What is your favorite horse movie or book?
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snookb276
Posts: 121 Member
My favorite movies are Hidalgo (Paints and Arabians!) and The Black Stallion. I read all the Black Stallion series as a kid.
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mine are probably National Velvet and International Velvet, but there are much newer ones I have not seen yet. I'm guessing I will love Harry and Snowman once I get a chance to see it!
I have so many favorite books, but the one I probably go to the most is Denny Emerson's "How Good Rider's Get Good". It's not a training/riding book, but is very inspirational (and often a huge kick in the butt) for those looking to compete and/or make horses a career.2 -
@snookb276 if you haven't seen Harry and Snowman, it's playing in Spokane at the Magic Lantern Theater! It's nowhere near me right now so I'll have to wait
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I will have to check that out. Thanks.1
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I can't contribute much to the riding discussions, but I most certainly CAN contribute to the books discussions!
My all-time favorite horse books are Black Beauty and My Friend Flicka--even today, literature degree in hand, those books stand the test of time from a children's lit perspective.
Unfortunately, my childhood love, the Black Stallion books, don't stand the test of time so well--not the greatest writing, and I just rip them apart mentally for their many unrealistic aspects (really? The Island Stallion vs. the Black???) but I guess that is why I loved them in 5th grade. (The movie, on the other hand, is an amazing work of art).
One Walter Farley book that IS a very good read as an adult is Man O' War...I read that to my daughter a couple of years ago, after we took a trip to Louisville and visited Churchill Downs and saw some races. It was quite good. Seabiscuit is another recent book that I (like everyone in American) really enjoyed (as well as the movie).
I have gotten several Marguerite Henry books for my daughter, and we have checked out more at the library. I remember inhaling them as a kid! As an adult, sometimes the writing sounds a discordant note with me, but overall they hold up very well, in particular Misty, King of the Wind, and Mustang: Wild Spirit of the West. The illustrations in particular are spectacular, and I spent many hours trying to recreate them.
Another great book that stands the test of time is Little Britches by Ralph Moody--another book I read to my daughter a couple of years ago. I should read some of his other books--he has a few out there on Amazon.
I'm trying to think of other books I have on my shelves--a couple of Jane Smileys, which I really need to dust off and read, and "Horse People" by Michael Korda, who is a really rich editor (hmmm...wonder how this one got published and all the glowing reviews!) who tells somewhat amusing yet generally condescending tales about the people he and his equestrienne second wife meet (him having ditched his first wife and family). I enjoyed it somewhat but he just seems like a bit of a turd.
I just put a book on Snowman into my cart on Amazon so we'll see how that is.1 -
I want to see Harry and Snowman.
There are so many, it is hard to pick a favorite. I read all of the Black Stallion books. Thinking of watching The Man From Snowy River again. Haven't seen if Netflix, Amazon Prime or Hulu offer it yet.0 -
@jmbmiholland I read most of those same books as a kid. Fuel for my horse obsession when not riding. Lol. Also read Horse People. It was a gift from a friend...Entertaining.2
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My boarding stable had a movie night a few years ago where everyone brought their favorite movie. What a great idea I thought.2
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Or we could all turn to the trashy saucy side and read Jilly Cooper Riders or Jump
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showjumper wrote: »Or we could all turn to the trashy saucy side and read Jilly Cooper Riders or Jump
Inquiring minds want to know? Romance? Mystery?
I did enjoy the Jody Jaffe books as an adult.
Chestnut Mare Beware
In Colt Blood
A Horse of a Different Killer
She never wrote any more.1 -
@ showjumper Lol. I'll have to look into those.0
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@snookb276 @luckypony71 Riders is about showjumping and Jump is about steeplechase......both british based... I liken reading Riders to reading Judy Blume's Forever when you were 15
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showjumper wrote: »@snookb276 @luckypony71 Riders is about showjumping and Jump is about steeplechase......both british based... I liken reading Riders to reading Judy Blume's Forever when you were 15
I must check these out!1 -
Not in my local library. Sigh, I will have to go find them on amazon. If you are into show jumping and mysteries, I can recommend Tami Hoag's Dark Horse. It takes place in Wellington, Florida which is a big community built around horse's and horse shows.0
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@luckypony71 i have read a couple of her books, i will definitely have to look into that one for the week off!0
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Here is my post Christmas book report.
I read The Eighty Dollar Champion over the past couple of days. It is really an excellent book and I am sad it is done so quickly. I didn't know much about Snowman before that, beyond the brief Breyer Horse description. I also read Horse Heaven by Jane Smiley, who brought her Pulitzer Prize writing talents to the world of Thoroughbreds. There are so many different characters and horses it seems like it will be overwhelming to keep them straight when you start, but she quickly gets you on the hook and keeps you there till you're staying up well past midnight, unable to put it down. That kept me busy for several days, much to my satisfaction.
I thought about ordering Smokey the Cow Horse for my daughter which I loved as a child, but I read the first couple of pages and got annoyed by the alleged cowboy vernacular, so she will have to dig that one up on her own.
Next up, True Blue by Jane Smiley, if I can locate it in my daughters room!0 -
I loved the Marguerite Henry books.
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I watched Harry and the Snowman last night. What a great movie! It's on Netflix now. Missed it at the theatre.2
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I watched Harry and the Snowman last night. What a great movie! It's on Netflix now. Missed it at the theatre.
I caught it on Netflix the other night, too. More than anything else, I am AMAZED by that horse. He's a once in a lifetime partner.
Really hard for me to watch horses in movies...as I'm sure it is for the rest of you... but i love Hidalgo. Viggo is a treat to watch.0 -
Here4Cookies wrote: »I watched Harry and the Snowman last night. What a great movie! It's on Netflix now. Missed it at the theatre.
I caught it on Netflix the other night, too. More than anything else, I am AMAZED by that horse. He's a once in a lifetime partner.
Really hard for me to watch horses in movies...as I'm sure it is for the rest of you... but i love Hidalgo. Viggo is a treat to watch.
I just watched Harry & Snowman last night...what a brilliant horse and partnership, and such a pleasure watching the old film reels of him in the shows.1
