World Encyclopedia Of Horse Racing [ILLUSTRATED] (Hardcover)

by George Ennor (Author) "There is no record of the first horse race, but it is safe to say that it predates Christianity by centuries as opposed to decades..." (more)
Key Phrases: champion handicapper, first classic success, first classic victory, Gold Cup, King George, Queen Elizabeth (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Horse racing is second only to baseball in terms of the number of people it attracts for all spectator sports in the U.S. This lavish celebrations of the sport of kings reviews horseracing from its beginnings over 6,000 years ago to the widespread support the sport receives today.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Carlton Books LTD.; illustrated edition edition (September 15, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1842222449
• ISBN-13: 978-1842222447
• Product Dimensions: 11.4 x 9.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,249,250 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An interesting book with a wide scope, January 23, 2003

By	Peter Durward Harris "Pete the music fan" (Leicester England) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This fascinating and lavishly illustrated book cannot possibly cover any aspect of horse racing in detail, but it certainly lives up to its grandiose title, although perhaps the word thoroughbred should have been included in the title. Flat racing, steeplechasing and hurdling are all covered, but harness racing and quarter horses are omitted.

The first chapter covers the early history of the sport, particularly in Britain, the USA and Australia. The second chapter (Racing around the world) covers many countries where horse racing takes place, from the super-rich to the desperately poor. The next few chapters cover major races, important horses, jockeys, owners and trainers, gambling, controversies and scandals. The final chapter is for general trivia - this is followed by a chronology of events, giving a potted history of the sport.

Fans will always argue that some names that were omitted are more important than some that have been included (and I am no exception), but that's the nature of all books which attempt to select the best ever of anything. In any case, all horses and jockeys that have achieved fame with the general public who don't normally follow the sport are here. Among the horses are Arkle, Cigar, Dr Fager, John Henry, Man O' War, Mill Reef, Nijinsky, Red Rum, Sea Bird, Seabiscuit and Secretariat. As you will see, it's a truly international list, including steeplechasers as well as flat racers. The list of jockeys covered is also impressive.

As a general overview of racing worldwide, this book serves its purpose (except for the omission of harness and quarter horses) - even the most knowledgeable fans will find stuff here that's new to them - but if you want to know a lot about particular aspects of the sport, you must look elsewhere. This is a great beginning - or addition - to any library of horse racing books.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book, March 19, 2006

By	Charles B. Burgess "railbird109" (OKC, OK United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Outstanding book that covers world thoroughbred racing. Lavishly illustrated. Profiles of great Jockeys, trainers, owners, horses. Pictures of all the worlds greatest racetracks, and histories of the worlds greatest races. One of my favorite books. And I have ALL books on the subject

3 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Okay--not inclusive enough for what it claims to be, March 25, 2004

By	kb6 "kb6" (San Francisco, CA USA) - See all my reviews

Any book with the title "World Encyclopedia of Horse Racing" that doesn't even mention Harness Racing and Quarter Horse racing is not worthy of the title. Give this one a pass; at only 2oo+ pages it's just not all that-- and any author who dares to claim that this is as comprehensive as the title implies and then produces this cannot really know much about the sport.