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jourdanicus's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
I'm finding it so hard to rate this book.
Based on the summary and my past experience with the author, I figured this would be a resounding 5⭐ read for me. The going was really good, and I loved the writing style. Having multiple narrators made the audiobook so engaging (although the English narrator for Theo has an awful American accent... Lol, sorry).
But... I just... Felt that the ending was SUCH a flop. Maybe I'm spoiled on having happy endings from reading so much romance, I don't know...
Aside from the ending, I mainly have complex feelings on how the topic of race was handled in this book. There was so much detail and sensitivity, and yet... Not a lot of nuance? I know from the Afterword that Brooks really did her research for this book, including having Black early readers, which is good to do. But there were still some parts that felt a little forced. And then (back to my problems with the ending)to kill Theo off, in a police shooting no less? Like... Why? I'm not against tragedy in a story, but tragedy that seems to serve no purpose to the plot? Okay, maybe that was the point, since police violence against Black people is so senseless in real life. But I was then made uncomfortable by the focus shifting to Jess's awkward grief and white guilt over the whole thing.
I wish the end hadn't soiled the rest of the book for me, because really it was an interesting, uncommon story, beautifully told. It just needed a stronger finish.
I'm off to look up nonfiction accounts of Black equestrians now!
Based on the summary and my past experience with the author, I figured this would be a resounding 5⭐ read for me. The going was really good, and I loved the writing style. Having multiple narrators made the audiobook so engaging (although the English narrator for Theo has an awful American accent... Lol, sorry).
But... I just... Felt that the ending was SUCH a flop. Maybe I'm spoiled on having happy endings from reading so much romance, I don't know...
Aside from the ending, I mainly have complex feelings on how the topic of race was handled in this book. There was so much detail and sensitivity, and yet... Not a lot of nuance? I know from the Afterword that Brooks really did her research for this book, including having Black early readers, which is good to do. But there were still some parts that felt a little forced. And then (back to my problems with the ending)
I wish the end hadn't soiled the rest of the book for me, because really it was an interesting, uncommon story, beautifully told. It just needed a stronger finish.
I'm off to look up nonfiction accounts of Black equestrians now!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Slavery
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Gun violence, Police brutality, Death of parent, Murder, and War
Minor: Racial slurs, Grief, Alcohol, and Pandemic/Epidemic
clairebartholomew549's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I have really mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I loved the storyline with Jarrett - it was so richly told and sketched an era of time I don't know much about, from a perspective that is not given much air time. I found the deep diving into 1860s horse racing incredibly fascinating, and I really enjoyed the science aspect of the modern-day storyline. But basically everything else about the modern-day storyline bothered me. Brooks completely forces Jess and Theo together - they have really no chemistry, and I don't really believe they'd have a romantic connection after she had a racist reaction to seeing him standing over what she thought was his bike - and their clashes about their differing backgrounds and perspectives feel incredibly ham-handed and forced. The ending is also completely abrupt, ridiculous, and useless, and really left a bad taste in my mouth.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, War, and Classism
mamasuereads's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
I appreciated the research the author did and I enjoyed learning about the race horse, art history, and the work done behind the scenes at the Smithsonian institutes. This story was very sad to me and I don't enjoy reading about the past mistreatment of animals and humans knowing that it still exists.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, Police brutality, and Grief
mitchelldavis1997's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
fast-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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racism, Blood, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, and War
calamitydeeds's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Gun violence, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
menglert's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I usually love this kind of historical fiction/timeline switching/multiple POV parallelism, but this one didn't totally click for me. Some of the POV choices were a bit confusing, with some characters only having only one or two chapters.
I think the core of this book was quite effective at examining themes of racism in America's past and present, so it could be worth the read for that.
I think the core of this book was quite effective at examining themes of racism in America's past and present, so it could be worth the read for that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racism, Slavery, Police brutality, Grief, and War
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, and War
fkshg8465's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
slow-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? No
3.0
Thought this won a Pulitzer, I didn’t love it. Maybe if I liked animals more, I might’ve loved it. Not sure. There were too many timelines and stories for me to track, and after all that saga, the way the story ended on the airplane sucked.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Slavery, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Grief, and War
creativerunnings's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, War, and Classism
Moderate: Death and Death of parent
fifteenthjessica's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
sad
slow-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
4.0
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.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.
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.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, and Trafficking
Moderate: Bullying, Gun violence, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, War, and Classism
Racism, slavery, and mistreatment of horses are very important to the themes of this book, but did not feel gratuitous to me.atamano's review against another edition
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Gun violence, Racism, Slavery, Police brutality, and Classism
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Infidelity and Alcohol