The Horse God Built: The Untold Story of Secretariat, the World’s Greatest Racehorse

4.6 | 972 ratings

Price: 13.54

Last update: 09-07-2024

About this item

In The Horse God Built, best-selling equestrian writer Lawrence Scanlan has written a tribute to an exceptional man that is also a backroads journey to a corner of the racing world rarely visited. As a young black man growing up in South Carolina, Eddie Sweat struggled at several occupations before settling on the job he was born for - groom to North America's finest racehorses. As Secretariat's groom, loyal friend, and protector, Eddie understood the horse far better than anyone else. A wildly generous man who could read a horse with his eyes, he shared in little of the financial success or glamour of Secretariat's wins on the track, but won the heart of Big Red with his soft words and relentless devotion. In Scanlan's rich narrative, we get a groom's-eye view of the racing world and the vantage of a man who spent every possible moment with the horse he loved, yet who often basked in the horse's glory from the sidelines. More than anything else, The Horse God Built is a moving portrait of the powerful bond between human and horse.

Suzanne Sullivan

Horse Racing

Reviewed in the United States on August 20, 2024

This book is so good ! I learned so much about horse racing that I didn’t know!
Mor importantly it is a very touching story about the relationship between a horse and his groomer! Very poignant and emotional at times!

Sherry

Beautiful horse

Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2024

Great read loved the book

Doug Holley

A deep and heartfelt thanks to Mr. Scanlan for writting this book & for the approach he took.

Reviewed in the United States on December 15, 2011

Mr. Scanlan, thank you for saying what needed to be said, for exposing what millions still choose not to see or think about and for so many excellent topics you cover in this book, who's title is dead on. The book rates a 5 with me and hide rate it higher if i could. While the book seemed to start.... not slow but not in the direction I thought it would, I found myself unable to put it down. Please dont start reading this book and not finish, for in doing so, its as tho you order a mouth-watering desert, entree, what-have you, and when its placed before you, you're content just to breath in the aroma of your favorite food! The farther I read, the deeper i got into thisa book; the more onlookers assumed I had a cold for I was unable to read more than a page once past the half way point without tears welling up in my eyes or just straight out crying. Moved emotionaly for so many reasons. You come to learn much about the author tho I dont think it was always intentional. If you care about horses, if you've known that fussion of souls that occurs between horse and human he writes about, calling it a "connection", and it certainly is that, you'll be refreshed as I was to read about it, to be allowed a glimpse into that most personal & intimate area of the relationship between horse/human that few know of and even fewer have been privilaged enough to experience it, then get this book. I purposely have only alluded to the books content:he's the writter. I can only say that its moving, inspiring, sad and up-lifting & hopefully you will libe by "Shorty's" mantra: "love your horse, and your horse will love you". One last point. Scanlan speaks about the ability of comunication, how a study done by the University of Pennsylvania found that "98% of pet owners talk to their animals as if to a sympathetic friend". (Its the next sentence I hope will resonate and bring real change) ...how many ~listen~ to their animals, as Eddie Sweat listened to Secretariat ~ listened with his ears, his heart, he listened in his bones. And in doing so, "A great horse passed thru him". It was the paragraph just preceding this that was so moving that even tho it consisted of only 11 lines it took me what must have been 10 minutes to read; I simply couldnt see thru thew tears. Why would I, a 50 year old man cry while reading a small paragraph about an old gray gelding and his stable mates? If you love horses treat yourself to these gems that Scanlan nestles through-out this book. Tho admittedly, this encounter stirred me more than most of the others. And tho the feelings of humans was most certainly involved, it was the privilage they were given, as painful, touching or tear-jerking as it may be, to witness what he calls a "Ceremony" but I will call a realm that exists but few have witnessed.
Thank you Mr. Scanlan.... Thank you.

d ess

Horse tale

Reviewed in the United States on June 21, 2024

So far I'm enjoying this book about one of the great horses in racing history and the people enchanted by him.Pure history well told!

Maxwell Morgan

Great book

Reviewed in the United States on July 20, 2024

Awesome just like the movie is

GoldenPony

A Tribute to the bond between Secretariat and his groom...as horse to man

Reviewed in the United States on September 27, 2016

If you love horses and understand the bond that occurs between you and your horse...or if you desire to have that bond, you will love this book. I almost gave it four stars because, in my estimation, only one thing was missing; there are very few pictures in this book. Why do we not see more of what the book is telling us.; the winding miles of fence at Meadow Farm or Claiborne, Secretariat at play, at work, the faces of the people the author speaks about, etc? (If, by chance, they are located in the back of the book (I am reading the Kindle version and this review comes before the acknowledgements, etc. If there are pictures in the back, then please forgive me) I'm just sad about not being able to enjoy some of those photos of which the author speaks.
This has whetted my appetite to read more about Secretariat (which I thought I knew already but so many more to learn) This books pulled a lot of emotion from me and I appreciated the author's desire to not only tell a story of Secretariat but of the unknown, seldom celebrated story of a man almost lost to the pages of time, Eddie Sweat...Secretariat's groom during the glory years. What a beautiful picture which has been painted by Mr. Scanlan of that man who loved "his" horse. Mr. Scanlan is a horse owner also and he states his desire to become a better horseman because of what he learned about the devotion of Mr. "Shorty" Sweat to "the Horse God Built."
I was 18 the year Secretariat won the Triple Crown; I would be graduating HS in a few weeks. Too busy with my own horse in the way of any horse-crazy girl who lives and breathes the equine, I did not follow Thoroughbred racing though I could tell you, loving all things HORSE, the Triple Crown winners and the year they won. I owned a quarter horse named Barzal Bravo ("Bozo" for short) with thoroughbred racing blood making up half his pedigree. Helping my horse-centered world along, my family lived in the same equestrian subdivision as several of the Los Alamitos Race Course trainers and their "lay off" horses. I was often at those early morning workouts at the track with my horsey girlfriends; ethereal moments about which the author writes. My bedroom walls were covered with the daily race results from Los AL. Because I did not have access to much money on my own and most of what I did earn went to support my own horse's upkeep, I did not buy magazines or books to read and thus knew very littleabout this new "Big Red"...plus, I was a Man O' War purist in my heart. However, everyone had heard of Secretariat and I became a believer after watching him win the Derby and Preakness. As the day of the Belmont arrived, my parents had taken us camping. I only agreed to go if my dad made sure we had a working TV to watch the race. As Secretariat rounded the last turn pulling away, my emotions spilled out. As an equine artist, I appreciate the beauty of the horse and this was a thing of beauty...and history. I knew I was watching it being made right in front of me! I screamed! I jumped up in the air. Then as Big Red swept toward the finish line with the cameras struggling to even show the other horses in the race, I laid on the floor and wept like a baby.
To this day I cannot watch that race without those emotions welling up inside me and weeping outloud...for the beauty, that wonderful horse, the history, his death and my youth long gone but remembered for a shining moment. Much like other transcendent moments in history when one can remember where theybwere or what they were doing, I

REDVETTEGODDESS

Book more about the groom than the horse

Reviewed in the United States on April 29, 2024

The book is called “The Horse God Built” but it focuses more on Secretariat’s groom than on the horse itself. This is great to a point, but the author basically worships Eddie Sweat and finds absolutely no flaws in him, even calling him a “saint” (despite his relationship/family history- children with three different women, etc.). It’s too one sided and also it’s not well organized so you kind of get dragged all over. Solid book but a bit disappointing.

Sid Ellington

awesome, insightful, emotional, and from the heart

Reviewed in the United States on April 23, 2024

Great book. Could not put it down. Horses are not only amazing, but they are just as human as we are.

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