Horse Boys

by J.T. Blossom

Thirteen-year old Michael is a sensitive, school-loving student from the suburbs of Milwaukee. He is more interested in getting good grades, acting in school plays and playing tennis than in being a cowboy. He's never even petted a horse before. When his father dumps him off to work at a riding stables run by wild and unsupervised young men, Michael faces many challenges and has to grow up fast. Set in the late sixties, the hierarchical and exploitive domination of the horse boys over workers, animals and women accentuates Michael's confusion about who he is and what it means to be a man.

270 pages, Paperback

Published December 2, 2017

About the author

John Blossom is the author of the memoir, Trespassing; and the novels, Horse Boys, The Tunes of Lenore, Lenore and the Problem With Love, Mahina Rises, To Be or Not To Be, and The Last Football Player.

John Blossom’s books explore the challenges facing humankind in relation to modern culture as well as the fragility of the planet. He holds a BA in English from Carleton College and a Master of Arts in Teaching from Colorado College. John is married with one grown daughter. He presently resides on the Big Island of Hawaii.

Reviews

[Cookie M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really didn't know what I was getting into when I started this book about a young boy who starts a summer job as a worker at a camp riding stable in Wisconsin in 1969. At first the only thing that kept me reading it was the references to places and events I remember from my own life in Wisconsin.
Before I knew it I was sucked in. My feelings about the things that went on were colored by my knowledge of the truthfulness of some of these events, through experiences of my own and some of my family members working on commercial stables.
I did not like where it seemed this story arc was going. Then came the climax, a huge denouement I never saw coming, and an abrupt ending. It left me questioning my own emotions regarding animal suffering vs. human suffering. The author used a subtle juxtaposition of a very horrifying double image. Just a warning. Be strong when you read this one.

[Shelle Perry · Rating 2 out of 5]

While Michael (Coolidge) is an interesting character with a lot going on, I couldn't connect with him or really, any other character in this story. Based on other reviews, there are readers who will enjoy this book, but I found it difficult to get through and just never found a reading rhythm.

I received a copy of this book through a Goodreads Giveaway

[Sep · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the story of Michael who gets a job working as one of the horse boys who take care of the horses that cater to tourists and campers for rides during their vacations to the country. Michael is dropped off by his alcoholic father (a summer camp the old drunk does not have to pay for!) and worries about his mother, who has MS.

The horse boys are a tough group. Disciplined by violence, crazy and stupid acts are the norm and bad advice is everywhere. Still Michael, renamed Coolidge, survives and sort of thrives until a wild and unexpected climax that had me reading WAY later last night than I planned.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

First of all, the good. Horse Boys is an in-depth look at human nature and the effect of peer pressure on a young man. Throughout the book, Coolidge is talked into dangerous and self-destructive behaviors, including drinking underage, driving when he doesn't know how to, and cliff-diving. The barn exists in an almost Lord of the Flies type environment, where the only inhibition on the boys' actions is bad PR. It's a fascinating look of how much human behavior can be shaped by those around us.

With that said, this is not an easy book to read. As someone with years of experience with horses, the way that the horses were treated made me a bit sick. Additionally, the peons (the boys who work at the barn) suffer physical abuse from the bosses whenever they make mistakes. While Blossom does not describe it extensively, it is a common thread throughout the tale.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.

[Mari LivTollefsonCarlson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in Wisconsin, 1969, J.T. Blossom’s Horse Boys is a summer of sex, drugs and rock and roll - coupled with the hard work of growing up.
Due to marital and financial difficulties, instead of paying for Michael to attend a camp the summer before high school, his parents send him to work at the horse stables. The youngest of the “horse boys,” Michael, nicknamed Coolidge (Cool), gets extensive training not only in horse care and stable maintenance, but in bullsh--ing. By the end of the summer, Cool forms an opinion of the hazing techniques and dangerous entertainment that supplement his grueling work experience.
The descriptions of the setting, both Eastern Wisconsin’s natural beauty and the perils of insects, heat, and horse body functions, are the staple of this novel. The writing’s clear conveyance of Cool’s full engagement with these physical forces is offset by a few instances of moralizing and clumsy sentences. The narrator is more than omniscient; he addresses “you” with a message. Reading group discussion questions at the end of the book confirm the leading tone of the narration.
Cool is the easiest character to whom to relate. His inner thoughts, which he is careful to keep private, are italicized, voicing his, and readers’, wide spectrum of reactions to all his new experiences, from getting drunk, to the Beatles, to horse sex, to stealing logs, and stealing glances at girls in the shower. The few females are also multi-faceted, although they show up too seldom to develop as characters. The other horse boys exhibit more of a group character: brazen, brawny, risk-taking, and bronzed. Their endless school boy humor isn’t funny so much as farcical. It highlights how tiresome their act gets and how genuine Cool becomes.
The horses parallel the boys. Mostly, the horses share character traits. A wild horse the boys tame, Rim Tank, stands out like Cool. Their dramatic transformations conclude in a stunning ending, replete with a stand-off and a tragedy.
A vivid coming of age story that sets life lessons in the rousing - and arousing - context of a horse stable.