my favourite ten.

​Ten, here, is an arbitrary, if traditional number when compiling a list. I have over 200 racing books, and in selecting ten, I was forced to reject about 30-books I would also take to the desert island if given the chance. The worst book I own by far, in fact if I were made of sterner stuff I would burn it, is ‘Aintree’s Queen Bee’ by Joan Rimmer.
I will not allot numbers to my ten as anyone who has suffered the misfortune to have read this website for a number of years will already be aware of my favourite book, the one I would take to my grave if I had anything to do with my funeral arrangements.
I will begin with a book I doubt any of you even knows exists. It is titled ‘Why Maurice?’ and is by Keith Greenwell. I know nothing more about the author than what can be found in his small yet somehow beautiful book about his favourite jockey, Maurice Barnes, rider of Rubstic, the 1979 Grand National winner. No spoilers here. Good luck finding a copy as it was privately published. A book worth hunting for, though.
‘A Race Apart’ is by now a record of times past, a look back on the beginning of the race to become known as ‘The Grand National’, the book concluding with the 1987 renewal. The author, Reg Green, lived, seemingly, for his home town’s greatest sporting event, going on to write two more ‘love letters’ to the Grand National, ‘Kings For A Day’ and ‘National Heroes’. I fear if he were alive today, he would be mortified by all the harmful changes to the race that have taken place since his demise.
The most beautiful book about the sport ever written, in my estimation, is ‘Pat Taaffe. My Life and Arkle’s. The only fault I have with this book is the length of it. 79-pages. By the final page, which always comes as a disappointment to me when I re-read it, you know both Pat Taaffe the jockey and Pat Taaffe the man. Also, you will have discovered the top four horses Pat ever rode, and you will be surprised by the horse he placed second to Arkle.
The next book deserves to be on every bookshelf of every racing man and woman. It is far from perfect, as any book created without the assistance of either a professional proof-reader and editor would be. At over 500-pages it is too long. But by crikey you learn a heap load of stuff about the greatest flat horse of my lifetime, Brigadier Gerard. The book ‘Brigadier Gerard and Me’ is authored by the ‘lad’ who held the privilege of looking after him for the whole of the time the horse was in training with Dick Hern. Again, this book was privately published by Laurie Williamson and if you would like to buy a copy [email protected] is where you should go. It is more interesting than many a book authored by a racing celebrity.
The best autobiography by a jockey is ‘Born Lucky’ by John Francome, a man never afraid to call a spade a spade, one of the great men of the modern-day turf and a man who if given a week in dictatorial charge of the sport would reek more change for the better than anyone who has had influence at the B.H.A. since it came into being. John is funny, kind and knowledgeable. All the facets you need to an unputdownable read.
‘The Will To Win’ by Jane McIlvaine surprised me and is a book I will re-read quite soon. It is the story of Tommy Smith and Jay Trump and is quite the rags to riches story. As things stand with the Grand National, I doubt there will every be occasion for a book of this sort to be written again. Americans no longer, it seems, has a fascination with the race, and with the emphasis on horses with a high rating only allowed into the race, an American-based horse has little chance of qualifying for the opportunity. A book that truly tells of the long haul to Aintree glory.
A similar book is ‘Battleship’ by Dorothy Ours, a story of a daring heiress, a teenage jockey and America’s horse. The 15.3-hands entire who conquered the Grand National in the hands of a seventeen-year-old jockey, Bruce Hobbs. One of the few books on National Hunt racing to feature Hollywood stars, Randolph Scott and Cary Grant. A book as much about American society as it is about horse racing, which makes for a more interesting read.
‘Brown Jack’ by R.C. Lyle, a leading equine writer of his day, is illustrated by Lionel Edwards, a leading equine artist of his day, with the subject of the book possibly the first horse publicly lionised by the racing public. This book is an affectionate account of a long career that began at Navan and in his first year also took in stops at Phoenix Park, Bournemouth and Cardiff and ended gloriously at Ascot in 1934 with a fifth win in the Queen Alexandra Stakes at Royal Ascot.
The Full Story of the Champion by Ivor Herbert should be on every bookshelf of every sports enthusiast and should be required reading by any young or middle-aged racing fan so they understand why no great horse of their lifetime can ever be compared in the same sentence with Arkle.
When I discovered that there was a book on the life of Spanish Steps, I set out on a mission to own a copy for myself. It was a long quest. In my ever-lengthening love affair with National Hunt, many horses have captured my affection, the last being Frodon, in the middle there was Denman, but first and perhaps foremost, there was Spanish Steps. The copy of ‘My Friend Spanish Steps’ by Michael Tanner, though I cannot remember where I bought it, is a throw-out from the Hampshire Library Services. Unwanted by them, treasured by me. I am sure the author would admit, being I believe, a first attempt, not his most professional of efforts and was also privately published. Ironically, on the day the book was being printed, the owner/trainer of Spanish Steps, Edward Courage, died. If Michael Tanner were to a publish a refreshed new edition of this book, I will be one of the first to buy a copy. From 1966 to 1976 Spanish Steps ran in 78-races, winning 16. Were horses so different back then that they could run so often? Or are modern-day horses weaker or their connections too timid? I wish Spanish Steps was my friend, too. Michael Tanner had the good fortune to know the horse. I only know the legend.
Perhaps I should send a love-letter to Frodon before it is too late?