Henry Books

I bought this book back in the 70's and had immediate success in apply Mr. Wynmalen's techniques with my off the track Thoroughbred. This book shows that caring about the horse is not something new. Dressage: A Study of the Fine Points of Riding is a great book and I highly recommend it to anyone who doesn't want their horse to be miserable - and who wants a horse who is light, responsive, and a pleasure to ride.

This book....what can I say? It literally is the best book written on riding I have yet come across. Ironic, isn't it, that I am not an English rider, but a Western rider and still found this book to be of great help. Yes, help. It describes in graphic detail what you should really understand before even thinking about mounting a horse, plus tips and guidelines on what you should know when you do mount a horse.

I really did find this book invaluable. I have owned it for years and I'm still learning from it. I find it absolutely great for references.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who rides horses, and to those who don't, just so they can truly understand the significance of horse intelligence and human/horse companionship.

I bought the hardback version of this book in the 1950's and it has been the one I have used most ever since. Dressage itself is a useful training method for all disciplines. Wynmalen makes the "how-to" clear to those of us who do not have access to a teacher. In the 1950's I didn't even have access to videos to show how the exercises were supposed to look and feel when done right, yet the book made almost everything clear -- about the only thing I didn't understand from the book alone was the half-halt. Wynmalen's irreplaceable contribution is in the respect he shows the horse, which leads to understanding. His focus is on better communication and performance, not show success (although he had that too). A gentle, understanding, master at work. Other favorites of mine are The Schooling of the Western Horse, by John Richard Young, and the works of Mark Rashid -- start with A Good Horse is Never a Bad Color. The Rashid works are for those who know the basic cues, since he doesn't cover that.

This book is remarkable in that the author always puts the horse first. Written in 1952 the author is thoroughly modern in stressing the establishment of a dialogue with the horse. Bear with the language of the early 1900s and be enlightened!

parents being dead catherine was only seen as politcal pawn to use by her family.she deal with the lose of people who truly care for her,become a strong smart woman.she married a french royal in love with another woman.but she become queen help rule with her sons.becoming most powerful woman in the rule.

Duchessina like most books by Carolyn Meyer was amazing. It talkes of a young girl woes family falls from power in Italy. she depratel put in a covent for her own protection. I loved this book and sugest it to most of my friends.

When I was finished with this book, I hated it. I thought that the author made Catherine seem like a heroine, when in reality (from what i have read) she was more of a "bad girl"! But after reviewing the book in my head after a few days, i realized how much i liked the book. It's a very fast read-things certainly don't turn out the way you would hope. so if you are a hopeless romantic reader...don't read it. but i learned a lot about that era in time. I liked it.

Catherine de'Medici, Duchessina, grows up in a palace in Florence where her family rules the city. When her family falls out of power, she must flee. She becomes imprisoned within the walls of convents for her protection against the angry mob that calls for her death. At the first convent, the nuns make their hatred of her family no secret.

The Duchessina lives in misery, enduring the pain as best she can under the circumstances. Finally, the tides change and her family once again controls not only Florence but the papacy as well. The Pope, her old guardian, calls for her to live in Rome until he can make arrangements for her future.

As one of the richest woman in Europe, the Pope intends to make an advantageous marriage. He marries the Duchessina off to the Dauphin of France. The Dauphin cares little for his new wife and Catherine's misery continues, but she creates advantages to help ease her pain and eventually finds contentment.

A wonderful outlook on the creation of Madame Serpent, remembered in history as the "girl who endured." Carolyn Meyer takes another historical princess and adds strong characters and rich details to spin a delightful tale.

Reviewed by: Jennifer Rummel