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Paperback. Very Good.
Horse Heaven by Jane Smiley - 2001
by Jane Smiley
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Horse Heaven
by Jane Smiley
- Used
- Paperback
Faber and Faber, 2001. Paperback. Used: Acceptable. Paperback - 2001 - good condition - . To horse racing and baseball fans alike, spring is the season to get reacquainted with their heroes; it is the time to grab a scorecard, place a few bets, and head to the nearest dusty expanse of grass. Most of all, it's the time to dream, because on a baseball diamond or a horse track anything is possible. Judging by her magnificent new novel, Horse Heaven, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Jane Smiley understands this fact. With utter authority and aplomb, her seventh novel opens up the world of horse racing as never before; it takes us on a circuit from Del Mar to Saratoga and back again, bringing to life the owners, the trainers, and (most humorously) the horses themselves. While Horse Heaven is likely to be the definitive novel about horse racing, it is more than just a well-researched sojourn in this nervy world. It is a meditation on how we gamble at life's racetrack, wagering most cautiously when that bet is for happiness. To tell this epic tale (it has nearly three dozen characters), Smiley employs an unusual narrative strategy: She sets the dramas of her human characters against the backdrop of those of her horses. We meet and get to know every horse in an intimate way, from Justabob, an imperious stallion with anger management issues, to Epic Steam, an ornery black stud with a heart the size of a Volkswagen. They are affectionate when loved, truculent when provoked, and mournful when they lose a friend on the road to the big leagues. With their steaming, muscled flanks and armies of helpers, these horses know they're important. But all they really want is a scratch behind the ear, plenty of hay, and maybe a nicker and a nuzzle or two. The same could be said for their attendants. Though they desire the same thing as their thoroughbreds -- to win a little, and to be loved more -- Smiley's human cast are a hapless lot. There's the tycoon Al Maybrick, who has his own anger management issues and a drinking habit he barely keeps in check. Al and his trophy wife, Rosalind, take up horses as a hobby, but soon the horses become a repository for the hopes Al used to have for his marriage. Indeed, Al goes to the track to escape the fact that he and his wife don't relate anymore, while Rosalind goes shopping for expensive tchotchkes. But it's not just the owners who throw their dreams into horses. Married for 25 years to an agoraphobic woman, Al's trainer, Dick Winterson, spends most of his time at the track because he finds his horses' expectations easier to live up to than those of his wife. When he and Rosalind meet up, Winterson realizes that he's been missing something essential in his life away from the stalls. While Smiley's characters differ in their particular domestic maladies, they are united in their love of horses. But until they encounter each other in the right way, they can't achieve the happiness they continually seek on the track. Smiley does a wonderful job of weaving together these two themes -- horses and happiness -- showing us that, as in horse racing, there is no true secret to happiness. As one avid gambler says, "It's a mystery that can't be plumbed by the form, by the theories, by any known science and it happens every day." But is winning -- or happiness, for that matter -- worth striving for? Tossing in the towel, another of Smiley's characters muses, "Wasn't the lesson of racing that there was no meaning, no pattern, nothing except chaos daily engaged with?" Winning at horses and winning at marriage, one concludes, are patterns of organizing chaos within ourselves.
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- Binding Paperback
- ISBN 10 0571205607
- ISBN 13 9780571205608
- Publisher Faber and Faber
- Date Published 2001
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Horse Heaven
by Smiley, Jane
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- Paperback
- ISBN 13
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Horse Heaven
by Smiley, Jane
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Faber & Faber, Limited. Used - Good. Ships from the UK. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages.
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Horse Heaven
by Jane Smiley
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- Paperback
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- Used - Good
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- Paperback
- ISBN 13
- 9780571205608
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Faber and Faber, 2001. Paperback. Good.
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Horse Heaven
by Jane Smiley
- Used
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- Paperback
- ISBN 13
- 9780571205608
- ISBN 10
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Faber and Faber. Paperback. Used; Good. Simply Brit welcome to our online used book store, where affordability meets great quality. Dive into a world of captivating reads without breaking the bank. We take pride in offering a wide selection of used books, from classics to hidden gems, ensuring theres something for every literary palate. All orders are shipped within 24 hours and our lightning fast-delivery within 48 hours coupled with our prompt customer service ensures a smooth journey from ordering to delivery. Discover the joy of reading with us, your trusted source for affordable books that do not compromise on quality. 04/09/2001
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Horse Heaven
by Jane Smiley
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- Paperback
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- Used; Good
- Binding
- Paperback
- ISBN 13
- 9780571205608
- ISBN 10
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Faber and Faber, 04/09/2001. Paperback. Used; Good. **WE SHIP WITHIN 24 HRS FROM LONDON, UK, 98% OF OUR ORDERS ARE RECEIVED WITHIN 7-10 DAYS. We believe you will be completely satisfied with our quick and reliable service. All orders are dispatched as swiftly as possible! Buy with confidence! Greener Books.
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Horse heaven
by Jane Smiley
- Used
- Paperback
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- Used - Very Good Condition
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- No Dust Jacket
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- Later Edition
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- Paperback
- ISBN 13
- 9780571205608
- ISBN 10
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Katoomba, New South Wales, Australia
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Faber, London, 2000. Later Edition. Softcover. Very Good Condition/No Dust Jacket. Size: Octavo (standard book size). 699 pages. Text body is clean, and free from previous owner annotation, underlining and highlighting. Binding is tight, covers and spine fully intact. Edges foxed and browned. Quantity Available: 1. Shipped Weight: Under 1 kilogram. Category: Fiction; ISBN: 0571205607. ISBN/EAN: 9780571205608. Dewey Code: 813.54 21. All our pictures shown here are of the actual item, not stock photos. Inventory No: RB14308. . 9780571205608
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Horse Heaven
by Smiley, Jane
- Used
- very good
- Paperback
- Condition
- Used - Very Good
- Binding
- Paperback
- ISBN 13
- 9780571205608
- ISBN 10
- 0571205607
- Quantity Available
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London, London, United Kingdom
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Faber & Faber, 2001-04-09. Paperback. Very Good. 4.1968 in x 19.3853 in x 12.5904 in.
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