Halimah Marcus

I think that people who enjoyed horses as children will enjoy this anthology of essays and short memoirs a little more than people who did not. The amount of memories that this book evoked sent chills down my spine. And I don't mean just "oh, that reminds me of my time with my horse" but uncannily similar situations and decisions that it seems like many young women experience in their horse life. This like finding confidence through horse riding, dealing with both gender and puberty through horses, the decision whether to go to a "real" college and have a "serious" career as opposed to following the love of horses --and of course enjoying model horses as a child. All of these experiences were things that I dealt with as well, with a surprising amount of similarity to the authors. I don't think, however, that this book would be enjoyable for readers who did not have horses in their youth--the myriad experiences and themes of youth, coming of age, growing up and reflecting on your past, will make interesting for many readers. It also has such a fabulous selection of writers with different styles, and also with different points of view, as Halimah Marcus has done a great job of including many others whose experiences are far outside of the stereotypical "horse girl". And yet between authors of different genders, cultures and colors, our experiences with horses are very similar. I read this with my sister and mother, also ex or current horse women, and they felt very much the same.… (meer)