BOOK & VIDEOS REVIEWS
In time for Holidays
We opened a new store with great books of interest
to all horsewomen
Please visit the store here:
A sampling of interesting books, magazines, and videos that are of general interest to horsewomen. All links will open in a new window.
A monthly magazine whose goal is, " to provide practical solutions and hands-on information our readers can take to the barn and use. We work to make bottom-line recommendations on products we believe will best serve our readers while standing firm with a back-to-the-basics philosophy on training, nutrition and horse care. We base our evaluations on field trials, research and experience. Horse Journal does not accept commercial advertising." A very useful and practical resource for all aspects of horse care, services, and products. Horse Journal.
Eclectic Horseman Communications consists of a print magazine, an informational web-site and an on-line catalog. Its mission is, "to bring 'Just What Works' information to a knowledge-hungry public. We will create and present only ideas and techniques that work with and educate humans about the nature of the horse." A great source of information, very well produced, and drawing some of the top horsemanship clinicians to its pages.
If I Had a Horse, How Different Life Would Be by Melissa Sovey-Nelson with photographs by Mark J. Barrett. If I Had a Horse is a wonderful combination of Mark Barrett's sumptuous photographs, Melissa Sovey-Nelson's personal and poetic commentary, and a selection of quotations by authors and thinkers as diverse as Krishnamurti and Janis Joplin. Barrett's photographs are of horses of all kinds: Horses in their natural settings, horses interacting with people, horses being ridden; horses at work and horses at play. The DVD that accompanies this book (with video footage by Barrett) shows many of these same horses in motion. The images are romantic, but inspiring. The "coffee- table book" market is a crowded one, but If I Had a Horse is a good one! It stands out from the crowd because of the quality of Sovey-Nelson's writing (words that obviously come from the heart) and the seamless blending of text and images.
Wild About Horses: Our Timeless Passion for the Horse by Lawrence Scanlan tried to make sense of "horse fever" or what Scanlan calls the "human love affair with horses. Scanlan is an experienced journalist, producer, and editor as well as an author of non-fiction - and it shows in the depth of his research and the clarity of his writing. Scanlan collaborated Canadian show-jumper Ian Millar in writing his memoirs, and with Monty Roberts on The Man Who Listens to Horses. In Wild About Horses he draws on these experiences and addresses "horse lore" in all its facets, from anthropological evidence to Hollywood steeds, to horse whisperers of today and the past. It is an informative book with a great list of references, but it didn't grab my attention as much as some other books of its type.
Stud: Adventures in Breeding by Kevin Conley is a wonderfully entertaining book. Actually the title is written as "Stud" and the dollar sign is highly appropriate for the part of the horse breeding industry that Conley focuses most of his attention on - the high stakes business of breeding thoroughbred race horses. Conley takes us on a journey to the top barns where we meet famous stallions, top broodmares, and their owners; horses and humans are treated equally as characters and personalities. It is an insider's trip and Conley is terrific tour guide.
Dark Horses and Black Beauties: Animals, Women, A Passion by Melissa Holbrook Pierson. My husband gave me a copy of this book as a birthday gift a couple of years ago. I think he was drawn to the opening lines of the front jacket cover in an effort to understand my own love of horses: "In a phenomenon too prevalent to be mere chance, little girls all over the Western world wake up one day to find themselves completely taken over by all things equine€ For some of them, the obsession fades after a few years but returns with a vengeance in middle age." Holbrook Pierson considers this phenomenon from a variety of perspectives, but mostly she examines the psychological aspects of what draws women to horses, and vice versa. It is a dense, but highly readable book, thought provoking, well researched, and enjoyable. The book itself is beautifully produced with some lovely old photographs marking each new chapter.
She Flies Without Wings: How Horses Touch a Woman's Soul by Mary D. Midkiff. I read Midkiff's excellent book when I was recovering from surgery a couple of years ago and found it thought provoking, stimulating, and soothing at the same time! Using her own personal journey as a horsewoman as an organizing structure, she considers myths, literature, and the stories of other women to explore the bond between women and horses. This is an informative and reflective book.
Zen and Horses: Lessons from a Year of Riding by Ingrid Soren. After a particularly nasty fall from my trusted older horse a few years ago, I picked up and read Soren¯s account of how she determined to overcome her fear of horses. Soren takes her reader through a year of lessons on various horses, the riding instructors and horsewomen she met, and the many horses who touched her life. This is a meditative book that seamlessly blends Soren's study of Zen Buddhism with her study of horsemanship, and her love for great literature.
The Tao of Equus: A Woman's Journey of Healing and Transformation through the Way of the Horse by Linda Kohanov. The Tao of Equus has been a best selling book for horse trainer, equine-facilitated therapy practitioner, and Epona Equestrian Services founder Linda Kohanov. Initially, I had difficulty getting all the way through this book. Kohanov is bold in addressing the strong spiritual dimension of the horse - human relationship and in her willingness to write about her deepest fears, her dreams, and her own psychological journey. She also challenges long held beliefs about horse training and human horse communication, even criticizing some practices of the natural horsemanship movement. But, I did read the entire book, and now a couple of years later, I still find myself occasionally reflecting on some of Kohanov's observations and catch myself putting some of her ideas into practice with my own herd. Riding Between the Worlds: Expanding our Potential through the Way of the Horse is Kohanov's follow ®up to The Tao of Equus. In this book, she provides numerous examples of equine-facilitated healing which Kohanov has set in motion or has observed. Kohanov continues to present her own journey of self-discovery through her interations with horses and expounds some new and daring theories of horse ® human communication. Well worth reading.
Of Women and Horses is a collection of essays by various horsewomen with an introduction and commentary by horse trainer and clinician GaWaNi Pony Boy, and beautifully illustrated with Gabrielle Boiselle's photographs. Each of the women who wrote for this book, all noteable horsewomen in their respective disciplines, was asked to reflect on her relationship with horses. As with any edited collection, the essays vary in insight and quality, but overall this is a lovely book which offers some understanding of the deep attraction between women and horses. Although it makes a great "coffee table book," Of Women and Horses offers more than that.