Just read
By adamg - 10/23/09 - 10:54 am
Halley Suitt reports:
People are straggling into the coffee shop where I'm reading quietly and they are complaining loudly about the Boston traffic, the weather, their mother-in-law, you name it and I'm at the Santa Anita racetrack on a beautiful spring day, watching the horses get ready to race. Why, because I'm lost in Jane Smiley's Horse Heaven. ...
Comments
Santa Anita
Awesome.
Growing up within a
Growing up within a reasonable distance of both Santa Anita and Del Mar, Suffolk Downs was quite a disappointment.
What about Hollywood Park?
Sure, I'll give that Suffolk Downs is a bit down in the tooth, but comparing it to Santa Anita or Del Mar is like comparing a $5,000 claiming horse to a Grade One champion.
Hollywood Park is a good
Hollywood Park is a good comparison. And don't get me wrong, I like both Suffolk Downs and Hollywood Park. Both are nice gritty throwbacks.
What I've been reading....
A book of (sometimes a little naughty) short stories about life in rural Northern Japan at the end of the 40s. Books are definitely a cheaper way to travel than airplanes (not to mention time machines).
Loved this book!
I read this book about 6 years ago and it was sad, funny and touching all at the same time. Smiley used five or six seemingly unrelated points of view that all blended together as the book progressed, and you got a full view of all those whose lives - and livelihoods - revolved around the sport of racing and the tracks themselves. It took a long time for me to move on to another book after this one. The only downside was the hardcover was a doorstop!