Bought horse books

Should be Just Bought Horse Books. Sorry.

While LibraryThing was down I went to the antique store that is exactly halfway between my land and the nearest large town. I have found it to still be an absolute goldmine of long out-of-print horse and dog stories, and could have spent the entire rest of the day there, but we had places to go so I got just two horse books.

One was Lost Horse by Glenn Balch. It was a library binding, and the first few pages were cut out, so I am at a loss as to when it was published. But it turns out that it was the prequel, as it were, to The Midnight Colt! So of course I just had to get it. I don't know what it's about, but if it's by Glenn Balch it must be good. He's become one of my favorite authors.

The other was Silver by Thomas C. Hinkle, first published in 1934. The version I have was published by Comet Books in 1949. The back cover says:

Silver was a wild colt, snowy white and very handsome. From the day he first laid eyes on him, Charley Barr of the Circle S Ranch wanted him for his very own.

But it was not easy to put a rope over Silver. Fleet-footed, and protected by Old Dun, his crafty mother, Silver led Charley and the other cowhands in wild pursuit.

Silver grew stronger and more beautiful with every day of freedom - strong enough at last to crush the Blue Roan in bitter combat and save Charley Barr's life.

I like antiques for the sense of nostalgia. The quality and style of writing were different. The books feel old, and have a rather time-honored place on my shelves. I am amassing quite a collection of them, and haven't yet read a really bad one.

ooooh nymith we're in agreement on this one.

I love the feel and even the smell of older books. I love browsing around old books stores, Salvation Army, Goodwill's, Library book sales--anywhere that has them on hand. I call it going sale-ing.

I have several Glenn Balch books although I may not have them up on Librarything yet. The other one I haven't read--you'll have to report back on what you thik of it.

I started out collecting what was interesting to me--and that is what got me into eventually selling a few of the extra's and my website of out of print Appaloosa books. Just couldn't pass up a second copy of xxxhorseandponybook, especially when I knew it was selling online for more than the asking price wherever I found it.

I missed LibraryThing horribly--but the last part of the week was my daughter's freshman orientation for college this fall and parents also went. It was only an hour away, so I did horse and other critter chores am & pm while she stayed in the dorm--also had to put in a few odd hours at work to keep things going there and also send out a bookmooch book or two. So I was EXHAUSTED as sessions started at 8 am and often went until late in the evening too.

But on my way home yesterday, I stopped at my favorite summer flea market under tents sale and picked up a paperback copy of Patsey Gray's book, "Heads Up" about a jumping Appaloosa for $0.50. I have a feeling you'd like Patsey Gray's books--you might look for them in your library. I think most if not all are out of print, and she is an author that you can bookscout with as some of them can go for pretty good money onine. (The one I bought was pretty battered--but I'll love it anyway.)

I completely agree with you. Some of the best books I have ever read have been out of print. Everytime I walk into that antique bookstore, I feel I could stay there for hours...

Glenn Balch has become a favorite of mine. I just found out recently that he published eight books about the Tack Ranch and the Darby family. I can't wait to get them all, and any other interesting books he did.

I can remember the very first antique horse story I read. It was called Pounding Hooves (which was a gift) and though it had a pretty average plot, I liked the way it was written. The style and feel of it was different, and I liked that, so I found more of them.

I missed LibraryThing as well, but I kept busy working and catching up on a pile of dishes. And I got a great deal of reading done as well, so I managed to keep my mind off it. And it made me appreciate it more, which is always a good thing.

And as for Patsey Gray I think her books sound very interesting, and have found one of them at Ebay. It was called Double Standards. With luck I will be able to aquire it or one of her other books soon, along with some Glenn Balch. Then I will have more to post here. Thanks for telling me about it.

Since you like horse books... have you read, or would you like to read, Bluegrass by Borden Deal? I have an extra copy of it that I registered at BookCrossing.com and I'd be happy to give away. Just let me know.

I have never read Bluegrass. What is it about?

Bluegrass is about the people and the goings on at a horse farm in Kentucky (of course). Talks a lot about bloodlines, managing the farm, training/racing, etc. I liked it a lot although it was quite different from the miniseries they made from it (which is what hooked me in the first place).

