"A colorful story...Ruffian was nothing if not a heartbreaker. Her story, dramatically recounted by Jane Scwartz, epitomizes both the adrenaline-pumping glory and gut-wrenching ruthlessness inherent in the sport of horse racing."THE WASHINGTON POST BOOK WORLDHere is the story f the exceptional filly, a horse so dominating, she was likened to legend. Beginning with her earliest days in Kentucky, the book follows Ruffian at every stage of her career and through the agony of her...

He was just an aged Belgian draft horse, left alone in a pasture to live out the remaining days of his twilight years. He spent his time drooling and swishing flies. But one day the old horse stepped out of a wobbly wire fence, and into a new life. He became useful again, as a horse, when he teamed up with the author, who had always wanted a Belgian draft horse.He immediately began to subtly influence her and other people who crossed his path. The horse weighed one ton and was phys...

The "riveting" true story of one of the greatest racehorses who ever lived, " researched meticulously and told brilliantly" (Laura Hillenbrand, New York Times–bestselling author of Seabiscuit).His trainer said that managing him was like holding a tiger by the tail. His owner compared him to "chain lightning." His jockeys found their lives transformed by him, in triumphant and distressing ways. Born in 1917, Man o' War grew from a ...

The remarkable story of Native Dancer, one of the most celebrated thoroughbred racehorses of all time, will captivate the same readers who made Seabiscuit a #1 New York Times bestseller.In the early 1950s, a rising star flickered across millions of black-and-white TV sets. Nicknamed “The Grey Ghost,” Native Dancer was a blueblood thoroughbred with a taste for drama, courtesy of his come-from-behind running style, and impressive credits: He finished first i...

Before Secretariat and Seabiscuit, Man o’ War set the standard for horse racing.Walter Farley, the creator of the Black Stallion, chronicles the mightiest racer ever seen on an American racetrack from his surging power and blistering speed to his overwhelming desire to run!Here is the unofficial biography of the “red giant,” from the moment he was foaled through all of his racing triumphs. Winning an astonishing 20 of his 21 starts, Man o’ War became a legend, and captured ...

On December 15, 2008, two snowmobilers discovered a pair of stranded horses atop B.C.’s Mount Renshaw in the Canadian Rockies. Belle and Sundance were a sorry sight—they were emaciated, shivering and trapped in a small shelter they had made for themselves by tramping down the six-foot-deep snow. The next morning, a party of four from the nearby town of McBride was sent back up the mountain with a bale of hay, a handgun and a heartbreaking choice to make: either feed Belle and Sundance, or ...

If nature had taken its course, Fosta would never have lived. But thanks to quick and loving intervention, the plucky little foal did survive. In the first few moments of his life, he was stolen from his dame by an expectant mare. When she had no milk to give him, he had to be fostered by a third “mother” since his own refused to take him back. From the very beginning, his chances of amounting to anything were horribly slim. Added to that, it didn’t look as if he would ever be big enough f...

When Jacqueline dies suddenly, her stubborn draft horse Groucho becomes the reluctant inheritance of seventy-seven-year-old stable owner Doyle. In working-class Montreal, an unlikely friendship develops between the grieving horse and the patient old man who understands that trust comes slowly. As city development threatens their stable and violence intrudes through unexpected quarters, Doyle, Groucho, and Jacqueline's estranged daughter Louise form an unlikely family. Together they discove...

He was born, wild and free, in the vast mountainous scrublands of Nevada. Until he was a year old, no human hand touched him, though he knew something of the danger people represented to the herd. But one fateful day, the herd was chased by a huge black creature in the sky, and the yearling was separated from his mother. In blind panic he ran, but he could not outdistance the terrifying, whirling thing above him, or the humans on horseback that surrounded him.Before long, JB Andrew...

Through their courage, strength, and beauty, horses will forever be known to capture hearts and bond with humans in a way never thought possible. Horses demonstrate their loyalty and bravery every day on farms and in riding stables. But in this exciting volume of the Miracles series, horses go beyond bravery-and prove themselves to be miracle workers. Whether rescuing their young owners from an attacker, overcoming abuse to serve as a teacher to other horses, or p...

Each book in the True Horse Stories focuses on a contemporary horse from a different part of the world, and each animal is, in his or her own way, a hero.PBJ Decks Smokin Gun (Gunner) is an American Paint Horse, one of the many of Heather Lott Goodwin's herd, and a valuable show animal that won the World Championship Paint Horse title. When Hurricane Katrina passed over the Goodwin property, it took with it the fences, the cattle, and several horses. Heather and her family lived in...

Miskeen was born in obscurity on a Russian farm, sold to a traveling circus, and earned a reputation performing in small towns in the 1980s. He was schooled first as a liberty (rider-less) horse and then as a “dancing” (dressage) performer. Dancing was what he did best, and he was often observed trotting on the spot whenever he heard music. He matured into a magnificent, highly trained and valuable animal. But then tragedy struck.Confined in his stall after an exhausting day of per...