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Alexandra the Great: The Story of the Record-Breaking Filly Who Ruled the Racetrack
Alexandra the Great tells the gripping story of underdog filly Rachel Alexandra. Despite dominating every filly her age, her owner refused to let her compete against male horses. When a new owner saw her potential and raced her against bigger, stronger males, Rachel Alexandra thrived and went on to win the 2009 Preakness, the first filly to do so in 85 years, and the Woodward, a feat never before achieved. A strong, muscular, dominating athlete, Rachel Alexandra epitomizes the “run like a girl” celebratory attitude toward girl empowerment today. Appealing to horse-obsessed upper elementary and middle school kids, Alexandra the Great is written in an exciting, suspenseful way and includes vivid details informed by the author’s interviews with Rachel Alexandra’s owners, jockey, veterinarian, and more.
- GenresNonfictionHorses
176 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 30, 2017
Love, love, love!
May 8, 2018
I LOVED this book!!! Well researched and informative and fun to read! <3
September 26, 2016
Disclaimer: ARC via Netgalley.
This television season includes a show called Pitch, about the first female pitcher on a major league baseball team. The show is pretty good, even though the twist during the premiere wasn’t that much of a surprise. In some ways, Rachel Alexandra is like that show.
Honestly, if you are reading this book, odds are that you already know about Rachel Alexandra and her amazing stack of wins. You know about the jockey Calvin Borel. You most likely are somewhat familiar with Rachel Alexandra’s owners, and, perhaps, even her breeding career.
All those stories are repeated in this book, but Aronson also gives room to less well known aspects of Rachel Alexandra’s life.
Aronson gives details about the bloodline, pointing out that while Rachel Alexandra’s dam was not the good mother with her, that changed with other foals. She doesn’t even hide the nickname for Rachel Alexandra’s milk mare – Lotta Bitch. There is the story of Marylou Whitney who basically ensured that Rachel Alexandra would be able to run in the Preakness. The role of both earlier trainers and groomers is emphasized as well. While the book may be a biography of a great horse, it is also a testimonial to those who cared for the horse.
Aronson notes in her afterword that prior to this book, she didn’t know that much about horse racing. If this is true, Aronson deserves an A+ for her research alone. She talks about training methods, about why horses respond to the starting gate in the way they do, and there is even a discussion about fillies running against colts as well as genetics and bone density. While the book is geared toward younger readers, it does not talk down to the readers and is readable, quite frankly, by anyway. The races are described actively; Aronson does a good job capturing the aura of excitement. When she can, she lets those who can speak, do so for themselves. One does want, however, a more information about Rachel Alexandra’s offspring.
This television season includes a show called Pitch, about the first female pitcher on a major league baseball team. The show is pretty good, even though the twist during the premiere wasn’t that much of a surprise. In some ways, Rachel Alexandra is like that show.
Honestly, if you are reading this book, odds are that you already know about Rachel Alexandra and her amazing stack of wins. You know about the jockey Calvin Borel. You most likely are somewhat familiar with Rachel Alexandra’s owners, and, perhaps, even her breeding career.
All those stories are repeated in this book, but Aronson also gives room to less well known aspects of Rachel Alexandra’s life.
Aronson gives details about the bloodline, pointing out that while Rachel Alexandra’s dam was not the good mother with her, that changed with other foals. She doesn’t even hide the nickname for Rachel Alexandra’s milk mare – Lotta Bitch. There is the story of Marylou Whitney who basically ensured that Rachel Alexandra would be able to run in the Preakness. The role of both earlier trainers and groomers is emphasized as well. While the book may be a biography of a great horse, it is also a testimonial to those who cared for the horse.
Aronson notes in her afterword that prior to this book, she didn’t know that much about horse racing. If this is true, Aronson deserves an A+ for her research alone. She talks about training methods, about why horses respond to the starting gate in the way they do, and there is even a discussion about fillies running against colts as well as genetics and bone density. While the book is geared toward younger readers, it does not talk down to the readers and is readable, quite frankly, by anyway. The races are described actively; Aronson does a good job capturing the aura of excitement. When she can, she lets those who can speak, do so for themselves. One does want, however, a more information about Rachel Alexandra’s offspring.
November 20, 2017
A fascinating look at the legendary racehorse Rachel Alexandra – Known to her fans as Alexandra The Great. Deb Aronson immerses readers in the world of thoroughbred horse racing with an in-depth look at the racing super star from birth to retirement.
Rejected by her mother and labeled an “Ugly Duckling” Rachel Alexandra was scheduled for a quick sale, but a medical problem caused by growing too fast prevented the transaction from going through and her owner, Dolph Morrison, ended up sending her to his trainer. The rest, as they say, is history. Rachel proved herself smart and strong as she ran away with win after win. But despite her remarkable success, Dolph refused to allow her to compete against the boys. That decision came when Jess Jackson made Dolph an offer he couldn’t refuse and gave Rachel her chance. Rachel became the first filly in 85 years to win the Preakness and went on to become the first filly to ever win the Woodward – crowning her career by being named 2009 Horse of the Year.