I really enjoyed Bluegrass. Every horse person's fantasy; the protagonist was a nurse, I believe, for a very rich old gentleman who had a horse farm. Naturally, he left it to her in his will, along with a lot of money to keep it running until she was horse-wise enough to raise winners on her own.

Sigh--I want a fairy godfather like that!

streamsong, apparently you and I are the only ones who own it (if the statistics are correct). Good to meet you!

Bluegrass sounds quite interesting. I think I'd like to read it. By the way, how many pages are in it? And what is BookCrossing.com? I've never heard of it.

468pgs, hardback. It hasn't had the best life, but its pages are still tight. No DJ. I'd be happy to mail it to you just to find a home for it. If you want it, put the address on my profile page and after I've written it down, I'll delete it.

BookCrossing.com is a place for people who have duplicate books or (for lack of a better word) unwanted books to tag them. Then they "release" the books in a public place like a grocery store, doctor's office, etc for people to take. You can track where a book has been on the website by it's tag#. There is also what's called a controlled release where you send a book to someone instead of leaving it out for a stranger.

I put the address on your profile page, only it does not appear to be their now. Have you already deleted it, or did it never show up?

I retrieved the address and deleted it from there. Didn't want it out there on the net for everyone to see it. I know I wouldn't want mine out there. My husband took the book to the post office this morning so it's on its way. Hope you enjoy it.

Hi Victoria;

Sounds like there will be three of us with this book now!

Are you interested in horses or did this particular story just catch your eye after seeing the miniseries? I know the book came out in the 70's (because I was working at a bookstore and going to college) and the mini series came out quite a bit later. I watched it, but can't remember it well enough to remember the differences. Did they change the book's story line altogether in the mini series?

Yes, now there are three. I love giving books away to a good home, especially if I really like the book.

Well I spent a couple of months as a teenager in Lexington KY with a family friend around Derby time and was just caught up in horse fever. I don't own any horses and have only been on a few, but that's the great thing about books, you can live vicariously!
I saw the mini-series and then bought the book. They didn't change the story so much as the peripherals. Maude isn't a nurse for Mr. Timothy. The Count isn't in the mini-series, they replaced him with a cad named Michael. 'Payson' is changed to 'Lowell' and there's a history between him and Maude. But the story is there...every book gets changed when they make it for TV/film.

I can hardly wait for it to arrive.

But in the meantime I got Double Standards by Patsey Gray. It was published in 1983, and I have it in mass market paperback. It looks pretty good, except for the name of the protaginist, which is Sis.

Victoria--that's a great description of books--getting to try on what we might never see or be in our 3D lives. I have lots of books about subjects that I'm not obscessed with but enjoy reading. Heck even the mystery books and true crime I have fall into that catagory if it comes to that. :)

nymith: good for you that you got the book! I love eBay (but can spend waaaaay too much money there!) I haven't read that one you'll have to report back on it.

Ebay is an absolute goldmine. I love everything about it except the bidding. I prefer to just buy things, not have to worry about someone else coming along and raising the price.

I plan on reading a horse book once I finish my current books. I think it will be Double Standards, but I might choose something else. Lost Horse and Mountain Pony are both high on the list as well.

And I also agree with Victoria. I sometimes envy the characters in the books I read. Books are a real escape from the ordinary.

Do you suppose we should have a topic for horse books we have just read (or re-read), so that we can report back on them?

If it's something I really want, and can't do my own sniping on eBay (if I'm at work for example) , I use www.auctionstealer.com It's a limited free use site that bids in the last few seconds for your item.

I like your idea of a thread/topic for horse books we've just completed. Do you review the books you read? So far, I haven't done so, but perhaps I'll start (if I ever get more time that is!)

I just finished putting up a hot wire along a dangerous stretch to keep horses out of there. I had **LOTS** of help from my two year old gelding. He kept helping himself to tools, clips etc from my fence fixing bucket. He also decided to help by trying to lick my arms and even the small of my back when my shirt rode up--all that perspiration must have been attractive to him. He finally picked up a stick and carried that around since I was so stingy with my toys. The youngsters are such a hoot.

