8 horse books Archives

My Lady Jane

by Brodi Ashton, Cynthia Hand, Jodi Meadows

The Princess Bride meets The Other Boleyn Girl in this quirky spin on the true story of Lady Jane Grey. Sixteen-year-old King Edward has arranged a marriage for Jane in order to secure his line to the throne. He doesn’t have much interest in ruling, and she doesn’t have much interest in marriage. Duty is the least of their problems because, well...Jane’s betrothed turns into a horse every night. Note: this sassy book is especially great on audio.

Girls and Their Horses

by Eliza Jane Brazier

Friends, I thought I wasn’t interested in a horse book; I was so wrong. Here’s what I learned when I raced through this thriller in a single day: “Horse girls are the toughest girls around. You know why? They make a thousand-pound wild animal do whatever they ask.” And sometimes they ask for the unconscionable. I was hooked from page one: I wanted to know what would happen next, of course, but the story is also anchored by a strong emotional core revolving around ambition, sisterly rivalry, parenting angst, and devastating secrets. The stakes are high, the egos huge, the characters largely unlikable, and the horses untameable. I loved it. For fans of Megan Abbott’s Dare Me and Ramona Ausubel’s The Last Animal for its similar emotional core.

The God of Animals

by Aryn Kyle

This is the book that has finally forced me to realize that I love a good horse book. Kyle's 2007 debut coming-of-age tale is set over the course of a blazing hot summer on a Colorado horse farm. 12-year-old Alice's world was upended when her older sister ran off with a rodeo cowboy. Now Alice feels like she's been left all alone to deal with the death of a classmate, her mother's ongoing depression, and her father's stress about the farm's finances. But when a new student starts taking riding lessons at the farm, that's when things really begin to change. Kyle draws beautiful and subtle parallels between life and horses as she shows us how Alice endures and changes over the course of one tumultuous summer.

The Everlasting

by Alix E. Harrow

I was emotionally hooked on this story even before the opening line, thanks to the perfect epigraph from a Rilke poem. This is the unlikely love story of two people who never should have met. Una Everlasting was a medieval lady knight, legendary warrior, and patron saint of the nation of Dominion. Owen Mallory is a tweedy scholar obsessed with Una’s legend. But then Dominion’s new chancellor sends Owen back in time to meet Una and write her definitive tale, so that the story may inspire the beleaguered nation. When he first meets her, he’s in awe and can barely believe she’s real. But then he falls in love with her—with disastrous consequences for them both. I don’t want to say too much—but I was completely entranced by this emotional, epic, and achingly intimate love story that unfolds across time and whose outcome will determine the fate of a nation. I’ve loved Harrow’s work in the past, but this is my new favorite by a mile.

The Scorpio Races

by Maggie Stiefvater

A YA fantasy about wild water horses and the risks we’ll take to protect those we love. Every November 1, the Scorpio Races take place on the small island of Thisby. Riders try to stay on capall uisce long enough to cross the finish line or at least not to die. Everyone in the community has lost someone to the murderous capall uisce. Nineteen-year-old Sean has won the races four times and he’s back to defend the title. Puck never thought she’d enter and not just because she’ll be the first girl to ever complete. Her impoverished family desperately needs the cash prize. Sean and Puck are drawn into each other’s orbit despite themselves but there can only be one winner.

Horse

by Geraldine Brooks

This 2022 novel from Pulitzer Prize winning author Brooks spans three timelines as she delves into the true story of Lexington, one of the greatest racehorses in US history. In 1850 Kentucky, Jarret, an enslaved groom, bonds with the bay foal under his care oer the years against the backdrop of the Civil War, while an artist becomes known for his paintings of the racehorse. In 1954 New York City, a gallery owner comes across a mysterious nineteenth-century equestrian painting. In 2019 Washington, DC, a Smithsonian scientist and an art historian work to unearth the lost history and the Black men behind Lexington’s wins. After reading Brooks’s more recent memoir Memorial Days, I was intrigued by her many references to working on Horse in those pages.

Phoenix (Ride On #1)

by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

Bestselling author of The War That Saved My Life Kimberly Brubaker Bradley launches a new uplifting Middle Grade series with this first installment. Harper’s life is upended when her parents announce they’re divorcing and she and her mom move to a new town. One day a truck drops off a neglected horse in her yard, instead of the riding barn next door. Harper may not have had any interest in horses before but she is drawn to this abandoned horse, who she names Phoenix—and a life-changing relationship begins. I haven’t read this yet, but I’ve loved Bradley’s work in the past and was excited to learn of this new one.

Seabiscuit: An American Legend

by Laura Hillenbrand

I didn't think I was interested in the story of a racehorse, but after devouring Unbroken, I trusted Hillenbrand to take me on a remarkable ride, no matter the topic. In this true story that reads like a novel, Hillenbrand takes her reader on a remarkable ride, masterfully weaving together the stories of a knock-kneed racehorse and the three men who made him a champion: a bookish half-blind jockey, an eccentric trainer, and a limelight-loving owner. An incredible tale, and not just for horse lovers.

8 horse books

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summer reading starts May 16th