Aronson’s carefully researched work is filled with exacting details and numerous quotes from owners, trainers, jockeys and others. She gives readers a healthy education about the day-to-day world of breeding farms, training barns, and life in the shed rows behind the tracks. The fact-filled text is balanced by a lively narrative that will leave the heart pumping in time with the hoofbeats pounding down the final stretch.
Additional information is available at the end of the book with: Rachel’s Record-Making Runs, A Glossary of terms highlighted in the story, Notes citing the author’s sources for quotes, a Bibliography, and Index.
Rejected by her mother and labeled an “Ugly Duckling” Rachel Alexandra was scheduled for a quick sale, but a medical problem caused by growing too fast prevented the transaction from going through and her owner, Dolph Morrison, ended up sending her to his trainer. The rest, as they say, is history. Rachel proved herself smart and strong as she ran away with win after win. But despite her remarkable success, Dolph refused to allow her to compete against the boys. That decision came when Jess Jackson made Dolph an offer he couldn’t refuse and gave Rachel her chance. Rachel became the first filly in 85 years to win the Preakness and went on to become the first filly to ever win the Woodward – crowning her career by being named 2009 Horse of the Year.
Aronson’s carefully researched work is filled with exacting details and numerous quotes from owners, trainers, jockeys and others. She gives readers a healthy education about the day-to-day world of breeding farms, training barns, and life in the shed rows behind the tracks. The fact-filled text is balanced by a lively narrative that will leave the heart pumping in time with the hoofbeats pounding down the final stretch.
Additional information is available at the end of the book with: Rachel’s Record-Making Runs, A Glossary of terms highlighted in the story, Notes citing the author’s sources for quotes, a Bibliography, and Index.
November 26, 2019
Wonderful story, well written and researched. Really tells the story of a remarkable Thoroughbred filly who accomplished things that no other filly has ever done. Yet, unlike some other fillies of fairly recent history, too little is known about her in the non-racing world. Without a single breakdown, unlike the other famous fillies, she even beat the boys at their own game. Loved the slogan given her, "Yes, I run like a girl, try to catch me" by her fans. Her only defeat, as far as I could determine from the story, was her first race as a 2 year old when she was still learning her craft.
A beautiful horse with a heart, good manners, and a joy of running that was truly brought out in this book. Highly recommend it to both horse lovers and horse racing fans.
A beautiful horse with a heart, good manners, and a joy of running that was truly brought out in this book. Highly recommend it to both horse lovers and horse racing fans.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 10, 2016
ARC kindly provided by Netgalley for an honest review.
A really wonderful story- perfect for horse and racing lovers.
Some of the races were left out of the story, which I think detracted from it as a whole. Rachel did lose some major races, and it would have been better with these mentioned. It would not have detracted from the story.
The writing is an odd mix - both telling a story, educating the reader, and written in parts as non fiction. At times this is not smooth flowing.
However, this was a highly enjoyable read.
A really wonderful story- perfect for horse and racing lovers.
Some of the races were left out of the story, which I think detracted from it as a whole. Rachel did lose some major races, and it would have been better with these mentioned. It would not have detracted from the story.
The writing is an odd mix - both telling a story, educating the reader, and written in parts as non fiction. At times this is not smooth flowing.
However, this was a highly enjoyable read.
September 17, 2019
What a horse!
I can't believe I'd never heard of Rachel Alexandra, Ruffian, I've heard load about, but man was I missing out. I was nearly in tears with this story, what a beloved beauty.
I can't believe I'd never heard of Rachel Alexandra, Ruffian, I've heard load about, but man was I missing out. I was nearly in tears with this story, what a beloved beauty.
June 12, 2017
I got this for Anya, but I love a good race horse story!
October 2, 2017
Cute story of a young thoroughbred filly that rises in her racing carrier.
May 25, 2019
Love this girl
February 10, 2017
This is not the type of book I typically enjoy at all. I don't really understand why racehorses are talked about in the same terms as other athletes or why books about them are considered biographies. I get they train, they put stress on their bodies for racing, and it's hard work. But it's a horse. It doesn't decide to be a racehorse and doesn't really decide to train or practice. So needless to say, I don't really get the world of horses or racing. But I will say this book actually interested me. The author obviously did a huge amount of research and really did a great job capturing both the action and emotion involved in this sport. I actually found myself getting excited and into the races being described. Plus I love the subtle and not so subtle feminism points thrown into the story. Anyone who loves horses, racing, or sports will eat this up, but even people remotely interested like me will find it to be a fun read.
April 21, 2017
I love how the flow of the book made it easy to read. The pictures were really great. It had an uplifting feel to the story. I also like how certain horse terms were highlighted and then the reader could go in the back and look up what the word meant.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews