Author: Susanna Forrest
Pub Date: 2-May-2017
Rating: 3.5 Stars
The Age of the Horse is a nonfiction work by Susanna Forrest. I found this book interesting and it is one of the best researched books I have read recently. However, it is very verbose. It was like reading a cross between a collection of stories, a PhD thesis and a text book. It made for a slow and arduous read. The publication date is May 2017; therefore, I know there will be more revisions. I can only hope that some serious editing will take place and the final product will have more readability. As it stands right now, my rating is 3.5.
As you can guess from the title, the focus of this book is a history of what the horse has been to mankind (there is a brief history given prior to man) through the years starting with the earliest human domestication. The book is broken up into seven sections beginning with the first section called Evolution and ending with War. Each section has lots of interesting facts and the author recounts some of her adventures, during her research, as it relates to each topic. Her research took her from horse auctions in the US to Schorfheide, Germany to see a small herd of Takhi. Since I am interested in sustainable farming, my favorite part was the discussion on the revival of draught horse farming outside of the Amish community.
My biggest take away from this book is how important the role of the horse truly has been in the history of mankind. Undoubtedly, we, as a species, would not have come so far without the aid of the horse.
Even though it was difficult to read, I liked it. After further editing, I can easily recommend (and give a higher rating) this book to anyone that likes histories, science or horses.
I received a free copy from the Atlantic Monthly Press, via Net Galley, in exchange for my honest review.