I attended a Large Animal Rescue (LAR) workshop two weekends ago and part of my homework prior to the day was reading Equine Emergency Rescue.

I haven’t been reading a lot of late with regards to my horse novels due to an abundance of uni reading and assignments needing to be done!  But I did put aside time to make my way through this non fictional, informative book before attending the workshop.

The book is a clear guide for many individuals who may be involved in the scene of rescuing a horse from an unexpected situation.  It covers the roles of the horse owner, incident controller, veterinarian and other rescue officers.

Many large animal rescues are carried out by the local SES or CFA team who may not necessarily have hands on experience with horses.  Consequently, MaryAnne encourages the horse owner to carry a copy of her book for reference when travelling with horses.

The chapters are set out logically so that you can turn to ‘Extrication from a Horse Float’ and see step by step what needs to be done.  Pictures and steps are provided too to safely get a rope system around a horse for moving and how to create horse handling equipment from ropes.

A bonus for attending the workshop is that the cost of the book is included and you score a signed copy to go through prior to attending.  Equine Emergency Rescue I believe is a book that should be in every horse owner’s collection.

Author: MaryAnne Leighton and Michelle Staples
http://www.equineer.com/
Non fiction – large animal rescue
In my library? You bet!  Very informative and worth knowing.

“I have seen soldiers panic at the first sight of battle, and a squire pulling arrows from his body to fight and save his dying horse. Nobility is not a birthright, but is defined by one’s actions.” – Kevin Costner in Robin Hood, Prince Of Thieves

The second book in the Horse Crazy series finds young Emily still at Webster’s Country Horse Camp without her closest friend Judy. She is however coping just fine, and learning to stand up for herself as well as recognise true friends.

In this novel for young teens, Emily starts to recognise that something is truly wrong with one of the other girls, Dru. Aside from being petrified of horses, Dru is truly unhappy about something.

On a planned overnight trail, Dru manages to fall from her walking horse on their first day out, resulting in the trip being called off until further notice.

The remaining riders are devastated – especially at the idea of such an unhappy rider having ruined their exciting plans. As this weighs heavily on the young unhappy rider, she makes a drastic effort to get away from it all.

A search party in the form of the Webster family and Emily head out at night to try to find the runaway Dru. After she is found Emily realises the depth of the young girl’s unhappiness due to family troubles.

In an attempt to move Dru’s thoughts to something else, Emily finds a way with the help of Chris Webster to cause the young rider to turn her attention to her faithful mount, Donna. Things slowly turn around and find Dru learning to not be fearful of horses and to even enjoy riding and caring for them.

Happy Trails ends with Emily finding she has a lot to write and tell Judy about.

Author: Virginia Vail
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/182956.Virginia_Vail
Fiction – teens
In my library? Indeed – a good follow on from the first in the series.
Want it? Get it now at Amazon.

“Wild oats aren’t meant for sowing – but they make a nice trail snack.” – Author unknown

Emily and Judy are the best of friends, have been since 3 years of age. Now the 13 year olds are excited about going on a horse riding camp for the whole summer. Only one thing could make the camp less appealing – one of them not being able to go.

When young Emily gets such a call from Judy she questions if she wants to go on the lengthy camp all by herself. After all, Judy is the outgoing one of the pair, not Emily!

Author Virginia Vail writes well about the young teen’s nerves with regards to fitting in, her level of riding in comparison to others and the sort of time she will have without her closest friend. Emily’s fears are quickly dispersed when she sees the first horse at Webster’s Country Horse Camp.

Her confidence rises as she is introduced to the group of ‘Fillies’ – 13 and 14 year olds she’ll be sharing a room with. Of the other 6 girls, most are easy to get along with. A nearly 15 year old by the name of Caroline who is very used to being pampered proves to be troublesome however and Emily soon finds herself disliking the teen.

As Caroline befriends Emily, the 13 year old decides she must have been wrong in her first assumptions, but over time the amount of favours Caroline carries out for Emily leave the young girl feeling concerned. At what point will Caroline expect a favour in return?

The first story in this series ends well, showing how Emily can stand up for something she believes in.

Author: Virginia Vail
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/182956.Virginia_Vail
Fiction – teens
In my library? You bet! A great introduction to a horse series for that horse mad teenager.
Want it? Get it now on Amazon.

“A little horseplay… the way best to enjoy a summer day!” – Author unknown

I decided a couple of weeks ago I wanted to read a chunky novel that was fiction for the older reader and so picked up Bred to Win by William Kinsolving out of my bookshelf.

Kinsolving made it easy for me to feel for the main character – a rising 15 year old girl who is no stranger to poverty and abuse. Having been blamed for her mother’s death, Annie struggles to survive with her older brothers and drunk father. At 15 she is given an opportunity to set her life on a different course and grabs it without much thought.

Making her way to a racetrack, luck is with her as she meets a man who introduces her to many in the horse industry; landing her a job and the chance to earn an income. As Annie’s lack of skills with horses improves, her knack with the thoroughbred breed becomes obvious to many and she is given opportunity to move on from being a hot walker to the groom of a few horses.

Annie’s endeavours at the track are in a bid to run into Sam Cumberland – a man 10 years her senior she met after a train crash and fell for. Although the escape from home proves to be promising for the young teen, her introduction to the racing world and some of it’s more shady characters soon sets her path in an interesting direction.

Bred to Win is a lengthy story that covers a lot of interesting racing history – the author has obviously done his research. Unfortunately it is also full of affairs, sex, drugs and alcohol, themes that would have me hesitant to recommend the book to many.

The main character Annie is incredibly strong and her tenacity to push on with life when things keep going wrong make her a truly enjoyable character. Woven into the story are some other broken but delightfully interesting people. It is these characters and the strength of horse information across American and French racing that makes it such an enjoyable read.

Author: William Kinsolving
Fiction – adult
In my library? It is; I’d be apprehensive to let young minds read it on account of some adult content, but otherwise a really interesting read.
Want it? Get it now at Amazon.

“A horse in the wind – a perfect symphony.” – Author Unknown