Customer Reviews

Horse People: Writers and Artists on the Horses They Love

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Although one can argue that the relationships we have with our pets is merely an interplay of stimulus and response, those who can describe that interplay in a deep and meaningful way can create powerful portraits of love, devotion, anger, fear and loss. In short, all the emotional responses that you or I would have with another person. The best pieces in this book do just that. In portrait after portrait, each author describes the relationship they shared with a particular, individual horse. Many times, these descriptions are merely reflections of the author's own state of mind, but in a handful of these stories a picture of the animal's personality also emerges. Particularly good are pieces by Michelle Huneven, Gretel Ehrlich, Lucy Grealy and Jo-Ann Mapson. There is also quite a bit of artwork in the book, of uneven quality. The photographs are all excellent, as are the sculptures. The selections from video pieces seem fairly intriguing, but the drawings and paintings are rather middling. All in all I'd say this is definitely a worthwhile read, not just for horse-lovers, but for anyone who is interested in human-animal relationships.

I always am buying books with titles like the Greatest Horse Stories and falling asleep during the first chapter but this book is different. There was not one story I didn't love and they all had wonderful loveable horses and real people. There are your favorite writers such as Rita Mae Brown and many otheres. This is a mush read book for horse lovers and non-horses lovers everywhere.

This collection is very well done, a classy collection of stories and illustrations. The pieces are all a pleasure to read, especially the Jane Smiley and Henry Taylor contributions. I have found that most books of this kind are either too cheesy or poorly written to read, but this one stands out as a new standard. A great read.

I bought this book for my dressage teacher for Christmas, and couldn't help reading most of it. Now I need to buy me one to finish and to keep. Highly recommend!