Quarter Horse Books

As a long time horse and mystery story lover, I'm always on the lookout for books that combine the two. I've often been disappointed in what I have found. I've read quite a few in this genre with glaring inaccuracies about horses. Or, if they get the horse stuff right, the characters are weak, the plot is convoluted, the pace is off, and the writing is painful. This author gets it right, gets it all right! She obviously knows the difference between a Quarter Horse and a Shetland Pony, the characters are engaging, the plot is interesting, and the story moves along at a decent clip. Even if you aren't a horse lover, it is a good mystery, even if you aren't a mystery lover, it's a good horse story. I'll be looking for more from this author.

A wonderful fun book. I enjoyed how the plot moved from A to B without leaps of faith. It is great to have a horse mystery where the author obviously has been around horses and the horse show scene. Can't wait for the next book.

This is a great book. I couldn't put it down once I started it. I really enjoyed it and I look forward to her next one:)

What an excellent book! It grabbed me from the very first page & ended with me wanting to read the next book! You know how authors include excerpts from a chapter of the next book in a series? Well, when I finished this book, I was dying to read an excerpt from this author's next book! The Misplaced Horse is very well-written ~ it's as good as ANY of the mystery books that are written by famous authors. It has the added bonus of being written around the horse world. It's refreshing to read such a book that's not full of mistakes about the horse "stuff". I once read a book by a VERY famous author who was talking about a big Tennessee Walker. Then the character went on to say that this big TW was 13.1hh. Nothing like that happens in The Misplaced Horse! The characters are well-developed & the storyline will grab you & hang onto you until the end. I'm going to get copies for everyone I know who likes mysteries or horse books. The Misplaced Horse is a great gift.

I loved this book from the beginning. It was neat to find a writer who doesn't just write about the horse world but obviously knows a lot about it too. Things were accurate to true life PLUS it was a great story! What a bonus!

I purchased this for my own reference. A friend already has it and I wanted one for myself.

Great detailed information and great pictures. Learned a lot about the old breed. Thanks.

THIS IS THE FIRST OF THE LEGENDS SERIES THAT I PURCHASED.
IT IS EXCELLENT! I HAVE COLLECTED ALL OF THE LEGEND BOOKS AVAILABLE AND LOOK FORWARD TO NEW ONES. ALL VERY USEFUL INFORMATION AND MAKES FOR SOME GREAT CONVERSATIONS WITH OTHERS WHO HAVE BEEN AROUND THE QUARTER HORSE SINCE THE BEGINNING OF AQHA.

IT WOULD LIKE TO KNOW IF IT HAS INFORMATION OF HORSE MR CONCLUSION IN THIS BOOK

This book provided the ancestry of the horses that started the American Quarterhorse breed. It was fun to take my horses' lineage and be able to trace it all the way back to the original King Ranch horses. I found out why my horse has such hard feet, why she likes to run so much, and found that she is the spitting image of one of her ancestors. I could hear the stories of her great grandsires and great granddams, the lives that they led, the places they lived, their temperaments, their quirks of behavior. I feel that I know my own horse better after seeing where she came from. I highly recommend this and the other volumnes of this series.

DJ Randall is stuck in the middle when she finds she has more and more to do and not enough hours in the day! First, she's stricken with and illness that keeps her out of school for a week. Just when it seems the mountain of homework she has to do can't get any higher, it grows. Not to mention she also let her algebra grade slip and gets on restrictions at the worst possible time. An art weekend she qualifies for with pictures of Stormy, her new foal, falls on the same as the show season. When DJ turns down the invitation without consultiing her family, her mother is furious. She also has to take care of Major, even though restrictions won't allow her to ride him, as well as work with Patches, Andrew, her class of 3 girls, and then she has Bunny's horse to take care of for a week. On top of all that, her mother has gone to war with her again. It seems nobody in the family knows what she's going through. How in the world is DJ gonna get out of this one?

I love this book!
It is one of my favorite
ones in the whole series.
I love the little foal it's so cute!

