Synopsis
'I had spent most of my childhood thinking I was a dog, and I suspect I had aged in dog years. By the time I was ten I had discovered the pain of unbearable loss. I had felt joy and jealousy. Most important of all, I knew how to love and how to let myself be loved. All these things I learnt through animals. Horses and dogs were my family and my friends. This is their story as much as it is mine'
Clare Balding grew up in a rather unusual household. Her father a champion trainer, she shared her life with more than 100 thoroughbred racehorses, mares, foals and ponies, as well as an ever-present pack of boxers and lurchers. As a toddler she would happily ride the legendary Mill Reef and take breakfast with the Queen.
She and her younger brother came very low down the pecking order. Left to their own devices, they had to learn life's toughest lessons through the animals, and through their adventures in the stables and the idyllic Hampshire Downs. From the protective Candy to the pot-bellied Valkyrie and the frisky Hattie, each horse and each dog had their own character and their own special part to play.
The running family joke was that "women ain't people". Clare had to prove them wrong, to make her voice heard - but first she had to make sure she had something to say.
My Animals and Other Family is a funny, brave, tender story of self- discovery.
Clare Balding - My Animals and Other Family
Clare Balding introduces her childhood memoir My Animals and Other Family
Reviews
Customer Review: 20 September 2012
Reviewer: Ken Cook
'This is the greatest book I have read in a very long time!I am 77 years old and not a "horsey" person (I''m scared of them actually) but I read this book in three days and was so enthralled that at some points I cried and at others I laughed till I cried. What a great story teller Clare is. I have always admired Clare and I only hope she continues her writing. She is great!'
» Submit a reviewProduct details
Format :
Hardback
ISBN: 9780670921461
Size : 153 x 234mm
Pages : 272
Published : 13 Sep 2012
Publisher : Viking Adult
Other formats for My Animals and Other Family:
» Audio CD : £20.00
» Downloadable Audio: Audiobook : £16.99
» ePub eBook: eBook : £10.00
My Animals and Other Family
£20.00
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