In 2001, Laura Hillenbrand released her fascinating book, Seabiscuit. It caught-on quickly and was made into a film in 2003. I’ve read the book and seen the film. Maybe it’s because I went to the Kentucky Derby last year, but I’m re-reading the book again. And I’m hooked into the story as much as I was the first time I discovered it. Here’s why I like it: much:http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0329575/
- Laura Hillenbrand had been reporting on Thoroughbred horse racing since 1988. Her work as a journalist appeared in a half-dozen racing magazines (or more). She really knows the world of racing—the technical aspects, the strategies, the training of the horses, and the culture surrounding the racing world. The reader gets an accurate look into this unknown part of America. If you’re following the Kentucky Derby this year, the book will educate you better than anything else will about racing.
- The story is true. Particularly today when so much reported in the media is either stretched beyond the truth or just plain made-up, it is great to read a true story and learn something new.
- Although the story is about a race horse in the 1930s, the deeper story is the coming together of three people who had lost almost everything. The owner, Charles Howard lost a son which meant the world to him, Tom Smith (the original “horse whisperer”) the trainer who was washed-up and considered a weirdo, and Red Pollard the jockey who was truly washed-up and a loser. All these people come together for a last chance to succeed in their lives—their hopes pinned on an unlikely savior: a young horse named Seabiscuit. Today, when horses like American Pharaoh win everything including the Kentucky Derby without much question, the tale of Seabiscuit is exciting.
- It’s also about a country during the Great Depression that had also lost almost everything. Hillenbrand explains that the one thing people could afford to do was go to entertainment to take their minds off their troubles. Horse racing became extremely popular as did the underdog horse, Seabiscuit.
- It’s also about an unlikely winner. A horse that no one wanted to buy since he didn’t appear to have much promise and was difficult to control. In the end, through hard work and skill and luck, they all win something. You find yourself rooting for them all as the story builds to the climax.
- Laura Hillenbrand is such a good storyteller. Her descriptions of races which could be dry, dry in the printed form (remember, a race only lasts about three minutes) come alive with drama and excitement in her capable writer’s hands. I wish she would cover the modern races again like the Kentucky Derby.
If you haven’t read it or even if you have, I’d recommend you go back to it. It’s a great story that lasts through many readings. Try it!
