Reviews with content warning for Violence - Horse

Horse weaves together two and a half story lines together across three different centuries, using the famous nineteenth century stallion Lexington as inspiration. The first (and my favorite) follows the life of the horse Lexington, primarily through the eyes of artist/Civil War soldier Thomas J. Scott who produced the most famous painting of Lexington, and Jarret, a fictional character based on an enslaved groom in one of those paintings. The second follows two modern young adults, Theo and Jess, as their work as an art historian and scientist at the Smithsonian brings them together into a project and a budding relationship. The last one is a handful of chapters that tries to answer the question as to why mid-20th century art gallery owner Martha Jackson had one of Scott's oil paintings of Lexington in her collection, which focused primarily on abstract art by her contemporaries. Throughout the story, there is also an exploration of the way people mistreat other humans and horses. I don't think these storylines are of equal quality. Jarret's life story was far more compelling and poignant than Theo and Jess's, especially when their plotline shifts from their research projects to their beginning relationship. Martha was interesting, but she could have ended up on the cutting room floor without much lost to the overarching plot and themes.

Geraldine Brooks definitely did her research while working on this and can create interesting characters as well as poignant imagery. Characters are complex and not necessarily likable. Jarret is my favorite of the PoV characters, and I enjoy his arc from acceptance of his fate to a determination to make his best life, as well as his attempts to show kindness when he can. A lot of historical fiction that comment on modern day issues tend to focus on more rebellious protagonists, and I like that Brooks made a compelling character within the reality that many people, unfortunately, can be accepting of unfair systems, even if they are the ones who are crushed by it. Another strength of Jarret's plotline is that all of the major white characters, including Scott, both oppose and are complicit with different aspects of life in the antebellum South. The modern cast features many dorks that are enjoyable because of their passions.

The book is not perfect. It talks a lot about racism in multiple points of American history, but African American women are almost exclusively relegated to bit roles as love interests. I'm not sure how to fix this (maybe tell Martha's story through the eyes of Annie, the maid whose family had inherited the painting?). Theo's justified resentment of racism paired with his utter lack of self awareness about how his parents' wealth sheltered him from some of the worst parts can be grating, and attempts to address this flaw fell flat for me.

Spoiler

His death in the third act also feels like it's more about shocking than a satisfying conclusion for his and Jess's arcs, but it is a good illustration of how far society has to go that the modern characters' arc has a more depressing end than the arc that heavily features slavery.

It is also has a rough first chapter that is a case study on why relatability in characters is not as important as resonance.

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amberlfaris's review against another edition

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emotional informative inspiring sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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atamano's review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

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any_bethany's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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kristalsty119's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful informative reflective relaxing sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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winn_e's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

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pandapjays's review against another edition

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challenging informative reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Fascinating read, enjoyed the history,the horses and wanted more about the bones.

Spoiler

I felt it lost focus at the end and, while addressing the threat of police violence and the murder of people of colour managed to centre the experience of a white person which was a choice. I think it would have been more interesting, especially given the forays into art and art history to explore how all the art of this black-owned horse made white profits and how horses from his line are the backbone of white dominated sports. These subjects were there in the text but never explored and I wish they had been.

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nora_knight's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

This was a really interesting book. It told the story of horse racing in America and one particular horse in a very moving and interesting way, utilizing characters spanning 200 years. However, it also told a darker story of blackness in America and how rooted horse racing is in slavery. It was a moving, powerful book but the paragraphs and chapters were a bit long for my taste. Additionally, the story was told through many POVs but it would occasionally include other characters' thoughts and feelings during chapters which I found confusing and mostly unnecessary. This is a book that my mother and grandmother read and enjoyed, and it was lovely to discover the same story as two generations of women before me. Beautiful and important.

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