“Horses: In Living Color” – book review

Affiliate links, etc. ahead, but they’re still safe to click. Full disclaimer below.

Cover photo by Barbara D. Livingston/Photo courtesy Eclipse Press

Barbara D. Livingston’s horse photography inspires many of us horse enthusiasts. Her 2002 book Old Friends is the source for the name of one of my very favorite equine retirement facilities.

So, when Eclipse Press offered me a chance to review her book (more about that later), I was excited and awed. I also wondered if I weren’t too much of a fan-girl to offer a good review.

But I also realized that the book could serve as a good research resource, if not an inspirational tool, for writers.

Although Livingston is most identified with Thoroughbred race horses, her book depicting those coats of many colors shows equids of various breeds. There’s a zorse, some Spanish Colonial horses, a some minis and paints, among others.

The photos are dramatic, not simply conformation shots. We see action shots and portraits that include the horse’s surroundings.

With 200+ pages of strikingly gorgeous photos, a reader may need a bookmark. I couldn’t flip through it one sitting. That would have felt like a waste, anyway, as bad as  bolting down a gourmet meal served in an elegant restaurant with good company.

Things I loved – maybe?;)

But I have to admit that I have a few small issues with the book. Things I love about this book tend to be things that frustrated me, too.

There’s nothing big and bad and off-putting – far from it. Just minor inconveniences. After all, I had to sound less like the fan that I am.

Anyway, many photos have no captions nearby, so the image – especially if it’s a full page image or so-called “double-page spread” – isn’t marred by type on the image.

So, I have to note the page number to flip through to the end of the book to where the horses in the photographs are identified. In those caption end-notes, Livingston notes the horse’s name, breed, owner, plus apparent color and registered color. She points out that there is often a difference between a horse’s color and how that color is listed on the registration papers.

Another mixed blessing is that the book is what’s known as “a coffee table book.” At 10″X11″ in size, the photos are big high-resolution shots, so the book’s size makes  carrying the book with you difficult.

Quibble, quibble – I know. But I like to point out what I like or may not like as much in a review, too.

Photo by Barbara D. Livingston from "Horses: In Living Color"/Courtesy of Eclipse Press

A writer’s reference?

As I looked at this book, I thought of what a great reference tool it would be for writers who don’t know much about horses.

Some writers, even ones who write in historical periods where horses were part of daily transport,  think that horses are all black, brown or white.

But this book suggests a range of colors unimaginable to the regular non-horsey writer. A novelist could use a horse’s color as another element that builds a character and makes a book more vivid.

Who could forget the brindle horses that drive most of the action in Sara Gruen’s novel “Riding Lessons?” What if Walter Farley’s “Black Stallion” hadn’t been black? Even the name “The Black” sounds much more imposing than, say,  “The Bay” or “The Chestnut.”

Or even in the based-on-real-life story of Marguerite Henry’s “Misty of Chincoteague,” Misty has a splotch on her barrel said to be shaped like the map of the United States.

One of the photos in “Horses: In Living Color” shows that Misty and her foal were memorialized like Roy Rogers’s Trigger (um, stuffed and mounted for future generations to see.) Her “map of the US” marking, IMO, is subject to interpretation. But what an image those words convey to a reader’s imagination.

“Horses: In Living Color” would be a good starting point for writers considering using coloring and markings of horses as an element of story. Granted, this book is not exhaustive nor complete as far as the scope of colors for horses.

Otherwise, the book would bypass “coffee table book” status and could be used as an ottoman.

Can you think of any other books where a horse’s color was important to the plot or used to give depth to a human character? If so, please feel free to share in the “Leave a Reply” box below, which is past the rest of the story on the website, the ad and the disclaimers.

Would I have bought this book on my own?

Good question! The honest answer is, “maybe not” but that would have been unfortunate. Had I not seen this book, I wouldn’t have thought of using horse color to deepen a story. At least, not on a conscious level.

Hey, before I flipped through this book, I would have laughed at the idea of white racing thoroughbreds (although gray horses can turn white with age) and couldn’t tell the difference between a dun and a grulla.

Even if there’s no clear surface on your coffee table to display one, a coffee table book offers a view of the world that’s  unsurpassed. The clear, sharp photos  allow us to linger over details and immerse ourselves into a scene frozen for our education and enjoyment.

In the interest of full disclosure, I have two points to make.

1.) Eclipse Press sent me a review copy of this book. This is the first time a publisher has offered me a free copy. I usually review books that I’ve purchased myself.  I’m glad Eclipse asked first because some books don’t fit the tone of this website, and I’d hate to have to receive a copy of a book only to have to tell the sender that it doesn’t fit. Books I might review here must fit somehow into the “horses in culture” category, which even I admit can be a bit subjective at times.

2.) The graphic you see at the end of the article is an affiliate link, which means that if you buy one of those books or anything else after clicking on that link, I receive a small commission. Of course, you’re free not to buy anything after clicking on the link. Or you’re free to buy elsewhere, like through the Eclipse Press link which isn’t an affiliate link. Also, keep in mind that a relationship with your local independent brick-and-mortar bookstore can be wonderful. The choice is yours.

And don’t forget to mention any examples of horse colors and markings used as part of the story down in the “Leave a Reply” section below.

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Tags: "Horses in Living Color", Barbara D. Livingston, book review, coffee table book, equine photography, horse book review, horse photography, horses for writers