I don't review books I've read, I just post an entry on them in 50 Book Challenge. I want to start reviewing them on Alibris, since I could win one hundred dollars in books if I did. I might make reviews on LibraryThing if I get more time, but I'm a bit hard up on that at the moment.

I'll start the thread when I read a book about horses again. Unless you read one first.

A horse carrying a stick and stealing tools? I never would have thought that was the sort of thing a horse would do.

This is rather off the topic, but the floor of the second room of my house is nearly completed. All we have to do is patch up the walls, and my profile stating that I live in a one-room house will need to be updated.

I got Bluegrass in the mail!

The book looks really interesting, and has rocketed to the top of my to-read list. It's nice and thick and in pretty good condition. The only challenge will be finding a place for it in my rapidly filling shelves.

Alright... I bought another horse book. I found out that Borden Deal wrote under a pen name (Leigh Borden) and the book was titled Legend of the Bluegrass (touchstone not working). So, I couldn't resist, I bought it. It was published one year after Bluegrass but it's different in many ways. It's gothic. There's a curse on the farm. The ghost of Black Prince, the stallion who was put down after he savaged his mistress, still haunts the great stone barn. He won't abide a husband of a Manford woman on the property. They hear him galloping and calling to them and they go out to see if he's really there. Then their bodies are found in the paddock. Is the ghost of the stallion real or is it a hoax by the man who wants to sell the farm to make a million in the real estate market? I don't want to spoil it for you. But what a treat. So maybe your library has a copy or you can find one on the web like I did... Let me know what you're reading!

That sure sounds different then Bluegrass! But I like gothics, and it sounds pretty good from your description Victoria. I'll keep my eyes open for it.

As soon as I finish the book I'm currently reading I'll read a horse book, so I'll start the topic for books currently being read then.

Thanks VictoriaPl; That's really cool that you found out about her pseudonym.

I've never read a gothic horse novel but added it to my wishlists on a couple of swap sites. At least the author has a fairly good knowledge of horses so it shouldn't be too hoaky--meaning giving horses all sorts of non-horsey traits.

I also see it is available for just a few cents from amazon.com :) (Trying not to buy any
more books until my tbr pile gets a bit more in hand.)

I won another Glenn Balch book off of Ebay. Wild Horse Tamer, mass market paperback, published by scholastic book services in August 1966. The description on the back says:

"Ben Darby! Are you payin attention to this problem?"

"Yes ma'am," said Ben to his math teacher.

But Ben's mind was far away; a hundred miles away in the mountain valleys where King had disappeared. King, the great black stallion, leader of the wild horse pack is gone.

"Dead," says Ben's father. But Ben and his sister Dixie launch a search for the missing King - a search on a long, long trail.

I have yet to read a book by Glenn Balch that is anything less than five stars, and as such have high hopes for this book. It takes place after the events of Lost Horse, though I can't tell if it takes place before or after The Midnight Colt. I certainly look forward to reading this novel.

I managed to aquire another Tack Ranch book: Christmas Horse. It is the exact same length as Lost Horse, and tells how Ben Darby caught and trained Inkpot, his personal horse and King's son. It is one of the first two books in the series. I believe the first was called Wild Horse.

I won a book on eBay the other day: C.W. Anderson's Favorite Horse Stories. I bought it for the illustrations but I'm sure the stories will be good. It's an ex-library copy but his books can be expensive so I'm not complaining -- it cost me less than $10 including shipping!

I own that book! But I haven't read it, so please let me know if it's good.

When I get it, I'll let you know. I love C.W. Anderson's illustrations. Sam Savitt is also good; I'd like to find a couple of his books.

I picked up another horse book at work yesterday (from the discard pile): Mr. Revere and I by Robert Lawson. I remember reading it and loving it when I was a kid so I snagged it. :)

My copy of C.W. Anderson's Favorite Horse Stories came today. I remember reading this book as a kid! It is not all fiction; some of the stories are accounts of famous racehorses. It goes great in my collection of racing books.

