The Hearts of Horses

In The Hearts of Horses, Martha Lessen, a loner, who travels to an Oregon valley to break horses, finds her heart opening up to the small community as they take to her and her gentle ways of training their horses. During her time there she helps save a German family’s horses after their wagon slides into a ravine and becomes like a daughter to a couple whose sons have gone off to war and their daughter has moved away. She also clashes with a hired man who mistreats horses, develops a friendship with the ranch manager of two elderly sisters whom she admires, and helps a family who husband has terminal cancer. The author, an award winner, writes with graceful sweetness about relationships, both human and animal and evokes a challenging way of life that people embraced or adapted to out of necessity in early 20th century Oregon . This is a sure winner.

NRH