A Year at the Races: Reflections on Horses, Humans, Love, Money and Luck - Hardcover

Smiley, Jane

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0571224350 ISBN 13: 9780571224357

Publisher: Faber and Faber, 2004

Synopsis

Before I was a mother, before I was a writer, before I knew the facts of life, before I was a schoolgirl, before I learned to read, I wanted a horse. Jane Smiley, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A Thousand Acres, takes us into the heart of the racing world with this irresistible account of her life-long love affair with horses. Smiley draws upon her first-hand knowledge of horses, as well as the wisdom of trainers, vets, jockeys and even a real-life horse whisperer, to examine the horse on all levels - practical, theoretical, and emotional. She shares not only anecdotes about her own horses, but also fascinating and original insights into horse - and human - behaviour. To all this she adds an element of drama and suspense as two of her own horses begin their careers at the racetrack. As the sexy black filly Waterwheel and the elegant gray colt Wowie aspire to the winner's circle, we are enchanted, enthralled - and informed about what it's really like to own, train, and root for a racehorse. A Year at the Races is charming, funny, and a bit outrageous: a candid exploration of the abiding bond between humans and horses, told with panache, intelligence and humour.

About this title

About the Author

Jane Smiley was born in Los Angeles, California, and grew up in St Louis, Missouri. She was educated at Vassar College, receiving her B.A. degree in 1971, and at the University of Iowa, from which she received her M.A. degree in 1975, her M.F.A. degree in 1976, and her PhD in 1978. In 1981 Smiley began teaching at Iowa State University.$$$Smiley's first novel, Barn Blind (1980), tells the story of a severe mother who alienates her husband and children after one of her sons dies in a horseback riding accident. A later novel, The Greenlanders (1988), about a curse that afflicts several generations of a 14th-century Scandinavian family, reflects Smiley's training as a scholar of medieval literature. Two collections of her shorter fiction also have been published: The Age of Grief (1987) and Ordinary Love and Good Will (1989). In 1992 she won the Pulitzer Prize for A Thousand Acres (1991), for which she also won the National Book Critics' Circle Award in 1992. Her other novels include Moo (1995), The All True Travels and Adventures of Liddie Newton (1998) and Horse Heaven (2000), which was shortlisted for the Orange Prize. Her most recent novel, Good Faith, was published in 2003. In 2004, her non-fiction book about owning and racing horses, A Year at the Races, was published.

Edition details

• Publisher: Faber and Faber
• Publication date: 2004
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0571224350
• ISBN 13: 9780571224357
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 304