It also includes one of my favorite horse poems "Big Red" by J. A. Estes. I memorized it once because I loved it so much. :)

That's really cool FionaCat. I think I remember reading that one as a kid, too. I'll have to look for it and see if I can find an (inexpensive) copy.

Hmmm, I could see myself collecting C W Anderson because I enjoy his art work so much. On the other hand, wasn't I just saying NO MORE books until some leave--or at least find their way out of the TBR pile. I can't decide if being interested in so many subjects is a good thing or just a way to justifiy the number of books I have around here.

Meant to tell you that I am also on bookins as well as bookmooch and paperbackswap.com Books DO leave here...just not as quickly as they should, heehee.

Yes, the books do seem to come IN faster than they go OUT. And of course, so many of them stay for good :)

I would love to collect C. W. Anderson books but they aren't cheap. I have always loved his artwork. I have some books by Richard Stone Reeves and several prints by Fred Stone but there is something so charming and old-fashioned about Anderson's work.

My favorite horse artist is George Stubbs. Munnings is also very good. I always liked the illustrations in the Marguerite Henry books (I can't remember the artist's name right now) and Sam Savitt did some nice work.

I believe you are referring to Wesley Dennis, FionaCat. I really like his illustrations, as they are quite charming and old-fashioned. And Sam Savitt is good. I own only one book by him though: Wild Horse Running.

I can see I was lucky. My copy of C.W. Anderson's Favorite Horse Stories was free, as I inherited it from a relative. If they are as expensive as it sounds like, then I won't be collecting more of them any time soon. I have my work cut out for me trying to find Albert Payson Terhune's collie books at low prices! I certainly cannot start collecting another expensive animal artist, much as I'd like to.

Yes, it is Wesley Dennis. Thank you, nymith!

Speaking of Wesley Dennis, I just got a copy of Marguerite Henry's Album of Horses from Bookins, which is full of lovely Dennis illustrations.

I picked up another old horse book from the discard pile at work. It is Mountain Stallion by Logan Forster published in 1958. It's been rebound so there is no dustcover or blurb but it appears to be about a Native American boy who is a jockey (that's all I can tell from the first page) and from the illustrations it looks like there is a wild horse involved.

Has anyone ever read this book or any others by Forster?

No, I haven't read anything by him. I went to http://www.addall.com/used/ to check it out and found only copy--asking price $45. Have you read it yet?

I haven't had a chance to read it yet but when I do I will post a review. I also picked up a couple more the other day: Wild Horse Running by Sam Savitt and Runaway Stallion by Walt Morey. I've read Wild Horse Running before but it's been so long I don't really remember it.

I really need to find more time to read!

If you like older horse-related fiction (which I'm guessing everyone here does, by the titles I'm currently drooling over!) and you run across a copy of Frog, the Horse that Knew No Master or The Phantom Roan you might want to pick them up. They're both vintage 1930s-1940s, in the "problem horse finds special person" vein. Serilda's Star by Olive Rambo Cook is a good one, as well.

I forgot ... I pulled another Glenn Balch book out of the discard pile a while back: Spotted Horse which is about Appaloosas.

I was soooooo bad at the end of January. Spent a pile of money at ExclusivelyEquine.com on their sale books and videos. Nonfiction, mostly which is always my favorite. But my TBR pile is sooooooo huge I had promised myself not to bring anymore books into the house until I get some of them read.

Fssunnysd--I remember thePhantom Roan. It was a favorite of mine while growing up. It makes me wonder if I still have a copy in my boxes of stored books.

FionaCat--I think I have a copy of Spotted Horse. Although I can't remember it very well, I just remember a negative impression. I'll be interested in your comments.

streamsong -- I have carefully avoided going to the ExclusivelyEquine.com site (in fact I just deleted an email offering me a 10% discount). I will let you know what I think of Spotted Horse whenever I get around to reading it :)

Okay, thanks, Streamsong, now I'm going to be in trouble -- I hadn't heard of ExclusivelyEquine.com. Any other good horse book sites to suggest, as long as you're being bad influences and spoiling my resolutions to be good and abide by my book budget?

Good thing my husband loves me (and I promised to clean out and donate some tack to a charity sale, so I have some credit on tap!).