But although beautiful, please don't think her writing might be too "prosy" - it is NOT unnecessarily flowery or overbearing. Hillenbrand's facility with language - to say she has "a way with words" is entirely inadequate to express the beauty and expressiveness of her writing. And while reading aloud (which really makes you take your time!) I was powerfully struck again by the Ms. Just finished reading for the second time, this time aloud. I highly recommend Seabiscuit to any of the following people:Īnyone who has the slightest interest in horses or sports,Īnyone who thinks jockeys have an easy job,Īnyone with no interest in horses who just loves good writing,Īnyone who thinks non-fiction is dull and would welcome a surprise, Sometimes I still put one down unfinished, but now that I know how they can be, I try more often. And ever since then, I've given non-fiction more chances, and with better luck, than ever before. Everyone loved it, whether or not they cared at all about horses or sports. This was one of the universally best-received choices we've read in book club. She not only puts you in the saddle, she takes you back in time. Another reason for the success of this novel is her success at placing the events in their historical context. It's so visceral, she really puts you in the saddle, plus the prose is beautiful in and of itself. There is a section where she describes the jockeys' experience of riding in a race that is one of the best pieces of prose I have ever, and will ever, read. Hillenbrand has really explored her topic thoroughly and passes on all the details to us. It really does read like a novel, and yet it is so deep - Ms. Seabiscuit, I was happy to find, was a complete surprise. In fact, as one of those over-achieving students who always completed college reading assignments, I would have to say that many textbooks were actually better reads than the average non-fiction offering on store shelves. Despite my interest in the subject matter, the writing would drive me crazy - too technical, too boring, too text-book like. ![]() ![]() So many times I had picked up a non-fiction book on a topic that I was really curious about, and either put it down unfinished or forced myself to slog through it. I just couldn't believe that all the hype was real. That book was Seabiscuit.Įven though I have always loved horses, I had avoided reading Seabiscuit. In November 2003, a pioneering member of my book club was the first to choose a non-fiction book instead of a novel. Prior to November 2003, non-fiction only entered my reading choices on sporadic occasions. If you enjoy a good sports story, if you like stories about the underdog becoming the champion, or if you enjoy books with a good history lesson, it is definitely worth giving Seabiscuit a try! Luckily for me, I was enthralled with horse training and the finer points of horse racing much more that I ever thought I would be. If these things do not interest you, you may find some parts slow. While it did not bother me, there is an awful lot about horse racing and horse training. In the end, I can 99% guarantee you will be exhausted and satisfied. Humble beginnings, Scrappy, unlikely heroes, successes, adversity, failure, no hope, recovery, and final ultimate triumph - all these elements are here! You will be amazed, you will be moved, you will be yelling at each horse race retelling, cheering of Seabiscuit to succeed. The story of Seabiscuit reads like it was written for Hollywood and plays out like almost every emotional sports story ever. I was definitely satisfied with the experience! ![]() Because of all this, I figured I might be interested in the biography of one of history's most famous horses. Now I live within a couple of hours of close to a dozen horse tracks - including Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby. I lived in Kentucky for about 10 years where horse racing is king. Urn:oclc:780553946 Republisher_date 20140122191433 Republisher_operator Scandate 20140121151248 Scanner have been known to bet a couple of bucks on a horse race or two. OL18178327W Page-progression lr Page_number_confidence 87.39 Pages 454 Ppi 500 Related-external-id urn:isbn:0345465083 Urn:lcp:seabiscuitameric00hill_0:epub:c7227b84-2780-43e6-9b70-660a0931c3f1 Extramarc Columbia University Libraries Foldoutcount 0 Identifier seabiscuitameric00hill_0 Identifier-ark ark:/13960/t3wt15247 Invoice 59 Isbn 0449005615Ġ0349006 Ocr_converted abbyy-to-hocr 1.1.20 Ocr_module_version 0.0.17 Openlibrary O元571224M Openlibrary_edition Access-restricted-item true Addeddate 14:12:56.718489 Bookplateleaf 0008 Boxid IA1770910 Boxid_2 BWB220140827 Camera Canon EOS 5D Mark II City New York Donorīook Drive Edition 1st ed.
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