Book Cover Image courtesy of Seal Press
For many women, horses held their hearts long before any boyfriend, husband or baby ever did. The memory of desperately asking your parents for a pony and posting pictures of shiny horses to your bedroom wall is one many women share. But what is it about these strong – yet gentle – creatures that have captured women’s attention and intrigue for centuries?
In Why We Ride: Women Writers on the Horses in their Lives (Seal Press / May 2010 / $15.95), educator, literary agent, author, and editor Verna Dreisbach attempts to answer that question. Dreisbach has compiled 27 personal essays from various women writers about their horses – or their dreams of owning a horse.
With a foreword by Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Jane Smiley, the book includes personal narratives from women who rode as children, those who spent their girlhood years dreaming of owning a pony, and women who have made a lifelong hobby or career out of riding. Each story openly reveals how horses have made a difference – and an impact – in their lives.
If you’ve ever dreamt of that first horse, contributor Dee Ambrose-Stahl will assure you you’re not alone. Jacqueline Winspear suggests we all need to return to basics, and it’s her horse that reminds her to keep things simple.
Writers Michele Scott, Kara Gall, and Kate St. Vincent Vogl all speak to their relationships with their fathers and how horses were at the very heart of those relationships. Valerie Riggs, Janice Newton, and Samantha Ducloux Waltz discovered their horses held insight into their marital relationships.
Why We Ride shares the enduring and personal experiences these women have had with horses, and is the perfect read for any woman who has ever held a special place in her heart for a horse.
Award-winning author and equine photographer Vanessa Wright also has her story featured in this unique book. “Great Grand-Mare” tells of Wright’s 92-year-old grandmother, who returned to riding after an 80-year hiatus with the help of two very special horses. The three also appear in Wright’s The Literary Horse: When Legends Comes to Life, an equestrian photography exhibit which is touring public and school libraries worldwide through 2014. (www.TheLiteraryHorse.com)
About the Editor: Verna Dreisbach is an author, educator, and literary agent. Her stories have been published in EQUUS magazine and Bernie Siegel’s Faith, Hope, and Healing: Inspiring Lessons Learned from People Living with Cancer.
Her essay “The Racehorse” won first place in the 2007 Dominic J. Bazzanella Literary Awards. She is the founder and president of Capitol City Young Writers, a national non-profit organization dedicated to the education and inspiration of young writers.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in English with honors from Phi Kappa Phi and Sigma Tau Delta International English Honor Society. Verna is currently pursuing a master’s degree in English with a focus on creative writing at California State University, Sacramento. She lives in California with her husband, three kids, and myriad of animals. Her website is www.vernadreisbach.com.
About Seal Press: Seal Press was founded in 1976 to provide a forum for women writers and feminist issues. Since then, Seal has published groundbreaking books that represent the diverse voices and interests of women – their lives, literature, and concerns.
Seal’s authors are radical and original thinkers, professionals with a distinct point of view, gutsy explorers, truth-tellers, and writers who engender laughter, tears, and rage. Seal Press publishes books with the goal of informing women’s lives. Based in Berkeley, Calif., Seal is a member of the Perseus Books Group. You can visit us at www.sealpress.com.
Why We Ride: Women Writers on the Horses in Their Lives
Edited by Verna Dreisbach
Seal Press, a member of the Perseus Books Group
May 2010
$15.95 / Trade Paperback / 334 pages
ISBN 13: 978-1-58005-266-5
