I expected the story of the smartest horse in the world, Jim Keys, who could spell & do math. Instead, I'm getting a wandering biography of Dr. Keys, his owner/trainer, Alan Rogers, his other owner/promoter & a history of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animal societies, the plight of blacks from before the Civil War for a century, plus a lot of other stuff. There seems to be a little something in here for everyone, not really enough of any one thing to make me think it was a great book. It’s interesting & would probably be a good book to read for a book club since there is a lot to discuss.It's not bad, although the story wanders through time, often bewilderingly. At least twice, the story wandered off track for so long that I was forced to page back when it got back on track. The continuity of the story was lost. I also find myself skimming parts such as long passages listing the bookings of Jim. I was fascinated by what the world was like for Dr. Keys, a freed black who was born before the Civil War in Shelbyville, TN. How the status of blacks changed over the years & in various areas was also of interest.Many of the 'facts' are suspect. The courthouse in Shelbyville was destroyed 4 times from the time the story starts until it was researched. Newspapers, as the author tells us, were not always accurate, often they plain lied. There are 3 separate accounts of how Jim Keys died, for instance, only one of which was carried in a paper & the author tells us it is not likely the truth.The book is often based on promotional pamphlets & other written material by Rogers & often backed by hearsay. Rogers was a promoter for many other acts & his facility with the truth is shown throughout the book. Bottom line, the truth was of secondary importance to his ambitions.The biographical information about Doc Keys is mostly from his stories. Doc was a promoter, patent medicine man & consummate business man. His veracity is also open to question. There's no doubt he was a great man in many respects. A slave who served on both sides in the Civil War, he later took care of his old owners, even sending the kids to college & helping them get set in business. He made his own fortune while teaching himself to be a veterinarian & doctor. He was certainly a horse trainer without par considering the results he had with Jim. While I have not caught any out-right lies that are provable, the story of Jim's dam is very suspect. It reads like something out of an adventure novel. Doc Keys participation in the Civil War is sketchy & full of questions. It could all be true, but I think the truth is at least incomplete. It is a good story, though.The historical information of the times is very interesting. It brings to life the cities, full of animals & their plight. The politics among the early animal rights folks & the attitudes of the day come through in a way that makes an impression on me. The descriptions of the fairs, the Roosevelts & other famous historical figures are from a unique, quite personal perspective. ( )

This book tells the story of a little horse that helped launch the humane treatment of animals movement by showing what is possible using kindness in training/teaching methods. His owner, Dr. William Key, taught Beautiful Jim to recognize letters, numbers, and words and respond to questions by spelling his answers. Unlike Clever Hans, who was proved to be getting cues from his handler and could only perform when his handler was close by, Jim really seemed to have learned his letters. He could, and frequently would, answer questions put to him by his audience while his owner wasn't anywhere close around. I really wish there were records that could be studied by scientists today to see what was going on.

Anyone who enjoyed Seabiscuit: An American Legend or Black Beauty will enjoy this book. It's a wonderful look back at an amazing animal and an amazing time in history. ( )

Late 19th/early 20th century American History

Before we became couch potatoes, World's Fairs and other annual expositions
were among America's most popular forms of mass entertainment. From 1897 to
1912, one of their largest draws--attracting tens of thousands of
enthusiastic fans daily--was a horse. Beautiful Jim Key, whose owner, Dr.
William Key, "taught him by kindness", could add, subtract, spell, cite
Bible passages and pluck silver dollars from a barrel of water without
drinking the water. Impressive as those feats were, they're just the tip of
the iceberg in this fascinating book. The life of Dr. William Key,
self-taught veterinarian and former slave was remarkable. The author shows
how the intimate bond between horse and man prompted thousands of
schoolchildren to pledge "always to be kind to animals" and propelled the
growth of animal-rights and anti-cruelty groups. The only thing that
detracted from this book to me was occasional lapses into purple
prose--undoubtedly the result of research and reading all those old
newspapers! ( )