Secretariat: The Making Of A Champion by William Nack
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Book Reviews of Secretariat: The Making Of A Champion
Book Review: Wow!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is an excellent read. Heart pounding, zooming, electric excitement page after page. William Nack sure can write, here in the last paragraph of the book he describes Secretariat on the day of his arrival at Claiborne, at the end of his racing career:
"Outside the sun was down and it grew colder now by the grove of trees in the dark by the stallion barn. Leaves fell, and a faint wind strummed and turned along the trees that rose along the paddocks in the back. Then in the distance, beyond the Claiborne fields toward the home called Marchmont, the sound of a horse whinnying rose. Secretariat came to the window of his stall, and through he darkness of it you could see nothing but rims of his eyes and hear the breathing in the quiet. The sound of the whinnying rose again, and beyond that and beyond the rows of fences and the fields of grass and the salmon colored sky, beyond the stand of trees strung out along the skies of Paris, there was the sound of horses charging the bend and the crowd on its feet roaring and the announcer calling the name of a lone figure of a horse reaching and snapping, pounding in a rush at the turn for home."
Lovely, lyrical and brimming with the magic that Secretariat inspired in many hearts. An intimate, detailed and fitting testament to perfection, to the great Secretariat.
Book Review: A Must Buy For Any Serious Horse Racing Fan!
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought William Nack's original writing of this book which was published in 1975. Although I was too young to follow Secretariat's racing career, reading this book gave me a very detailed and full account of his performance as a two-year old in 1972 and as a three-year old in 1973. I have been a big horse racing fan for some 20 years now, and I have read many books on throughbred racing. This is definitely the best book on the subject that I have ever read!
Not only is it an excellent description of Secretariat and all of his connections. It tells the racing fan a lot about what goes into training a horse and bringing him along before he runs his first race.
My favorite chapter is the author's narration of the 1973 Belmont Stakes. I never get tired of reading how Secretariat was running down the backstretch so effortlessly while Sham could barely keep up with him. Ron Turcotte didn't realize how fast they were going until he saw the clock near the end of the race.
If you love thoroughbred racing you'll certainly love this book.
This is quality writing! You'll know Secretariat's career so much better after reading this book.
It's too bad that Secretariat never got to race at the age of four. He might have been even better than he was at three.
One can only guess what might have been!
Book Review: a real-life suspense novel
Summary: 5 Stars
This marvelous book reads like a suspense novel. Of course, those of us who saw the 1973 Triple Crown races (I was 14 years old when I saw them, and I will never forget the second half of the Belmont-- race announcer Chick Anderson exclaiming, "He is moving like a tremendous machine"-- and meanwhile, my Mom and I watching the whole thing on TV and yelling "Look at him go!") know how the tale ends, but Mr. Nack is such a wonderful storyteller that that you can't help feeling the goosebumps as you read about the events leading up to the Triple Crown races, as well as the exquisitely detailed descriptions of those races. I agree with the the reviewer who stated that Ms. Nack does a wonderful job of describing the details of horseracing; especially his explanation of the 12-second furlong and how that leads into his grand description of the 1973 Belmont Stakes.
And so many wonderful major and minor characters: The aristocratic owner, Mrs. Tweedy; the volatile trainer, Lucien Lauren; the jockey, Ron Turcotte, who was the first to realize that he was riding the best race horse ever; and Charles Hatton, the "Daily Racing Form" columnist who was in constant search of the right metaphor to describe the Thoroughbred that surpassed all others in terms of speed, stamina, and heart.
Book Review: Excellent read
Summary: 5 Stars
With all the hype of this year's Triple Crown and hoping for another champion, the media managed to bring up bits of Secretariat's remarkable accomplishments. I remembered his Triple Crown, but had not known much more about this amazing animal. I became starved for information on Secretariat and thus came across Mr. Nack's book. What a wonderful, wonderful piece of work. I am thankful for the opportunity to read it, and finished it in two days, wishing there was more. Though he never says it blatantly, I get the impression from statements made by Mrs. Tweedy, that she never really had the love for the horse that he deserved, seems she always gave him a back seat to Riva Ridge, and I think he deserved more from her. Here is a remarkable animal with incredible abilities that served his human caretakers and lifted them up to a greater level. Thank you Mr. Nack for the thoughts of those who rode and worked with the horse closely, as they relate through their hearts the soul & spirit of the animal, and how truly great he was. That the horse touched you the way he did gives me faith in the hearts of men that we can appreciate and realize when gifts are given to us and share those feelings with others.Book Review: The Heart Of A Titan
Summary: 5 Stars
Ask anyone in the Thoroughbred industry who is 40-ish what was a major factor in getting into the game and I wager one response will be watching Big Red in 1972 and 1973.
Secretariat dominated the sport and captured the oftentimes fleeting attention of American pop culture in his memorable Triple Crown performances and beyond. To show his staying power, there are still hats, T-shirts, mugs, beanie dolls, bobbleheads and other souvenirs that celebrate his iconic career.
Author William Nack presents a truly insider's account of Secretariat through unprecedented access to the team around the racer. The reader rides the unique pace in the barn area, the highs & lows in training & racing and gets a better understanding to the controversial decision to retire Big Red after his three year old season.
The current edition includes a moving tribute to Big Red that initially appeared in Sports Illustrated. Secretariat was euthanized due to complications from laminitis, the malady that ultimately doomed Barbaro.
Secretariat was a larger than life athlete and Nack captures the nuances of what it took to become a champion.