Thoroughbreds (Majestic Horses)

By: Pamela Bell 
Publisher: Child's World 
Publication Date: January 2007 
ISBN: 978-1592967865 
Reviewed by: Deb Fowler 
Review Date: November 2009

The Thoroughbred is an expensive breed of horse that is mainly used in racing. They are a gorgeous breed and can run "as fast as 40 miles an hour… almost 60 feet every second!" They are a beautiful, powerful animals that we cannot help admiring whenever we see one. They are a spirited, "high-strung" breed that doesn't always take kindly to strangers, but rather tends to be calmer around "people they trust." You'll learn about their physical characteristics in this book. For example their coloring is solid and they are "almost always bay, brown, chestnut, or black." You'll learn about their height, weight, and will be able to see the picture of a horse that points to and lists thirty-four parts of its body.

An owner often chooses a stallion and a mare to breed to get the best foals they can. When the Thoroughbred foal is born, it weighs an amazing 110 pounds and can immediately stand and nurse from its mother. Even though these horses are not born on exactly the same day in any given year they are all given the same birth date of January 1. If they are born in the southern hemisphere, their birthday is August 1. You will learn just why this is done when you read the book! You will also learn the history of the breed, a bit about their personalities, their racing lives, you'll learn about the different kinds of races, and where most Thoroughbreds exist in the world.

This is a very beautiful, well written and researched book that is pulled from the shelves time and time again. The gorgeous, full color, action photographs are a real draw to the young horse lover. I enjoyed reading some things about the breed I never knew and will have a new appreciation for each Thoroughbred I encounter in my travels. For example, I learned that the Thoroughbreds we see today descend from three stallions that "were brought to England in the late 1600s and early 1700s." There are small inset sidebars with informative vignettes about the breed. In the back of the book is an index, a glossary and additional recommended book and website resources (provided and safety screened through Child World).

Quill says: An excellent book for the young horse lover.