In which we celebrate Saturday Stories with a Derby story

I have the same problem with the Kentucky Derby that I have with professional football:
"Why would I spend time watching somebody else having fun?"

Having said that, I love reading about horse racing. I always have.
I'm not the only one.  

On the radio today, I heard an AWESOME radio story about a lady who loved reading about horses, and grew up to be the trainer of a Derby winner.  If you loved books like The Black Stallion, give yourself 20 minutes to sit back and listen to the terrific story at the link HERE.


Have fun watching the Derby tomorrow, if you like.  Me, I'll probably ride my own horse in the rain.  And after that, maybe I'll read a book with a horse on the cover. 

What horse books did you read as a kid?  Have you read any good horse books lately?

Comments

  1. I only had one horsey book when I was a kid. It was Alfa + Romeo, written by Jaan Rannap. It was only horse book that I knew for a long time. It was about a boy who kind of stole Alfa from riding-school where she (Alfa) was going to be sent to slaughter as she was too old for them. She had been a showjumper and been ridden by that boys father when younger. In that book that boys father is away somewhere and that boy brings Alfa home and puts her to a garage. (Where hes uncle usually keeps hes Alfa Romeo). Romeo will be a stray dog that becomes friend with Alfa. Then Alfa gets stolen (and painted bay, she is actually grey). Thanks to Romeo they find her and rescue her once more. And they start looking for new home. They come across with some kind older guy in some kindergarten or something and tell him the story. Alfa will be taken back to the riding school so that if the old guy goes to ask for a spare horse she will be back there. The end :D :D

    ReplyDelete
  2. ALL the Black Stallion books--check.
    All the Marguerite Henry books (Misty, Justin Morgan, I still have my copy of King of the Wind)--check.
    Most anything I could find about riding and horse care--check.
    Oh, and the Thelwell ponies! check!

    ReplyDelete
  3. ...that's sort of how I feel about reading all your blogs right now. I'm stuck watching you people ride, condition, and compete while I'm stuck on not my horse.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Black Stallion, of course (although reading it as an adult, I'm like...really? I thought the writing was enthralling?)
    Misty books, King of the Wind, Thelwell.
    My favorite was The Godolphin Arabian. Because the kid taking care of the horse had to wash his feet first, almost like a religious ceremony, before he could even go close enough to groom. The take home message: THAT is how special horses are. So special you can't approach them with dirty feet!"
    (Um. This is something we do not want Hudson to know...)

    ReplyDelete
  5. I don't know who wrote it, and haven't ever seen another copy but my favorite horse book as a kid was called The Good Master. My grandmother and I read it over my summer stay with her. I think it had some pencil illustrations but I don't remember much about the actual story.
    Oh, I guess I have two favorites- Man O War, gosh I read that one over and over.

    ReplyDelete
  6. CG: Kate Seredy is the author; I think the book got a Newbery Award. I remember those beautiful illustrations.

    My own fave horse book came, I think, from a garage sale; I remember that it was falling apart and felt very old when I read it in the 1970's. I just looked it up on amazon (and bought a copy!): Game Legs, orig published in 1928. I'll write about it when my copy arrives and I read it for the first time in (gasp) 30 years.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Wild Horse Running, written and illustrated by Sam Savitt.

    I read that book millions of times. I thoroughly, THOROUGHLY approved of the ending, although I don't want to ruin it for anyone here.

    I drew each picture hundreds of times. I never owned a copy - I constantly re-re-rechecked it out from the library, to the point I would become extremely angry when someone else checked out MY copy.

    Cloud is still the prettiest horse I "know", and I still think that nobody draws a horse quite like Sam Savitt.

    I found it at a library back when I was 20 or 21 and picked it up to thumb through it, expecting to be disappointed now that I was reading it as an adult - nope. The illustrations were just as good as I remembered. I haven't thought of this book in years.

    I'm so glad you asked this question and sparked my memory- I'm gonna buy this book. Thanks, girl!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Check it out, Aarene! He has a book on the Tevis Cup!

    http://www.samsavitt.com/onehorse.html

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

To err is human. To be anonymous is not.

Popular Posts