This was a very interesting book. As DJ ajusts to a very new life at home, life with a family, things aren't going so well with her new brothers. As feelings of jealousy for them threaten to overwelhm her and when a horse show comes between DJ and her art, a full-fledged family war is on the brink of erupting...

This book is really great! I wish everyone could have the chance of reading this whole series! It really is the best. DJ seems so real. She's a real person with real problems, just like the readers. Great reading!

I absolutely love every one of Lauraine Snelling's books for young adults!She is my favorite author.I have collected all of the High Hudles and all of the Golden Filly Series.The Golden Filly Series got me started on racing and the High Hudles got me interested in jumping.I am just so excited that there are books like these out there!These have to be the only Christian Horse series that I know of.I absolutely love them and can't wait for the next book!

This book was rather dull near the beginning. It got interesting half way through. I would have liked it more if I didn't hate clowns. I HATE CLOWNS!!!but it was worth reading. If you don't like clowns in purple bathing suits then don't read this book.

This book was really good! The three girls stevie Carole and Lisa are near the end of their oregon trail ride and stevies competitive side is showing. She makes a bet with a boy who says he can outdo any girl! They bet that each one of them has to enter all five events in a rodeo and whoever loses has to do something terrible made up by the person that wins. Meanwhile Lisa and Carole get to be rodeo clowns! Though they are really worried about Stevie , they know she doesnt know the first thing about goat wrestling or cow roping. Stevie is also really worried about her boyfriend Phil who is on a rafting trip, she is sure that he has fallen in love with some one new! This book was really exciting , the ending was really good!

Quarter Horse was a book I really enjoyed! Right from the first chapter, it was interesting and original! When Carol and Lisa go to learn about clowning, and Stevie takes on all five events, it lets you see different the aspects of the rodeo. The book also keeps you in suspense, and is funny too. I definitely recommend this book to all horse-lovers!

This was very cool! I liked it how at the end it wasn't the girls who won, they both didn't win sorta(boys Vs Girls), so yeah since I am a guy I didn't want them to be sexist. But yeah, I liked because I learned some about western riding events, like barrel racing( i knew about it) but the Cow penning and the goat thing), and it was cool when Stevie saved Caroles life!

This book is SO good!! I read WAGON TRAIL, and that is good as well. This book is really exciting, really funny, and most importantly: about horses.

I've met Spike's decendents, stayed at their ranch, and this is how I discovered these books by Spike Van Cleve around ten years ago. They are so good, I had to share them with friends and I loaned them out. Since they have disappeared, I need to buy them again! These are timeless stories that show the true flavor of the people and the country. I don't buy many books--but these I will buy twice.

THIS IS A VERY FUNNY AND DANG GOOD READ IF YOU LOVE HORSES
AND THE WIDE OPEN COUNTRY OF MONTANA AND WYOMING. HE LETS YOU IN ON HOW HE UNDERSTANDS HORSES AND TELLS OF SOME WILD DAYS IN THE SADDLE.THERE ARE SOME GREAT DUDE RANCH STORIES ABOUT DIFFERENT GUESTS.IF HE WERE STILL ALIVE I WOULD DEFINITELY WANT TO GO TO HIS.HE IS A SPECIAL,COLORFUL AND DOWN HOME, HILARIOUS GUY.

I lived in Montana for two years and a friend suggested I read this book. I bought a copy and could not put it down. After I finished it two days later, I bought his other book "A Day Late And A Dollar Short". Ten years later, I am still reading them. Spike doesn't just tell you a story, you live it. If you have any interest at all in ranch life, horses, family, humor, or Montana history; these should be on your list. You'll learn what "slaunchwise" humor and "going to the mountains" is all about.

It's unfortunate that he only wrote two books.

As your friend and fellow author put it, I too, "hope God gives you a horse" Spike.

