I love to read - especially when I travel. Books are a great way to pass the time on planes, trains, buses, and in the car, but they also provide unique insight into the culture and history of my destinations. I love reading about horses, about travel, and about the places I’m visiting, although not necessarily all at once.
These books about horses, riding, and travel are a few of my personal favorites. I keep adding to the list as I keep reading, and I’m always looking for recommendations, so if you have a favorite book that isn’t on this list but should be, please feel free to comment with your suggestions. Happy reading!
One Hundred and Four Horses
Mandy Retzlaff
This one is a personal favorite, because it hits all three topics of horses, riding, and travel, plus I read it before traveling to Mozambique, and again while I was there, since I had the privilege to be staying and riding with Retzlaffs themselves.
The Retzlaff family owned a horse farm in Zimbabwe, and when political unrest in the country became violent, many white families left the country, leaving their horses with the Retzlaffs. By the time the violence arrived on their doorstep, they had 104 horses, whom they smuggled out of Zimbabwe and into Mozambique, where they now reside. An incredible tale of bravery and resilience.
Wild Horses of the Summer Sun
Tory Bilski
The author tells the story of falling in love with Icelandic horses, having seen a photo on the internet, which leads her to embark on a magical summer trip to this enchanted island, with a group of ladies on what becomes a yearly pilgrimage. She perfectly captures the nature and uniqueness of these special horses.
Tschiffely’s Ride
Aimé Tschiffely
As if riding 10,000 miles from Argentina to New York weren’t incredible enough already, Aimé Tschiffely did it with only two horses. While a journey like this would be an amazing feat even today, Mr. Tschiffely began his ride in 1925. At the time it was considered impossible, but after two and a half years on the trail. the daring adventurer proved the world wrong, and then wrote a book about his adventures.
Rough Magic
Lara Prior-Palmer
What I love most about this book, which describes the experience of competing in the world’s longest and toughest endurance race across 1,000 km of the Mongolian Steppe, is that when Lara signed up for the race, she had no idea what she was doing, which is often how I feel when embarking on new adventures. Her riding experience was limited at best and she had never before ridden endurance, but she jumped in with both feet and took off for Asia. She went on to become the youngest competitor to ever win the race, at 19, and the first female - not meaning to spoil it, she tells the audience right from the start.
West with the Night
Beryl Markham
True stories of a remarkable woman in Kenya in the 1940s. A bush pilot, a horsewoman and racehorse trainer, and an adventurer, Beryl Markham is the stuff legends are made of. She was the first person to fly solo across the Atlantic from east to west, hence the name of the book. Between getting attacked by a lion as a child and scouting for elephants for hunting parties in the middle of the century, her stories are remarkable. While the book isn’t entirely focused on horses, they were a significant element throughout her life, and figure heavily into her stories. The Splendid Outcast is another of her books, a series of short stories, which also involve horses, aviation, and adventure, in mid-century Kenya.
More by and about Beryl Markham
The Splendid Outcast is another collection of short stories by Beryl Markham, who passionately loved horses horses, flying, Africa, and men, perhaps in that order. While her wildly adventurous life may seem too unlikely to be true, Mary Lovell’s biography of her, Straight on till Morning, sheds light on the truth of this remarkable woman’s remarkable life.
Half-Broke Horses
Jeannette Walls
I'm always inspired by tales of brave, strong, independent women in times when none of those things were considered desirable or acceptable traits for ladies. My own experiences riding in Arizona and New Mexico give me an even better appreciation for some of the obstacles Lily Casey faced just from her environment, where she began helping her father break horses at the age of 6, and rode her trusty steed Patches across lengthy and inhospitable stretches of desert. This is a great (true) story of gumption, grit, perseverance, resilience, and one badass cowgirl!
More by Jeannette Walls
While Walls’ other work is less related to horses and riding, they are still excellent reads. The Glass Castle is a family memoir similar to Half-Broke Horses, a tale of resilience and redemption, focused on Walls’ own childhood, her brilliantly charismatic but wildly alcoholic father, and her free-spirited mother (the daughter of Half-Broke Horses’ Lily Casey).
The Silver Star is a work of fiction, though the resilience in the face of adversity of the characters is clearly reflective of characters in the author’s own life and childhood.
Life on the Edge
Adrian Dangar
Once described by the actress, Joanna Lumley, as “the man with no fear”, Tristan Voorspuy spent his whole life living up to the legend. Early stints in Northern Ireland and Germany with the Blues and Royals regiment were but a precursor to a life defined by his love of Africa, a life cut tragically short in 2017 on his beloved game reserve, Sosian. From his epic motorbike ride from Cairo to Cape Town, to extraordinary wildlife encounters and many death-defying light aircraft near misses, Life on the Edge paints a picture of a man determined to live life to the full. It is also the story of compassion, conservation and, ultimately, tragedy. In the last two decades of his life, Voorspuy transformed the overgrazed and drought-blighted Sosian ranch in Northern Kenya into a celebrated game reserve, acclaimed tourist destination and successful cattle ranch. True to form, it was whilst defending this property that an unarmed Tristan, on horseback, was gunned down and killed, a murder that sent shockwaves around the world.
True to the Line
Adrian Dangar
Adrian Dangar's recollections of his life at the sharp end of hunting, during which he was a Master and huntsman of three very different hunts in three unique regions of England – Dartmoor, North Yorkshire and Leicestershire. During this time, the author came into close contact with many fascinating characters that live and work in these beautiful landscapes. True to the Line portrays these rural lives alongside hunting, hounds and foxes, together with the challenges, frustrations and rewards of organising modern hunting in an illuminating and anecdotal style. This book not only covers his account as the first amateur huntsman of the Quorn in 80 years, but also his time as hunting correspondent, hound judge, conservationist and all round countryman.
Think Like a Horse
Grant Golliher
The lessons Golliher shares are as fundamental and ageless as the relationship between horses, the people who ride them, and the beauty of the West. In fact, it’s an approach that anyone can learn, and should learn, in order to better understand our common humanity, overcome trauma, foster more fulfilled relationships, and unlock untapped potential in virtually every aspect of our lives. All you have to do is think like a horse.
The Horsewoman
James Patterson & Mike Lupica
Ever wonder what it’s like behind the scenes, in the stables of Olympic riders? Patterson brings this scenario to life with Maggie Atwood and Becky McCabe, mother and daughter, both champion riders who vowed to never, ever, go up against one another. Until the tense, harrowing competitions leading to the Paris Olympics. Mother and daughter share a dream: to be the best horsewoman in the world.
Equestrian Adventuresses Series
Krystal Kelly + contributing authors
This heartwarming anthology is full of inspirational stories written by a variety of authors and riders worldwide.
