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Post by Claire on Nov 13, 2010 19:39:24 GMT 1
Hi all, favourite racing stories. One of my all time favourite categories. Got to have National Velvet! Also all the Black Stallion ones where he races! And from KMP Blind Beauty and Crab the Roan. Thats enough from me for now. I'd better let someone else choose some. BTW will add poll for showjumping and eventing stories tomorrow - don't forget to vote.
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Post by haffyfan on Nov 13, 2010 19:45:27 GMT 1
Well you said two great ones but IvorHerberts longacre (which i read for first time recently) is Excellent. I also really like (sorry list coming)
Darkling and Free rein/Last Ditch by KMP Minority's Colt by Glenda Spooner Rivals to silver eagle by primrose Cumming
and I also enjoyed Winners luck by ricki pattison Sound oF Distant cheering by KM peyon Midnight steeplechase by moyra charlton Trainer by ? (TV prog) Jockey school - Micheal Feeny calum (sp) Against the odds by susan Millard
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Post by Claire on Nov 13, 2010 19:57:11 GMT 1
Crikey you've got more than me haffy.
Didnt KMP write some great racing stories! Love Last Ditch & Darkling too. I didnt enjoy The Sound of Distant Cheering as much as the others.
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Post by haffyfan on Nov 13, 2010 20:26:25 GMT 1
She writes great stories full stop! I was surprised how much I loved the Pennington trilogy for example. Maybe it's because it was written with an adult audience in mind you didn't like it as much? It was much more 'grown up' and 'detached' if thats the right way to describe it than her other stuff is. The one I never got on with Dear Fred...infact i gave up on it about half way and never resumed...
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Post by Claire on Nov 13, 2010 20:31:45 GMT 1
I didnt mind Dear Fred so much, but i think you could be right about TSODC. I felt the same way about Late to Smile, another adult one she wrote. I think she does teenage/young adult characters the best.
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Post by haffyfan on Nov 13, 2010 20:41:11 GMT 1
Never come across that one - you are a bad influence as just ordered it off amazon! It was a 1p er so it would have been rude not to wouldn't it...the copy of marions Angels was just crying out to be bought too
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Post by Claire on Nov 13, 2010 20:53:04 GMT 1
Never come across that one - you are a bad influence as just ordered it off amazon! Well, I try ;D Oh Marions Angels thats the one where Ruth appears as a jaded married woman! Its rather a strange one. Is it cheap now, it used to be expensive.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 13, 2010 21:17:57 GMT 1
KMP Blind Beauty is brilliant!! I've not read many other racing stories apart from National Velvet. I've read a few of the Black Stallion series but I hate to say this but they don't do it for me
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Post by kunuma on Nov 13, 2010 21:43:27 GMT 1
Green Grass of Wyoming? Pilot the Chaser
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Post by garej on Nov 14, 2010 0:11:44 GMT 1
Racehorse Holiday by JPT.
Also: Free Rein/Last Ditch by K M Peyton, and the three books that Ginny Elliot wrote for teenagers.
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vera
Pony Clubber
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Post by vera on Nov 14, 2010 4:42:26 GMT 1
Is this limited to pony book genre? because both Phar Lap and Sea Biscuit are great stories of great horses.
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Post by Claire on Nov 14, 2010 12:59:20 GMT 1
Its limited to fiction vera, tho we can have adult racing novels.
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Post by Claire on Nov 14, 2010 13:34:59 GMT 1
What about Mylor, I know its a fantasy/sci fi story but its also a racing one.
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Post by susanb on Nov 14, 2010 15:46:44 GMT 1
So many I love already on here! Have to add The Lord Mayor's Show and The Minstral Boy by Vian Smith though, both fantastic.
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Post by darkhorse on Nov 14, 2010 16:01:46 GMT 1
What about The Saturday Horse and the other Michael Hardcastle books?
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Post by fizz on Nov 14, 2010 17:47:53 GMT 1
Night Storm the Flat Racer HM Peel, The Horses of Petrock, Vian Smith, Zara Joyce Stranger, Grand National, John Welcome, Pancho, Dorian Williams
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Post by susanb on Nov 14, 2010 18:28:43 GMT 1
One more to add...in a way the "granddaddy" of racing stories: King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry
Claire, agree re the Black Stallion racing titles...the early books, especially the first, I loved....some of the later ones are very, very weird. I found the Black Stallion's Ghost just plain disturbing....have to admit, I haven't read it since I was a child, so maybe as an adult it would be ok, but...it is supposed to be a children's book!
