The Faraway Horses: The Adventures and Wisdom of One of America's Most Renowned Horsemen [Paperback]

Buck Brannaman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 2003

"I've started horses since I was 12 years old and have been bit, kicked, bucked off and run over. I've tried every physical means to contain my horse in an effort to keep from getting myself killed. I started to realize that things would come much easier for me once I learned why a horse does what he does. This method works well for me because of the kinship that develops between horse and rider. " --Buck Brannaman

In THE FARAWAY HORSES, Brannaman shares his methods for training and  provides a behind-the-scenes glimpse of Robert Redford's movie The Horse Whisperer, for which he was the technical advisor.

 

*Authoratative figure in horsemanship
*Reveals the key to understanding animals

BUCK BRANNAMAN is a horse gentler--not a horse "breaker"--who has started more than 10,000 young horses in his clinics. He lives with his family in Sheridan, Wyoming.

WILLIAM REYNOLDS is the associate publisher of Cowboys & Indians magazine. He lives with his family in Santa Ynez, California.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Buck Brannaman is part of a lineage of skilled horsemen, and for the horses he works with, it is about trust and understanding, not submission."
--Robert Redford

"When it comes to horses, Buck Brannaman is part guru, part psychologist, and all cowboy. He's a 19th -entury man in a 21st-century world, and his life is at once inspirational and instructive."
--Tom Brokaw

From the Back Cover

Nearly every week of the year, Buck Brannaman is on the road, conducting horsemanship clinics in which he teaches horse owners how to better understand and work with their animals, creating a relationship based on trust and respect rather than force. Buck's skills have become legendary in fact, the main character in Robert Redford's film The Horse Whisperer was based largely on him, and he served as the director's technical adviser during the shoot.
"These principles are really about life - about living your life so you're not at war with the horse, or with other people," Buck writes. At heart, this rich and rewarding autobiography is ultimately a prescription for living a harmonious existence - whether it involves horses or not.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Lyons Press; 1st edition (July 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585748633
• ISBN-13: 978-1585748631
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (125 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #11,235 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #1 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Pets & Animal Care > Horses
  • #10 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Individual Sports > Horses > Equestrian
  • #19 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Regional U.S. > West

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

100 of 101 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Of Horses and Humans December 28, 2001

By Ray W Carlton

Format:Hardcover

This book is not only on how to help horses but on character,from begining to end it gives us lessons on how to help not only the troubled horse ,but on our own troubles as well .
We see from early on what shaped and formed the man of today,the abuse he and his brother suffered as children,the long road to true unity with the horse,the faliures along the way ,the tragedy of his first marriage and how as we say in the horse world he got back up and got on again ,all along we can see were many people would have thrown in the towel and quit ,Buck did not and in so doing showed strength and character .This is all written in a unvarnished way that I find refreshing
I found myself near tears at times and laughing at others ,some of what has happened in his life hits close to home for myself,as a lifelong horseman I have struggled to find unity and peace with the horse ,I have lost loved ones and struggled on,in reading his book I found new ways to deal with some of lifes problems and with my own love of the horse.
To say I enjoyed the book is an understatement,it will be something I will go back to time after time and I hope others will also.You do not have to own horse or be from the horse world to find something in this book that will help you either with your family or life its self.

64 of 65 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Should Be Required Reading June 21, 2003

By Cameron Scholtz

Format:Hardcover

What a great book, I couldn't put it down. Potential buyers should note that this is mostly Buck's life story...with some horse lessons in the mix. If you're looking to learn Buck's techniques I suggest one of his other books or videos. But if you want to know the man, understand his background and philosophy toward animals and life--then this is the book. There are some very touching stories. Some will make you happy, some will make you cry. This book should be required reading for anyone who owns a horse or is even thinking about it! I can't wait for his next book.

56 of 58 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The gentle art of people and horses January 22, 2002

By Ron Franscell, Author of 'Sourtoe Cocktail Club'

Format:Hardcover

Distance is everything to Buck Brannaman.

Time and space have made all the difference. Whether it's the 30 years since his harrowing childhood, or the nearly imperceptible space that constitutes trust between a horse and its rider, it's all been important to the horse-whisperer whose life and work helped breathe vitality into a gentle method of training animals. Now he's telling his own story in "The Faraway Horses."

Brannaman recounts his sometimes horrifying, occasionally funny adventures. He describes his training technique, built on trust and respect, not force. He writes about horses he's learned from, including Bif, the rank outlaw who became one of Buck's most trusted mounts. And he tells of owners he's taught, including the trainer who abused her show Arabians to make them look "spirited."

But the roots of his special connection with troubled and wild horses lie in his own childhood.

"I want people to be entertained, but there are some real stark realities out there," Brannaman says. "I hope it just doesn't go away after they close the book and put it on their shelf, but that the book's with them, maybe for the rest of their lives."