A two-time loser at the marriage game as well, Doyle, usually ultra-confident, fishes himself out of a bottle to take stock, realizing, “with a thumping finality, that Life sure as hell did have his Number and was crunching it.”At loose ends, Doyle accepts a most unusual offer from an acquaintance, Moe Kellman, to fix a horse race. The context of making the deal, a Cubs game at storied Wrigley Field, sets the tone for the drama that follows. Thus begins a chain of events that will lead the FBI to Doyle’s door where they “coopt” him into a quest after people who are maiming or killing thoroughbred horses for their insurance values. Their number one target is a loathsome media mogul who can’t bear to lose…at anything.Built upon recent factual events, spiced with satire and peppered throughout with engaging loonies, Blind Switch is a noteworthy first novel with a hero forced to ask in its ultimate line, “Where have I gone right?”

    “This book touched my heart." - GoodreadsSomebody left Lee Estes in charge of the Walker place while the trainers are on the road and he manages to lose a champion cutting horse scheduled to be picked up by a buyer. The unsophisticated buyer only wants Lady Joe as a trophy horse to impress clients at a prestigious law firm, so Lee buys a cheap no-talent blue roan lookalike. When the buyer tells Lee to enter the animal in a weekend cutting for photographs, he must scramble to find a blue roan cutter to substitute for the bogus horse. By chance, the only blue roan cutter around belongs to Jim Harrison’s wife, who has no use for Lee and is about to divorce Jim. Lee persuades his best friend since high school days that there is opportunity here for Jim to save his marriage. Things go haywire from there in this humorous misadventure that takes an affectionate glimpse at the sport of cutting and becomes a trenchant comment on the future of the horse in a world where it is no longer essential to everyday life.

    "Odds on Favorite," Book Two, released April 9, 2012. Dawn never meant to hurt anyone. She never meant to live a lie; she never meant to fall in love. Sometimes things just happen. As the mysteries and excitement of Thoroughbred racing unfold, so do the details of Dawn Fioritto's life and past. While covering a story for the local newspaper, Dawn becomes captivated by an enchanting old man and with life behind the scenes at Nottingham Downs. She returns under the guise of writing a novel. For two years, she comes and goes, employed as a groom in relative obscurity. No one knows who she is, or where she's been. She is an enigma, harmless and protected, in a racing world where one lives only for the moment, where yesterday is gone, and where there may be no tomorrow. Until the day, some starts asking questions.... Critically acclaimed author MaryAnn Myers has done it again! As with her previous page-turning novels, Call Me Lydia and Maple Dale, she will keep you spellbound well into the night. Give in to the magic, settle back in your favorite chair and enjoy.

    It follows the wild horse from its evolutionary origins on this continent to its return with the conquistadors to its bloody battles on the old frontier to its present plight as it fights for survival on the vanishing range.Along the way, you meet some of the great characters -- equine and human alike -- in American history, including Comanche, the gallant horse that survived the Battle of the Little Bighorn; Charlie Joe, the intrepid cast member of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West show; Fritz, the mustang that became America’s first equine movie star; and Bugz, the survivor of the 1998 wild horse massacre outside Reno, Nevada. There’s also Wild Horse Annie, who lobbied for the first federal protections for mustangs and, after a twenty-year fight, saw them signed into law in 1971. In the tradition of Barry Lopez and Peter Matthiessen, Mustang follows the horse tracks across American history and shows that despite ever-encroaching civilization and dwindling protections, the horses still run wild, with spirit unbroken -- a living tableau of our heritage. But for how much longer, no one can say.

     Two years. Three magnificent horses. Ten countries. A thousand stories of drug cartels, mass migration, the glorious wilderness, the old cowboy ways, the kindness of strangers and the powerful connection between man and beast. This is a tale of grit and inspiration, of Filipe and Frenchie, Bruiser and Dude chasing a dream, one hoof at a time. Please scroll up to grab your copy today!

    She does a wonderful job of developing the characters and deals with difficult issues in a kid-friendly way. Readers will be quickly drawn into this story and want to keep reading. There are so many dimensions to this story--it is filled with humor, action, and emotion--a great read!” --Award-winning children's book author, Crystal Bowman.When Eclair's mother leaves home, Eclair and her little sister must go live on a farm with Stella, their eccentric grandma.“More and more, grandparents today are assuming the role of part-time or even full-time caregivers for their grandkids. In Eclair Goes to Stella's, we see how one grandmother bravely and creatively steps into this role to help her family through a difficult situation. I'm certain that children everywhere will be able to relate to the range of emotions that little Éclair faces as she struggles to adjust to her new living arrangements then begins to welcome the love and care her grandmother offers.” ~ Renee Gray-Wilburn, co-author of Grandparenting Through Obstacles: Overcoming Family Challenges to Reach Your Grandchildren for Christ (Pix-N-Pens, 2012).There is a growing trend in America—grandparents raising grandchildren. According to the AARP’s Grandfacts, “Across the United States, almost 7.8 million children are living in homes where grandparents or other relatives are the householders, with more than 5.8 million children living in grandparents’ homes and nearly 2 million children living in other relatives’ homes. These families are often called grandfamilies.”

