Rating: 
Summary: The Best Book I Ever Read
Review: Seabiscuit, An American Legend, by Laura Hillenbrand, is the best book I ever read about the best creature who ever lived. Hillenbrand is right up there with Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Welty, Capote and Harper Lee. Get ready to laugh, cry, and become so absorbed, you'll take the book right into the shower with you because you can't bear to stop reading.Because of this great book, there's a nationwide grass-roots movement to get Seabiscuit on a stamp by writing to
Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee
Stamp Development
U.S. Postal Service
475 L'Enfant Plaza SW
Room 5670
Washington DC 20260-2437
Rating:
Summary: Great book!
Review: There are only two sports books that I recommend this year. This is one! The other is THE LITTLE RED SOX BOOK By Bill "Spaceman" Lee, which just might be the funniest sports book ever.
John
Rating:
Summary: 500 Stars!!!!
Review: First of, you probably think that you would find mostly adults reading this long, 339 page book with huge words. Well, I have read it about 3 or 4 times, and i read my favorite parts over and over again. And I am only 13, so that speaks for itself. I can't understand some of the words in it, but the story is so clear, I can understand what is happening. Everytime there is a race, especially the match races Seabiscuit v. Ligaroti and Seabiscuit v. War Admiral (which is my favorite race of all time), the book makes you feel like, not only were you watching it, that you were in the saddle during the race. I have heard of people who were dying to get their hands on this book, and they aren't even into horses like I am. That also speaks for how good the book is. The book is about an undersized, crooked-legged racehorse named Seabiscuit. No one thought he would ever be able to be a champion, let alone win a race. Not until Charles Howard bought him, and trainer Tom Smith, who could do wonders with horses, trained Seabiscuit with the right handleing. Seabiscuit went on to do wonders on the track, such as defeating the legendary War Admiral by four lengths. The book tells you every detail of Seabiscuit's life, from when he was purchased by Charles Howard until his death. It leads through his glorious victories from his injuries. It is one of my favorite books, and I recommend the book to anyone!
Rating: 
Summary: perplexed at the fuss
Review: I looked at all the five star reviews after reading the book and figured I had to be missing something. After all I've always been a horse lover, so none of the terminology or passion of the characters for their charges was offputting. I'm a little awed at all the research the author put into this book, and respect the fact that she never romanticized the often brutal world of horse racing. But - for some reason, things got a little dull toward the middle. It seemed like there was a never ending series of disappointments and detours leading up to Seabiscuit's great match race, and though the author couldn't have presented this otherwise, the constant rollercoaster ride got frustrating. Maybe I did care enough about the characters, that I couldn't help getting frustrated at each injury and delay that plagued the horse and his caretakers. Or maybe there are just too many truly classic horse books (for any age) for this one to stand out among its ilk. I give this book four stars for being well-written (even if it did not always hold my interest) and because it does stand out against a lot of the dreck that gets published currently. At any rate, I can't wait to see the movie!
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic..in every sense of the word!
Review: I have never read a book that combines everything you could ever want in a book; education, suspense,, easy to read, historical, interesting characters, life lessons and above all an incredible author who wrote the book while until the extreme stresses of an illness! Hard to determine who the real hero is here....Seabiscuit or Laura Hillenbrand! I have been in a book club for 5 years, and can honestly say SEABISCUIT was by far one of my most favorite books we have ever read! Spread the word...don't miss this great book!
Rating: 
Summary: why do people think this book is so great?
Review: when by bookclub choose this book, I thought ok I'll read it. Now since I have atempted it, I wonder why this book was choosen for so may awards? This book is trying to cut a steak with a dull,plastic knife.
