In Praise of Famous Horses: An A-Z of the Most Celebrated in History and Culture, Myth and Sport

Description

In Praise of Famous Horses is an A-Z companion to perhaps the most loved of all domesticated animals. From D.H. Lawrence's horse Aaron, whose hide was posthumously made into a duffel-bag, to Zippy Chippy, fabled American loser, all the horses featured in this book have their very own claim to fame. Some - among them Bucephalas, Red Rum, Champion the Wonder Horse and Rocinante - are permanent residents in the equine pantheon. Others - such as Rossa Prince, who managed to lose a walkover - attract more qualified appreciation. Literature, history and art, battlefield, movie and television, myth, racecourse and religion are all enriched by these magnificent creatures. From A to Z, here is the wonderful world of famous horses.

Sean Magee is the author or editor of several books on horse racing, including CHANNEL 4 RACING: COMPLETE A-Z OF HORSE RACING, ASCOT: THE HISTORY, and LESTER'S DERBYS (with Lester Piggott). He is also the author of the official history of BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs. He lives in rural Oxfordshire with his family.

Many books have been written about famous horses but none like this; a well-informed, enthusiastic, engagingly written and unusually wide-ranging work. It was written to celebrate horses famous for whatever reason and it succeeds wonderfully well -- David Ashforth * THE RACING POST *