Spoken in Whispers: The Autobiography of a Horse Whisperer (Hardcover)

by Nicci MacKay (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Those who loved Robert Redford's recent movie The Horse Whisperer or Nicholas Evans's book of the same name will enjoy Mackay's unabashed, effusive account of her life as a "horse whisperer"?one who claims telepathic communication with horses, an ability to feel their emotions and thoughts. Mackay, a former British jockey who runs her own livery and works professionally as a horse whisperer, diagnosing horses' emotional and physical problems, seems genuine. But all of her enthusiasm and empathy is unlikely to convince skeptics that she can enter into the minds not only of horses but also of dogs, cows, a giraffe and birds ("I just spoke Duck!"). Occasionally even Mackay has her doubts about her telepathy as when she suddenly feels that a parrot patient is communicating to her a need to be "retuned." Still, whether or not one accepts the existence of a God-given gift that Mackay says she's had since childhood, it's impossible to deny her admirable, passionately expressed respect and love for horses and other animals.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist
With the release of the film version of The Horse Whisperer, books about the ancient art of communication with horses are becoming very popular among the reading public. As a child, Mackay communicated with all animals and just assumed that everyone had the same gift. It wasn't until she began to work seriously with horses that she discovered that she had a unique talent, and it took her a long time to speak out about what she could "hear" from horses for fear of ridicule from all the expert horse trainers she was working with. The book describes her life of helping horses and their owners after her coming out, and it is full of interesting vignettes of troubled horses and her solutions to their problems. Although few believe in psychic communication with animals, it is clear that Mackay has good animal sense, and she is able to explain her findings to a general audience, which recommends her story to all libraries. Nancy Bent --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Mainstream (February 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1851589422
• ISBN-13: 978-1851589425
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #4,458,050 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very enjoyable reading! Well written and thought provoking, April 22, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Spoken in Whispers: The Autobiography of a Horse Whisperer (Paperback)

In this book Nicci Mackay shares her experience of being able to communicate telepathically with primarily horses, but also a few dogs, goats and birds. It starts when she first shares her ability with some fellow horsemen, and then progresses as she gets more and more well known and works with many different animals. Very enjoyable, she doesn't try to "push" her views on the reader to hard. She just shares her experiences. This book is slightly different then The Man Who Listens to Horses by Monty Roberts. Mackay was very much into "psychic" communication with the horses, while Roberts was more into the body language of the horses. I don't doubt that they both incorporated both of these methods, to some degree or other. Personally, I'm still unsure about "psychic communication with animals" but I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I also recomend Conversations with Animals by Lydia Hiby.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars To believe or not to believe?, April 10, 2002

By	Duaa Anwar "Dressage rider/ Author" (Cairo, Egypt) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Spoken in Whispers: The Autobiography of a Horse Whisperer (Paperback)

Okay, I'm a skeptic--or at least was. I bought this book to prove to myself that communicating with animals is not real. But before I reached halfway, I was already a believer. It's real, and it's strange. Nicci Mackay actually speaks her thoughts to animals, asking them questions about their behavior, feelings, etc, and receives answers from them. She's not a horse whisperer like Monty Roberts. This woman can carry on a conversation with any horse (although she can't always persuade them to do things for her!)

Nicci's writing is beautiful and captivating. Her book is nicely put together chronologically (unlike some autobiographies which keep jumping back and forth). Her stories can be dreadfully depressing or hilariously funny. Some of her experiences are downright eccentric, though not lacking charm. She has a brilliant sense of humor that caught me off guard in situations where I should have contained my laughter.

To sum things up, this book is a gem and I will read it many more times. I wholeheartedly urge you to pick a copy for yourself--regardless of whether you are a believer or not. Niccy Mackay, if you read this, please drop me a line as I would like you to talk to my horse.

Reader, what are you still doing reading this review? Buy the book!

5.0 out of 5 stars Something a little different, and surprisingly convincing!, July 17, 2004

By	Monika "equestrienne_23" (Davis, California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Spoken in Whispers: The Autobiography of a Horse Whisperer (Paperback)

I received this book as a gift years ago, and until now it's just been sitting by the wayside. I'm always skeptical of people who call themselves "horse whisperers" - while I'm willing to believe there are levels of communication that most of us do not yet understand, it takes quite a bit to convince me that someone who claims to have any sort of telepathic abilities is actually the real deal. Not only that, but the term "horse whisperer" is incredibly hackneyed by now. Ever since the movie of the same title came out, the name has been slapped on just about every moderately successful trainer out there, even though their methods vary widely and don't actually involve any "whispering." However, when I finally gave the book a chance, I was very surprised. The first two chapters alone had me convinced that Nicci Mackay is something genuinely different.

The book is more like a memoir of her experiences communicating with horses (and other animals), and not actually a full biography. She takes up the story in her adult life, revealing the circumstances under which she first "came out of the closet" about her abilities. Believing most people would think her a quack if she ever claimed she could speak with horses, Mackay kept quiet about it for years. She only spoke out publicly when a close friend adamantly insisted that she do so, for the benefit of a particular horse. When she received a surprisingly favorable reaction, the author began offering her services professionally, helping people better communicate with and understand their beloved animals. And though horses are her most common subject, being her favorite animal and the one with which she first recognized her abilities, she has also successfully worked with dogs, sheep, cows, and even birds. The bulk of the book shares with us a series of the author's most interesting and touching cases.

Part of what makes Mackay's book so convincing is her down-to-earth nature. She does not come across as pretentious is any way. In fact, she freely admits to not fully understanding her abilities herself, and occasionally suffers doubts about the extent to which any as-yet-untried application will be successful. She never lords her abilities over anyone else, doesn't believe herself to be superior to other horse owners because of her communication skills, and nowhere does she attempt to argue the reader into believing everything she has to say. Rather, she lets the case examples speak for themselves. There is also an abundance of self-deprecating humor, as she shares some of her more comical and occasionally downright hilarious experiences. To me, Mackay's book reads a bit like something a telepathic James Herriot would have written.

Amazing as it may be, Nicci Mackay actually seems to be the real thing. Her book is utterly convincing and a joy to read. Mackay is also an excellent writer, and the text is vivid and captivating. Her style is very friendly and open. I wouldn't blame anyone for being initially skeptical - after all, I set the book aside for quite some time for this very reason - but for anyone with an interest in horses to entirely bypass this book would be a great loss. I'd urge any horse lover to give this one a chance, as it will broaden your horizons and is definitely well worth the read.