Sonora Carver (1904–2003)

I got this book because I enjoyed the movie Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken and wanted to get the real story. It was a quick read, but it gave a closer look at Sonora's life as a horse diving girl and better understanding of her life after she became blind.

This book is not a romance like the movie. As the title says, it is about a girl and five horses. However, I enjoyed learning the truth about her relationship with Al. It felt real and quite sweet.

I also appreciated the photos that were included, especially the action shots of the diving horses.… (more)

I recently re-watched the movie Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken, which was one of my favorite movies as a kid. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the movie has not lost all of its charm over the years, and even more surprised when my sister discovered that the real life person the main character is based on had written an autobiography.

I had a number of issues with this book. First, the book itself was just ugly. It seemed to be a hastily thrown together reprint of the first edition, and it was just unpleasant to look at. Second, I'm not a huge fan of horses, so all the descriptions of the horses and their personalities were really boring. Also, the book was really poorly written. Finally, (and I realize this is my issue), I had a hard time letting go of how the characters were portrayed in the movie. I kept waiting for Sonora's husband, Al, to figure more prominently into the book as a loving husband and companion, but he was barely mentioned.

It was funny to see the little things the movie did keep in her story... like how she cut her own hair, and her mom made her wear a bag over her head, and how she didn't want to bow after diving...

Overall, I would not recommend this book to anyone.

… (more)

Having seen "Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken", I wanted to know the real story, so I picked up this book. Though it was a quick read, it did tell me more about Sonora's life as a diving girl and what her life was like after she went blind.

As indicated by the title, this book is not a romance; it is more about her relationship with the horses. However, I did enjoy learning more about Sonora and Al's relationship. It felt real, and I was glad to know that unlike in the movie, Al was supportive when she wanted to keep diving.

I also liked the photos, especially the action ones.… (more)