Synopses & Reviews
In this remarkable one-year journal, skilled horsewoman and adventurer Laura Chester brings us into her world, where we deeply connect with the earth and its seasons, with beauty and sometimes danger. While riding in places as far-reaching as Mexico, Australia, and India, Chester is always grateful to come home to the comforts of her familiar horse. As they cover the borderland of Arizona and the hills of Massachusetts, we get to know Barranca as intimate companion, mediator between soul and nature, whether entering the wilds of Cochise Stronghold or picking Berkshire apples from the saddle. Carried along on waves of memory, released by the gaits of her smooth-moving fox trotter, this literary memoir takes us on a personal exploration as well—where family relationships are fractured by anger, jealousy, illness, and death. With the help of her big-hearted animal, Chester is able to retrieve the past and find forgiveness. For as she says—"Riding Barranca puts me in the moment, which is where I want to live."
Review
"The horse, my favorite animal - sensitive intelligence inside a powerful and strong physical body. Laura and I share a very special connection with these beauties. I've been blessed to ride with her!" —Arizona Muse, Supermodel
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“The counterpoint of horses and family makes this book unusually satisfying. This intrigue, the unanswered questions, the mysterious juxtapositions, are what makes this book, to me, a work of art.” —Thomas Moore
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"... Chester saddles up for a memoir related to her love of horses ... [S]he consistently manages to pull in the reins on "the beauty and silence of nature" that lift her and other midlife riders." —Publisher's Weekly
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"[A] journey — both geographical and metaphorical — surveyed through the high-up lens of a wise woman on horseback; one whose greatest solace and joy stem from her daily jaunts through known and unknown territory." —Nichole Dupont, ruralintelligence.com
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"From the start Chester is very good at completely drawing the reader into her world .... [T]hese are ... explorations of both the external environment ... and an internal environment she becomes more in touch with while on horseback." —Goodhorsekeeping.com
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"[T]he author, struggling with her mother's descent into Alzheimer's disease, spent a year on horseback, experiencing the healing beauty and silence of nature, and gaining 'some understanding for the complexity of family.'"—Lone Star Horse Report
Review
“[E]motionally charged personal accounts play perfectly off the stories of Laura’s trail rides. Without them,
Riding Barranca would be a one-dimensional and forgettable narrative recounting a seemingly perfect life in the saddle. Together, the sweet and sour combine to create a relatable story that leaves the reader rooting for the author while reflecting on his/her own life.”—
Horse and Style Magazine“[A] journey—both geographical and metaphorical—surveyed through the high-up lens of a wise woman on horseback; one whose greatest solace and joy stem from her daily jaunts through known and unknown territory.”—Nichole Dupont for RuralIntelligence.com
Synopsis
In this fleeting one-year journal, a skilled horsewoman and adventurer takes her horse, Barranca, from the borderland of Arizona to the Berkshires of Massachusetts. When offered a glimpse into her world—which is deeply connected with the earth and its seasons, with beauty, and sometimes danger—the love between horse and rider is evident, whether stopping to pick apples from the saddle or riding the mountains of Sedona. Full of emotion and visceral movement, this personal account presents the horse as intimate companion, mediator between soul and nature, helping us connect to our truer, more elemental selves.
About the Author
Laura Chester is a writer and the author of several books, including "Eros & Equus," "Heartbeat for Horses," "Holy Personal," and "Lupus Novice." She lives in Patagonia, Arizona.