughter. Part history lesson, part training manual, and part animal narrative, Samson's is a story that all readers will be able to relate to: a story of survival, of trust, and ultimately, finding love.