Rating:
Summary: An incredible story of unlikely heroes
Review: Although I am a huge horse racing fan, I ignored this book for a long time, but I realised that it must be good when somebody with no interest in the sport told me what a fantastic book it is. And so it proved. Seabiscuit, a temperamental horse, began his career with the top trainer of the day. Despite sensing that Seabiscuit had talent, that trainer was unable to get him to do much and his owner sold him cheaply. His new owner moved him to a small stable where the trainer was able to get to know the horse intimately. The new owner, trainer and jockey are all interesting characters and the book goes into a fair amount of detail about them. The owner was an extrovert type who originally made his money selling automobiles in San Francisco in the years following the 1906 earthquake. By contrast, the trainer was an introvert who had worked with horses all his life but had little experience of horse racing. The jockey had been very successful but it was thought his best days were behind him, as dieting and heavy drinking took their toll, and continued to do so. Another jockey often had to substitute for him. Under the new regime, Seabiscuit enjoyed himself and eventually emerged as California's champion. However, in those days the best American racing was on the east coast and their champion was War Admiral. The public demanded a match but a combination of injuries to Seabiscuit, personality clashes and bad weather (Seabiscuit did not like running in rain-softened ground) meant that the match did not happen for a log time. It was certainly worth waiting for when it did. The book continues to end of Seabiscuit's racing career, when he finally wins the race his owner wanted him to win, and also includes an epilogue telling us what happened to the main characters afterwards. This is a fascinating story about overcoming adversity. Horse racing is full of such stories - some of you may remember the story of Bob Champion and Aldaniti, which was made into a film - but Laura's writing style certainly makes the most of this story. While it gives an insight into the world of horse racing as it existed back then, it does not give any more detail than it needs to. All these factors explain why this book appeals to both horse racing fans and also to so many people who have no interest in the sport.
Rating:
Summary: A WIRE-TO-WIRE WINNER!!!
Review: I found this book exciting from beginning to end. There are those who thought the first section long and boooring, and I disagree. I honestly wanted to know all I could about the principle figures, and author Laura Hillenbrand obliged. The people she introduces to us are real, breathing, fleshed-out people with concerns and agendas we can understand, thanks to her detailed expositions. We can see the extravagant extrovert entrepeneur Charles Howard who becomes Seabiscuit's owner, the quiet, non-smiling trainer Tom Smith (Chris Cooper should be great in the role), the tough but literate jockey who has a life filled with his share of misery ahead, and above all, the unlikely horse who captured the public's imagination and inspired more columns of newsprint in 1938 than did Roosevelt, Churchill, Hitler, or Mussolini. We get an understanding of the times, still depression-era with clouds of war gathering, and why a hero to ease the extreme stress of the time was necessary. We learn much of the unpretty side of the lives lived by the jockeys. We get the flavor of bordertown Tiajuana in the days of U.S. prohibition and anti-gambling legislation. But the absolute highlights for me were Ms. Hillenbrand's colorful race descriptions. I was able to picture the running of each important race and these descriptions were suspenseful. In fact, Laura Hillenbrand's ability to keep the reader on the edge of one's seat is a welcome treat in non-fiction. Now if you're just not at all interested in horses or horse racing, you're probably not even reading this, and if you are, I'd suggest getting the book from the library. But for the average person who has even the mildest interest in the topic, this is abolutely a rewarding read.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Book
Review: Loved this book. Recommend it to everybody, even if you are not a racing fan. Author does a tremendous job at creating the period. Her descriptions of the racing and its complexities were very educational.
Rating:
Summary: A Book You'll Enjoy, Whether or Not You're a Horse Fan
Review: I spotted this book when it first came out. I snapped up the first edition in hardcover, because I thought to myself, "If I don't buy this now, I may never see it again." How wrong I was! Not only is the book a best seller, but they're coming out with the movie in July of 2003. This book is wonderfully written. It explains the Seabiscuit story clearly, filling in countless details about the horse, about the people involved in Seabiscuit's training, and about the racing world at the time. As a child, I had read the children's book, "Come on Seabiscuit" by Ralph Moody, over and over again. The Hillenbrand book fills in the rest of the story from an adult perspective and makes the America of the 1930s come alive. I'm not sure I'd read this book to young children, in spite of the story's inspirational themes. If I did, I'd pick and choose what I read. I'd probably leave out things such as the details of Tijuana whore houses and the story of Red Pollard using the F word on live radio. I think the Ralph Moody book is better for kids. Hillenbrand's book gives an unvarnished account about what life was like. I think it would be an interesting book to read whether you were a horse racing fan or not, simply because it is so well written.
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