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Rating: 
Summary: Nice Try
Review: I wish I could say that I loved this book. I wanted to love this book, since thoroughbreds and racing history are two of my favorite subjects. The quality of the paper and the photographs are outstanding. The subject matter is of course inspirational, but the truth of the matter is the writing did not live up to its promise. Bowden is obviously familiar with his subject, and undoubtedly has many stories to tell, but it all seems to have become jumbled up in his mind. He frequnetly starts talking about one topic (say a famous horse race), then goes off on a tangent (say the horse's owner), leaving the reader to try to figure out what has happened. He also fails to focus on one main theme or point in each of his essays, trying to cram ractrack gossip, the human drama and information about the horses (breeding, training history, previous races, etc.) all into the short space available. The result is that the really interesting, in-depth stuff, the details about the horse and what made him or her truly unique, never get written. I found this book very irritating to read and wish that Bowden had had a good editor around to help him pare down and focus his work. If you are wanting disjointed tidbits and facts, buy the book. If you are wanting to really experience the personalities of the horses and the excitement of the races they participated in try another source.
Rating:
Summary: Nice Try
Review: I wish I could say that I loved this book. I wanted to love this book, since thoroughbreds and racing history are two of my favorite subjects. The quality of the paper and the photographs are outstanding. The subject matter is of course inspirational, but the truth of the matter is the writing did not live up to its promise. Bowden is obviously familiar with his subject, and undoubtedly has many stories to tell, but it all seems to have become jumbled up in his mind. He frequnetly starts talking about one topic (say a famous horse race), then goes off on a tangent (say the horse's owner), leaving the reader to try to figure out what has happened. He also fails to focus on one main theme or point in each of his essays, trying to cram ractrack gossip, the human drama and information about the horses (breeding, training history, previous races, etc.) all into the short space available. The result is that the really interesting, in-depth stuff, the details about the horse and what made him or her truly unique, never get written. I found this book very irritating to read and wish that Bowden had had a good editor around to help him pare down and focus his work. If you are wanting disjointed tidbits and facts, buy the book. If you are wanting to really experience the personalities of the horses and the excitement of the races they participated in try another source.
Rating: 
Summary: Great stories of a great sport.
Review: If the mark of a good book is that it leaves you wanting more, then that's what we have here. Bowen's tales about the great races are very well-done. I especially liked the older races (before my time), and the best of these was John P. Grier pushing Man O'War as no one ever had.
But I wanted more - where is Forego, for example, and all those horses he caught at the wire, like Honest Pleasure and Wajima? I guess I'll have to wait for Vol. 2!
Rating:
Summary: Great stories of a great sport.
Review: If the mark of a good book is that it leaves you wanting more, then that's what we have here. Bowen's tales about the great races are very well-done. I especially liked the older races (before my time), and the best of these was John P. Grier pushing Man O'War as no one ever had.
But I wanted more - where is Forego, for example, and all those horses he caught at the wire, like Honest Pleasure and Wajima? I guess I'll have to wait for Vol. 2!
Rating: 
Summary: Splendid overview of racing's greatest hits
Review: Racing fans should own this book by the outstanding turf writer Edward Bowen. He provides a comprehensive look at some of the most famous racing moments in the twentieth century, not only the great but the infamous (the 1933 "fighting finish" Kentucky Derby) as well. Great racing moments such as Man O'War's duel with John P. Grier in the 1920 Dwyer Stakes, Phar Lap's famous win at the 1932 Agua Caliente Handicap (his last before dying somewhat mysteriously), Secretariat's 1973 Belmont, Affirmed and Alydar's 1978 Belmont, the triple dead heat 1944 Carter Handicap, and the celebrated Jaipur/Ridan Travers of 1962 are among the profiled. Bowen has a real feel for the subject matter, and he gives the reader the background of each race and even provides the charts for each race. There are also numerous photographs in this book, which is printed on high quality paper. Bowen leaves out very few of racing's greatest moments. Two that are omitted are the 1976 Marlboro Cup (Forego barely winning over Honest Pleasure) which Bowen does mention briefly, and the great 1978 Jockey Gold Cup, where Seattle Slew gallantly and unsuccessfully tried to defeat Exceller. There's also a tiny bit of bias in this book, as is expected. Bowen seems a bit defensive in a couple of places with regard to Man O' War and Secretariat. According to him, "polls" supposedly crown Man O'War the greatest horse of this century, even above Secretariat. He doesn't really tells us which polls, of which there is only one that this reviewer is aware of, which the publisher Blood Horse conducted among 7 alleged experts and was published in a book about the top 100 North American racehorses of the 20th century. These "history savvy" experts, it seems to Bowen, know the truth that Big Red I was the best, and never mind the record or recollections of racetrackers and writers who saw both Man O' War and Secretariat and said the latter was greater. Frankly, I put my trust in the recollection of the dean of turf writers, Charles Hatton, who unhesitatingly called Secretariat not only the greatest he had seen but "the greatest horse anybody has ever seen." He saw both horses run, and the panelists didn't. (Furthermore, one of the panelists didn't even rank Secretariat in the top 10, and this was the real reason Man O' War finished ahead. As a result, no racing fan takes the Blood Horse poll seriously.) But this is a minor quibble in a book full of information and great photographs. This is an ideal coffee table book.
Rating:
Summary: Splendid overview of racing's greatest hits
Review: Racing fans should own this book by the outstanding turf writer Edward Bowen. He provides a comprehensive look at some of the most famous racing moments in the twentieth century, not only the great but the infamous (the 1933 "fighting finish" Kentucky Derby) as well. Great racing moments such as Man O'War's duel with John P. Grier in the 1920 Dwyer Stakes, Phar Lap's famous win at the 1932 Agua Caliente Handicap (his last before dying somewhat mysteriously), Secretariat's 1973 Belmont, Affirmed and Alydar's 1978 Belmont, the triple dead heat 1944 Carter Handicap, and the celebrated Jaipur/Ridan Travers of 1962 are among the profiled. Bowen has a real feel for the subject matter, and he gives the reader the background of each race and even provides the charts for each race. There are also numerous photographs in this book, which is printed on high quality paper. Bowen leaves out very few of racing's greatest moments. Two that are omitted are the 1976 Marlboro Cup (Forego barely winning over Honest Pleasure) which Bowen does mention briefly, and the great 1978 Jockey Gold Cup, where Seattle Slew gallantly and unsuccessfully tried to defeat Exceller. There's also a tiny bit of bias in this book, as is expected. Bowen seems a bit defensive in a couple of places with regard to Man O' War and Secretariat. According to him, "polls" supposedly crown Man O'War the greatest horse of this century, even above Secretariat. He doesn't really tells us which polls, of which there is only one that this reviewer is aware of, which the publisher Blood Horse conducted among 7 alleged experts and was published in a book about the top 100 North American racehorses of the 20th century. These "history savvy" experts, it seems to Bowen, know the truth that Big Red I was the best, and never mind the record or recollections of racetrackers and writers who saw both Man O' War and Secretariat and said the latter was greater. Frankly, I put my trust in the recollection of the dean of turf writers, Charles Hatton, who unhesitatingly called Secretariat not only the greatest he had seen but "the greatest horse anybody has ever seen." He saw both horses run, and the panelists didn't. (Furthermore, one of the panelists didn't even rank Secretariat in the top 10, and this was the real reason Man O' War finished ahead. As a result, no racing fan takes the Blood Horse poll seriously.) But this is a minor quibble in a book full of information and great photographs. This is an ideal coffee table book.
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