A few months ago I posted “10 Must Read Books“, a list of books I had recently read and thoroughly enjoyed. I’m an avid reader and my taste in books is all over the place… it kind of has to be when I read anywhere from 2-4 books per week! I was recently going through my bookshelf and I found my collection of ‘horse books’, so I wanted to share some of my favorites with you. This is an incomplete list I will return to and update from time to time.
(I’m pasting the synopsis for each book so you can have all the information in one place, but these are all direct Amazon links. If you choose to purchase from these links, I earn a small commission (thank you!) but if not, no worries.)
I’ve also been purchasing used books from ThriftBooks when available. If you use my link, you get 15% off your first order!
The Eighty Dollar Champion by Elizabeth Letts
Harry de Leyer first saw the horse he would name Snowman on a truck bound for the slaughterhouse. The recent Dutch immigrant recognized the spark in the eye of the beaten-up nag and bought him for eighty dollars. On Harry’s modest farm on Long Island, he ultimately taught Snowman how to fly. Here is the dramatic and inspiring rise to stardom of an unlikely duo. One show at a time, against extraordinary odds and some of the most expensive thoroughbreds alive, the pair climbed to the very top of the sport of show jumping. Their story captured the heart of Cold War–era America—a story of unstoppable hope, inconceivable dreams, and the chance to have it all. They were the longest of all longshots—and their win was the stuff of legend.
Ruffian by Jane Schwartz
During two short seasons at the track, Ruffian was hailed as the greatest thoroughbred filly of all time. Unbeaten in her first ten starts, she shattered one record after another, dazzling crowds with both her beauty and her brilliant speed. Then tragedy struck on the afternoon of July 6, 1975. Ruffian broke down–on the lead–in the middle of a match race at Belmont Park. Later that night she had to be destroyed.
Ruffian: Burning from the Start is the story of this exceptional filly, a horse so dominating, so powerful, that writer Walter Farley once suggested she was more like the fictional legend, the Black Stallion, than any colt he had ever seen. Beginning with her earliest days in Kentucky, the book follows Ruffian at every stage of her career and through the agony of her final hours– venturing behind the scenes of the racing world and exploring the politics and personalities that came together to shape this extraordinary filly’s fate.
The Black Stallion Series by Walter Farley
Walter Farley’s tales of bravery, instinct, and survival have been captivating readers for almost 65 years. Here, in a handsome gift set, are four of the best, starting with The Black Stallion, where Alec Ramsay saves the Black after a shipwreck. The bond they form cannot be broken. This bond survives their separation in The Black Stallion Returns, when Alec returns the magnificent horse to his original owner in Arabia. Reunited in The Black Stallion’s Ghost, they survive a terrifying curse. Finally, in The Black Stallion Revolts, they are separated again after a plane crash, and Alec is suspected of murder as the Black runs wild! Each gripping tale culminates in a thrilling race to the finish!
Chosen by a Horse by Susan Richards
An elegant and often heartbreaking tale filled with animal characters as complicated and lively as their human counterparts, this is an inspiring story of courage and hope and the ways in which all love, even an animals, has the power to heal.
Chasing the Rodeo by W.K. Stratton
From its roots as the quintessential Western pastime, rodeo has grown to an international, prime-time television sport. Steeped in tradition and the independent spirit of the range, aspiring cowboys and cowgirls are called to its high-stakes, rough-and-tumble fame as they risk their lives for eight seconds of triumph.
In Chasing the Rodeo W. K. Stratton follows this quest for one season of the pro rodeo and bull-riding tours. He explores the history of the chutes — from rodeo’s disputed origins (Prescott, Arizona, or Pecos, Texas?) to its current skyrocketing popularity. But out on the trail Stratton finds more than calf-roping and unrideable bulls, uncovering a culture complete with myths, codes of honor, million-dollar purses, Cowboy Church, and the kinds of legends that make good stories unforgettable.
Just such a story emerges here as Stratton tells of his runaway “rodeo bum” father –Cowboy Don — whose specter haunts his travels on the circuit. As he learns more about the life that proved too seductive for his father to abandon, Stratton fills in a portrait of the man he never knew but whose legacy he couldn’t help but inherit.
Filled with cowboy longing and rodeo dreams, this is a tribute to the characters of the West — Freckles Brown, Lucille Mulhall (the first cowgirl), Wild Bill Hickock, Lane Frost, and today’s superstars like Jesse Bail. In the great tradition of Wallace Stegner and Ken Kesey, W. K. Stratton fashions an expansive tale out of the gritty reality of the life around us. Chasing the Rodeo is a bucking, riveting, glorious ride — you’ll want to hang on for the whole go-round.
Sweet Running Filly (The Bonnie Books) by Barbara Van Tuyl
Julie was running through a nightmare, but it was all too real. She had to reach the van before the man opened it, led her filly Bonnie out, walked her into the trees, took out a gun… The road dipped and swerved away and her light, growing dimmer, barely showed her the direction it took. How far had she run? It must be half a mile now. She could not tell. She only knew that she had to get there in time. No hysteria, no panic gave her the wings on her feet. Simply love. Her horse was ahead somewhere. In terrible danger. She had to save Bonnie…