Aside from the first Black Stallion book, my favorite of Farley's books is his fictionalized bio of Man o'War...not sure if it qualifies as fiction for the purpose of this poll though!
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Post by Claire on Nov 14, 2010 21:17:54 GMT 1
Ooh forgot about King of the Wind. I also like Marguerite Henry's book about the Palio, Gaudenzia Pride of the Palio. Yeah what was all that supernatural stuff about in some of the later Black Stally books? I read the ghost one as an adult and its just as odd believe me! The Legend one is weird too. I think WF must have been on the magic mushrooms when he wrote those
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Post by foxglove on Nov 15, 2010 11:43:17 GMT 1
My favourite Black Stallion was The Black Stallion's Filly, which is possibly the most racing-orientated of them all, with lots of stuff about the Kentucky Derby and its history.
Michael Hardcastle's racing stories are all good- I liked The Saturday Horse and Winning Rider best.
I also remember enjoying The Chasing Game, by Michael Morpugo I think.
Darkling was one of my all time favourites. I liked the stuff in The Sound of Distant Cheering about the mare going back to a real Thoroughbred (The Tetrach)- if anyone is interested, the book Grey Magic traces the genealogy of grey TB racehorses.
The illustrations in King of the Wind are probably my favourite in all pony books.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 15, 2010 14:01:24 GMT 1
Everyone's going to think I'm weird now but out of the few Black Stallion books I've read, The Black Filly and the first one in the series I found boring But I didn't mind the Black Stallions Ghost as it seemed a bit more interesting! I guess I just don't like racing stories Apart from Blind Beauty that is. ;D
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Post by susanb on Nov 15, 2010 15:00:14 GMT 1
If you liked those, foxglove, you've got to check out The Album of Horses by Marguerite Henry, again illustrated by Wesley Dennis. More a vehicle for Dennis's artwork than anything else....26 full page color illustrations! Henry did brief sketches of each breed or type to go with each of the illustrations, and there is a short story as well, but it's not really a novel....it's all there for the pics!
There was also an artwork book for these...i.e., no text at all....just the pics on perforated paper, so you could tear them out and frame them. Wildly expensive to buy whole (as the book was literally meant to be torn apart), but you can ususally find individual prints on ebay. I've got one (Welsh Mountain Pony) framed in my little library.
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Post by Buster on Nov 16, 2010 19:37:04 GMT 1
Jump- Jilly Cooper ;-) not even kidding I really enjoyed the racing aspect
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Post by Claire on Nov 17, 2010 15:44:02 GMT 1
Foxglove, The Chasing Game was also written by Michael Hardcastle not Michael Morpurgo! Don't think anyone has said The Winners series by Sam Alexander which is quite fun, similar to the Riders series tho the girl is a lot older. Also what about the Bonnie series by Barbara Van Tuyl & Pat Johnson. I'll put up the poll this evening so if you have any more suggestions please add before then.
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Post by susanb on Nov 17, 2010 16:57:54 GMT 1
I absolutely LOVE the Bonnie series, Claire....the only reason I didn't suggest it was I wasn't thinking of it as a series...the best individual book is The Sweet Running Filly, which I think of as more of a mystery (with rescue elements) than as a racing title proper. It's easily the best children's pony mystery I've ever read, and that's a sub-genre that I persue actively, so that net has been cast pretty wide!
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Post by Claire on Nov 17, 2010 22:08:51 GMT 1
Well we'll let the Bonnie series into this one, you can nominate the book for the mystery section too susan, theres no rule the same book cant be in more than 1 top 10!
Just about to attempt to add poll. This will be a big un!
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Post by Claire on Nov 17, 2010 22:22:57 GMT 1
Going off on a slight tangent - haffy you said you enjoyed Longacre by Ivor Herbert. Did you know he also wrote another racing one called The Filly? (Havent read it tho)
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Post by haffyfan on Nov 18, 2010 19:55:57 GMT 1
No I didn't claire, thanks will have a look for it at some point. Marion's Angels has arrived but i still have 2 amazon purchases outstanding right now...
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