Book Review: Horse by Geraldine Brooks

The book is about Lexington–a thoroughbred stallion–his career as a race horse in Kentucky in the 1850’s and his fame as a sire. It is also a story about his groom Jared who comes to love and understand the horse he is required to care for. These two stories mingle to reveal the troubled treatment of both horses and men. It unveils a history of discrimination in the horse racing industry, and how it thrived as a result of racism and slavery.

However, this is also a book about Jess and Theo–how they met and how their relationship evolved. Horse is a historical fiction mixed with a modern-day romance.

Jared is an enslaved groom who forms a bond with Lexington. Jared is treated as property and sold along with Lexington throughout the horse’s career. Each time he is sold, Jared’s new owners have different expectations of him and his position in life changes.

Jess was a scientist working at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C. She was reconstructing a horse skeleton discovered in the attic of the museum that happens to be Lexington, the famous racehorse! Jess meets Theo through her research and is constantly concerned about appearing racist towards him.

Theo is a Black art historian and a champion polo player. While researching a painting of a horse that he had rescued from a pile outside on the curb in front of his neighbor’s house, Theo meets Jess. The two become friends and Theo develops a crush on Jess while the two work together to discover the history of Lexington and Jarrett.

I loved the historical part of this book. I was both grateful and saddened to learn about the injustice that was a part of the history of horse racing. I enjoyed cheering on Jared as he learned to read and write and improve his place in this world.

This story felt like it had too much going on. I could have done without the love story between Jess and Theo. I felt like it took attention away from the main story. I also could have done without the foul language. For me, this book was a mixed bag.

If you want to learn about the injustice on which the horse racing industry was built, you may enjoy this book. If you are looking for a story of romance, I would give this book a pass. On a scale of 1 to 5, I give this book 3 stars.