Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura HillenbrandMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
I rate this 5 stars with the caveat that I liked Hillenbrand's book Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption better. But this was an excellent book in its own right.
I never thought of myself as a nonfiction fan, but I feel I may be turning into one. What makes Hillenbrand's books golden is her extensive research that lets the reader see and understand things from multiple perspectives. She gives detailed background information and history and explains it in such a way that I never felt talked down to, even though I had no knowledge of horses or horse racing--or frankly, even cared to know--before I picked up the book. I cared while I was reading "Seabiscuit," though!
One of the jacket reviews said that Hillenbrand writes a horse race that makes you feel like you're actually there watching it, and I have to agree. If I were to hear a race broadcast I would have no idea what was going on, but here I felt like I was watching it AND knew what I was seeing. I came to love Seabiscuit and the interesting, quirky people behind him, which made me invested in the races because I was routing for him! (Seventy years too late, but still...)
If you want to read a life-changing kind of book, go for Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption first, and then for entertainment, settle down with "Seabiscuit." I highly recommend it.
View all my reviews
No comments:
Post a Comment