This book describes the people, the attitude, and the lifestyle of Montana - from 1870 until today. The Crazy Mountains continue to evoke the same vast, colorful emotions from those of us who have had the priviledge to grow up beneath them. A must read for anybody who has lived in Montana - and a "should read" for anybody else. A colorful, vivid reminder of home - one of my favorites.

This book is an excellent piece of work. I probably am somewhat biased as like the author, I too spent my formative years in the Big Open of Eastern Montana. I can certainly sympathize and relate to alot of what old Spike says about nature, family and ranch life in general.

I found Orphan to be a very interesting book that was hard to put down - in fact it was hard to find a place to stop reading. I recommend it for those people who want to enjoy a warm, moving, and realistic story that has wholesome values. The story focuses on its characters and the simple beauty of the Texas Panhandle without being maudlin.

I await Dr. Haines next novel to be published and look forward to reading it, too.

A highly reccommended read. Dr. Haines obviously did detailed research on the locations of the settings and culture of the characters. The subplots are interwoven skillfully with main theme of the story. The story flows smoothly from beginning to end. As such it can be fully enjoyed at one sitting. --- Ralph Helper

I read Harry's book, Orphan, in 2 days. It was delightful book of horses, horse racing, and dealing with a family disease. Animals always make a great read for anyone. When you add family love and humor it's a keeper. I will also say that the print was a decent size for me to read with ease as these arms aren't long enough nor the glasses strong enough for some of the teeny tiny print some books have.

Orphan is a well researched story about a young thoroughbred and his journey. It is a great read, and you will do yourself a favor to read this book by Harry Haines.

Scott Williams

If you like feel good horse stories, this one's for you. And if you like quarter horses, especially racing quarter horses, this is REALLY for you. Enjoy!

My 3 year old daughter has the whole series and absolultely loves them. She's read them so many times that she's memorized many of them. The Belle book is a great Christmas story and also great to help any child through the transition of moving, especially if they're leaving a pet behind.

My 6 year old is going through a "horse" phase at the moment, so DH and I decided to purchase this book along with 2 other titles in this series. She LOVES this one particularly because it's a winter story....and it's winter now. Guess she'll move on to the spring one being her favorite as the season changes. Overall a good book for young readers and I would recommend this product to others. Great price too.

My 4yr old loves this book, all she wants for Christmas is a "horse called Belle".(suitable for older children too!) A story about a little girl who has to sell her horse, and move from the country to the city. The book deals with adapting, getting lost, and trust.

I have the book, just curious if anyone else had read it. Good book

Great for reading on the history, esp. specific horses, of the QH breed! Loads of info and great reading!

This book is a must-have for any Quarter Horse breeder or enthusiast. It is full of wonderful information and photos of all the important foundation horses. The author's style is rather dry and technical, but it has to be if you're discussing bloodlines, I suppose. A truly absorbing book for Quarter Horse lovers!!

This is the book to start with for the Quarter Horse pedigree buff. Many pedigree analysts contradict Denhardt from time to time, but be careful, Denhardt was there in the beginning, and did the original research, which was very extensive. He did interviews and collected documents from many of the early Quarter Horse breeders from the late 1800's and early 1900's. A few minor details have since been discovered, and many of those are questionable, but Denhardt was there in the begining and did not have an axe to grind, only love and admiration for good Quarter Horses. He is a straight shooter.

This is a great book, it is very interesting, and tells a lot about the American Quarter Horse, and its sirs.

This is a great book, it has fantastic information about the Quarter horses sires.

This is one of the best books ever written. Calling all horse lovers- Read this book!!

The American Quarter Horse Association has participated in producing The American Quarter Horse: An Introduction To Selection, Care, And Enjoyment, a virtual 'bible' of detail on the American quarter house, packing in details for all levels of riders and owners from novices to professionals. From an introductory history of the breed to detailed tips on selecting a horse, stabling, grooming and health, black and white and color photos throughout supplement all the basics needed to own or assess a quarter horse. The American Quarter Horse is an essential reference and a "must" for owners and riders of this remarkable animal.