Customer Reviews

I Am The Great Horse

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I knew the story about Bucephalus before the movie "Alexander" came and sold out the box office. "Bucephalus, meaning strong and stubborn," he had said while mounting the stallion. A true story of how the brave 12 year old boy ruled the horse and charged him into battle. Now, this fiction story is a real page turner. If you like horses, black stallions, and adventure, then "I am the Great Horse" is the book for you!

The kudos:

This is a masterfully told story of the life of Alexander the Great as told from his famous, trusty horse. If you love fantasy, horses, or history, you'll love this book. From the very insightful eyes of an endearing horse, my girls have learned about Alexander the Great and other key players from Macedonia and Persia, military ingenuity and leadership, along with the ugliness of war in its many varieties. We sometimes uncomfortably watched the snowball effects of power-hunger, pride, anger, and irresponsible drinking in action, but also witnessed the inspiring virtues of determination, bravery, compassion, and loyalty. Engaging and outstanding read where you are truly drawn into a real time in history, yet there is this element of magic all around you!

I Am the Great Horse is the most creative and riveting "history" book we've read. I will definitely be looking into Katherine Roberts' other works (particularly The Seven Fabulous Wonders series). This is how historical fiction should be...exciting, unbiased, and faithful to the truth -- with a fairly clear representation of what was fictionalized or unknown. Most importantly, it has sparked an interest in us all to delve further into the subject ourselves -- a true sign of a great book in my opinion!

A caution to those with young readers:

As we have been studying ancient Greece, I read this aloud to my daughters (8 and 10) who are likely too young for the intended audience of this book. Nevertheless, every night we stayed up way past our bedtime sharing this story and we found ourselves disappointed when we had to call it quits. After pre-reading it, and debating over whether or not to share this with them, the rewards have been greater than my concerns. My daughters were barely able to grasp some of the mature concepts (legitimacy and the definition of rape), but some honest discussion prior to reading the book did help prepare them. If you're trying to decide whether to read or give this book to your child younger than 12 or so, I suggest pre-reading it due to some brutal and gory battle scenes and the mature concepts (the worst is the mention of rape, though there is nothing sexually graphic whatsoever).

This is without doubt the best attempt I have read at entering the mind of an animal and viewing human activity from its point of view. Once you have read Bucephelas's (Alexander"s horse's) account of "dominating dung" or "squealing" to show that you are superior to an opponent and not afraid of him, you will never see politicians' and generals' actions in the same way again!

Katherine Roberts must know and love horses deeply and sympathetically. She has done a magnificent job on the history, too, and it has never been so clear what Alexander was up to and why. If this book doesn't win rosettes, I'll eat my copy!

Mary Hoffman

I bought this wanting the story, but dreading the pre-teen level of writing. I have been pleasantly surprised by the quality of the writing and research done for this story. This really is a terrific book, well written, well researched and the author clearly knows horses and horse behavior. I'm recommending it to my adult friends!

I love this book! I must say that I have never been disappointed by Katherine Roberts and this book is no exception. This story put me right into Alexander's army and into Bucephles head. It was amazing.

Katherine Roberts' I AM THE GREAT HORSE presents the story of the steed of pre-teen Alexander, heir to the throne of Macedonia. As the young prince rises to power his loyal steed observes the politics and conflicts involved in his ascension. Add a dash of romance and you have a fun and lively story punctuated by thrashes from the protagonist's tail as he observes the human world around him.

I am the Great Horse is a GREAT read! Roberts brings history to life and masterfully enters the mind of the great horse, Bucephalus. Anyone who loves horses and longs to understand them better will treasure this book.

Susan Williams, author of Wind Rider
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I purchased this book as a gift for a 9th grade student that adores animals of all sorts--especially horses. History lessons enmeshed with a horse's narrative actually worked quite well for this targeted audience.

I am in seventh grade now, but I first got this book in third grade and it is a wonderful read! I have read it a couple times a year since then. Very informative, occasionally humorous, and extremely witty. Enjoy!

Never being one to like history, I was surprised that this book really held my interest. The book is told by the horse's point of view while offering some historical facts. It's a quick read, but worth the time.