    Learning that language can expand any horseman's knowledge and abilities—whether he or she is learning to ride, train, or compete. In a writing style that is generously detailed and packed with meaning, Dorrance directs the reader’s attention to the many subtle things about how horses and humans act and interact. In these pages, he urges us to reach toward a deeper level of insight into horses and their riders, as he shares a wealth of helpful information. With hundreds of illustrations, True Horsemanship Through Feel takes the reader step by step through the basic challenges that have characterized horse-human relations for centuries. Drawing on his years of experience, Bill Dorrance has crafted a book that imparts knowledge previously available only by word of mouth.

    A single mother of three, Harris was crippled by bipolar depression, until she discovered the miraculous healing and calming effect of horses—a revelation that ultimately enabled her to manage her illness, conquer the sexism of her field, and triumph as a champion jockey in the male-dominated world of horse racing. A fascinating, courageous, and ultimately redemptive true story, Long Shot has won high praise from Phyllis Chesler Ph.D., author of Women and Madness, who says, “[Harris’s] attempt to find balance, joy, connectedness, and purpose in life constitutes a great adventure story.”

    This is greatness the likes of which is rarely seen. This is a tale that will not weary. This is the authorised story of the horse that couldn't be beaten, by acclaimed journalist and broadcaster Gerard Whateley.Black Caviar is the biography of the Australian champion, written by acclaimed journalist and broadcaster Gerard Whateley, with a foreword by Peter Moody, BLACK CAVIAR this book documents the career of the racehorse who transcended the track to become an Australian icon. It begins with the entrancing story of champion trainer Peter Moody, a self-made man bred in the remote outback of Queensland, who came to select and guide the fastest horse the world had ever seen. Under Moody's patient and masterful guidance, the hulking injury-prone filly matured into a champion, idolized by a devoted following more akin to a rock band than a racehorse. Her gift is to defy the very nature of sport, making victory look both certain and effortless. But would her customary speed be enough to prevail at the most famous race track of all? At the climax of the tale, half a world away from her devoted nation and in front of the Queen, Black Caviar set out to conquer the world. With her invincible run and marauding dominance, Black Caviar has returned racing to the glory days of more than half a century past and secured a reputation that will echo for as long as horses are sent out to race.

    Only neither is hers. Lucy has never attracted much attention from boys, but she can't seem to ignore her blue-eyed co-worker, Casey Parker. A true cowboy, Lucy is fascinated by his gentle way with the horses at Red Rock Ranch. However, she is very aware that Taylor Johnson, rodeo queen extraordinaire, already has her spurs in him. And, there's no crossing Taylor. . . . Not until a mysterious horse appears on the ranch and pushes Lucy and Casey together. The two are willing to do anything to save the black gelding that doesn't want a thing to do with them or the human race. But, every step forward with the broken animal makes Lucy fall harder - for him and for Casey.***Saddle-up with a sweet, wholesome young adult equestrian series full of first loves, friendship, and horses. Get ready for a summer packed with trail rides, horse shows, rodeo, campfires, and kisses.

    The horse- and rider-training handbook of an internationally renowned master horseman.

    They express their needs, wishes and emotions to each other and to the rare human being who understands them. After reading this unprecedented, exciting and up-lifting book, you will understand the equine language. You therefore will know how to recognize:A happy horse. A frightened horse. An angry horse. A bored horse. A grieving horse. A frustrated horse. A horse horse in pain. A playful horse. A proud horse. An eagerly competitive horse. And many horses more!Moreover, you will know how to reassure the frightened, calm the angry, comfort the grieving, divert the bored -- and deal with most other human-equine difficulites. You will know how to educate a foal or rehabilitate a rogue. You will know how to look at race horses on their way to the starting gate and differentiate the likely winners from the losers.You even will know how to buy a horse.But best of all, you will finally understand what these grand animals are all about, and you will know better than ever before how they (and we) fit into nature's scheme of things.

    Rather, it is a way of re-educating a rider's mind and body to achieve greater balance in order to better communicate with the horse. Now, more than a decade after Sally Swift's revolutionary first book Centered Riding, she has written another that teaches riders all of her new concepts that have evolved since Centered Riding's inception.

    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.

    A coin toss determined ownership of the yet unborn foal that was to become the first Triple Crown winner in twenty-five years, breaking and still holding all three track records. The author, who was on personal terms with Secretariat's owner, trainers, grooms, and jockey and who photographed "Big Red" throughout his career, gives us this enthralling intimate portrait - the triumphs and disasters - of Secretariat's gallop to immortality. Secretariat was the best-known and most beloved race horse of the twentieth century. In 1973 his legacy as the greatest horse of all time was permanently etched into the consciousness of the world when he won the Triple Crown. Raymond G. Woolfe Jr. tells the story of Secretariat from the coin toss that sent him to Helen Chenery to his burial at Claiborne Farm. Complete with a glossary of horse-racing terms, a breakdown of Secretariat's bloodline, and a foreword by Ronald Turcotte, Secretariat's jockey during his amazing 1973 campaign, this is the definitive volume for fans of the horse and the sport of horseracing.