Winter Reading List for Horse Lovers

The days are darker, the nights colder and now is the time to hunker down with a good horse book or two or few! Here is a roundup, a winter reading list for horse lovers. Here are some books are on my to-read list list right now.

This post contains affiliate links.

Right now I am on Chapter 6 of Ladies of the Canyons by Lesly Poling-Kempe. I picked up this book when I was driving through the American Southwest at the end of the summer. Something about the beauty of New Mexico and Arizona (and the cover with black and white photos of women on horseback) drew me in. It’s not an easy read, but if you love history and strong women, this book’s for you.

Stable Style: Barn Inspiration for All Horse Lovers by Raquel Lynn is a stunning coffee table book that will be a perfect present for you (I bought one for me!) or a special horse addict on your gift list. The photographs feature dreamy horse barns from around the U.S.

Read the behind-the-scenes Q & A about how this book came to be in this blog post.

Winter Reading List for Horse Lovers: Memoir

Another book I loved is Crossing the Line by Kareem Rosser. It’s an equestrian memoir about a boy from a troubled neighborhood in Philly. He finds solace in the sport of polo. Kareem’s life story will make you laugh, cry and there are parts that will upset you. Crossing the Line is triumphant and truthful. Read it for yourself. (By the way, I loaned it to my mom with this disclosure: “Mom, there’s a significant amount of swearing, reflective of real life.”) She devoured the book, was naming all the people she thinks need to read it next, and didn’t comment at all about the curse words. lol

See this Crossing the Line book review.

Speaking of equestrian memoir, did you know I wrote one? The blog Equine Ink likened Horses Adored and Men Endured to a more tame version of Bridget Jones’ Diary. In hindsight it is now quite embarrassing: sharing myriad fiasco dates and the riding fall when I broke my nose. However, it was a life goal to chronicle my struggle to find my knight in shining armor. I’ve had readers tell me they can identify with the angst of being a horse girl trying to date.

CLICK HERE TO BUY HORSES ADORED AND MEN ENDURED

Another book on my night stand is Distant Skies: An American Journey on Horseback by Melissa A Priblo Chapman. I had the pleasure of meeting Melissa at the annual American Horse Publications conference in Dallas this summer. My mom got to Distant Skies before me and shared the progress of Melissa as she rode across the U.S. chapter by chapter. My mom loved Distant Skies.

If you can’t get enough of the horse memoir genre, check out my blog post Summer Reading List for Horse Lovers. Spoiler alert: Half Broke, Wild Horses of the Summer Sun, and Stable Weight are a few of the titles listed.

Horse History Books

My friend and fellow educator, Hope Ellis-Ashburn is a huge fan of the Arabian horse. She meticulously researched the Gutknechts, a husband and wife team who who although not having a background in horse breeding (they were show dog people), produced a national champion during the Golden Age of the Arabian horse. If you like non-fiction and are intrigued by bloodlines, Kimbrook Arabians: How an Unlikely Midwestern Couple Influenced an Ancient Breed is for you.

Out of the Clouds: The Unlikely Horseman and the Unwanted Colt Who Conquered the Sport of Kings has captured my attention repeatedly over the past few years. Everyone likes a horse racing underdog story, right? I finally clicked “Buy Now” and have added it to my library and “to read” list. I’ll keep you posted on what I think once I read it.

If you’re looking for a fun stocking stuffer, try my book Unbridled Creativity: 101 Writing Exercises for the Horse Lover. Part journal with lines to fill in your ideas, part creative writing activity book, the 101 sentence starters, photo prompts and thought-provoking questions are based on my 20 years of classroom writing instruction. Writing riders from 10-100 will enjoy penning their pony-themed thoughts in this one-of-a-kind horse book.

CLICK HERE TO BUY UNBRIDLED CREATIVITY

Fiction & Training

I was recently given a review copy of Love in the Time of Horses by Charles Porter. I am not a huge fiction reader, but I know many of you are. Love in the Time of Horses is an inside look at the tony, cabalistic world of international horse showing and coaching that returns to Florida every winter for the ruling class and famous to entertain, compete, and play in the sun parlors of Palm Beach County.

As someone who recently moved to an eventing barn (and doesn’t consider herself an eventer), legendary trainer Jane Savoie’s book Dressage Between the Jumps: the Secret to Improving Your Horse’s Performance Over Fences seems like a perfect read. I remember interviewing Ben Ebeling (dressage Olympian Jan’s son) for a magazine article years ago. He was training both dressage and show jumping. Long story short, he said his advantage in jumping is because of his dressage foundation, he could literally place his horse where he wanted for the striding. At this stage, I cannot. lol! So this book will be helpful. It’s full of photos and diagrams and I can’t wait to dive in.

That’s a wrap on this winter reading list for horse lovers. I’d be eager to know what you’re diving into. Leave a comment, please. 🙂

Question: What books do you plan to read this fall and winter?

Thanks for reading and tally ho!

Join my email list for horse-centric people just like you and me. CLICK HERE to get the scoop about fun new products, horse stories and equestrian inspiration via twice-a-month emails. No spam.

Trot along with my Thoroughbred Knight and me on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest.