Horse

I read this for a book club, so I'm admitting right off that this is not the sort of thing I would choose for myself. The review can be taken in that light.

I enjoyed the historical fiction aspects of the story. Brooks tells the story of Jarrett's evolution as a trainer, and how he made Darley/Lexington into a champion, while maintaining a trusting and affectionate relationship with the horse. He accomplishes all this while dealing with the unjust limitations of being enslaved. I wish Brooks had trusted that this was enough to make her book satisfying.

The art collecting portions of the story didn't go anywhere and seemed unnecessary. But this wasn't the problem.

Why I took my rating from good to just acceptable is because of the inclusion of the modern-day storyline. In 2019, the characters Jess and Theo had a loose connection to the historical portions of the story. Brooks chose use them as a device to point out the continued racial tensions in the United States today.

Using characters as a demonstration of social and political statements is not my favorite technique. There are subtle ways to inspire readers towards meaningful thoughts on the topic. In fact, she does the intelligence of Jess and Theo a huge disservice in order to make her point. This is all done to manipulate the readers into something or other—anger, fear, or guilt presumably. But it's transparent so therefore, not effective.

So, she doesn't trust her story, nor does she trust the intelligence of the reader.

I'm a bit of a sucker for books where two vastly different timelines tell one linked and cohesive story. The focus here on the horse and everything around it were incredibly deep and engrossing.