Horse A Novel
Horse, a novel by Geraldine Brooks, is set to be published by Penguin on January 16, 2024. This 464-page work explores the intertwined lives of a racehorse, its groom, and various characters across different eras, weaving a narrative that spans from the Civil War to contemporary times. The story begins in Kentucky in 1850, where an enslaved groom named Jarret forms a deep bond with a bay foal, leading to record-setting victories. As the nation faces civil unrest, the narrative shifts to an artist and later to a gallery owner and a scientist, all connected through their fascination with the horse.
Readers will find a rich tapestry of themes including race, art, and historical injustice. The novel delves into the significance of the horse, not only as a symbol of triumph but also as a focal point for understanding the complexities of American history. Through the lens of various characters, including a gallery owner in 1954 and a Smithsonian scientist in 2019, Horse examines the legacy of the unsung Black horsemen who played a crucial role in the horse’s success. This edition presents a compelling exploration of humanity’s beauty and ugliness, inviting readers to reflect on their own connections to history and art.
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“Brooks’ chronological and cross-disciplinary leaps are thrilling.” —The New York Times Book Review
“Horse isn’t just an animal story—it’s a moving narrative about race and art.” —TIME
“A thrilling story about humanity in all its ugliness and beauty . . . the evocative voices create a story so powerful, reading it feels like watching a neck-and-neck horse race, galloping to its conclusion—you just can’t look away.” —Oprah Daily
Winner of the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and the Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award · Finalist for the Chautauqua Prize · A Massachusetts Book Award Honor Book
A discarded painting in a junk pile, a skeleton in an attic, and the greatest racehorse in American history: from these strands, a Pulitzer Prize winner braids a sweeping story of spirit, obsession, and injustice across American history
Kentucky, 1850. An enslaved groom named Jarret and a bay foal forge a bond of understanding that will carry the horse to record-setting victories across the South. When the nation erupts in civil war, an itinerant young artist who has made his name on paintings of the racehorse takes up arms for the Union. On a perilous night, he reunites with the stallion and his groom, very far from the glamor of any racetrack.
New York City, 1954. Martha Jackson, a gallery owner celebrated for taking risks on edgy contemporary painters, becomes obsessed with a nineteenth-century equestrian oil painting of mysterious provenance.
Washington, DC, 2019. Jess, a Smithsonian scientist from Australia, and Theo, a Nigerian-American art historian, find themselves unexpectedly connected through their shared interest in the horse—one studying the stallion’s bones for clues to his power and endurance, the other uncovering the lost history of the unsung Black horsemen who were critical to his racing success.
Based on the remarkable true story of the record-breaking thoroughbred Lexington, Horse is a novel of art and science, love and obsession, and our unfinished reckoning with racism.
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