Beyond Rope And Fence

by David Grew

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Genres: Horses

260 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1947

Reviews

[Debbie Zapata · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book popped up at Project Gutenberg quite recently and I thought I'd give it a try but I am giving up.

Yes, you read correctly. ME giving up on a horse book!

Two reasons:

1. I felt that the author made the horses too much like humans in horse costumes and did not leave them to be horses. He obviously understood the animals, but in my opinion he was unable to portray them naturally. Perhaps later in the book he improved, but this leads me to.....

2. The very first chapter is pitiless and cruel, just as humans often are with horses and any creature they wish to dominate. It is the danger of most horse books. Writers spend many pages torturing their subjects so that we readers will have sympathy for them.

But I don't need to read about cruelty in order to have feelings for any horse. They have my love just because they are alive, sharing this world with me. The horse in this story might have things easier in later chapters, but I could not even finish the first one. Way too much was happening that turned my stomach.

And there is enough stomach turning reading around these days: I certainly don't need more of it.

DNF before the end of the first chapter.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 1/2 stars
I first read this book as a young child. It was a gift from my brother. I believe this is one of the books that started my life-long love of reading. It is about a wild horse in the prairies of western Canada. Queen is constantly seeking freedom as man encroaches on the wilderness. She is captured and "tamed" but never loses her quest to find complete freedom. It is a delightful book, even for the much older me.

[Julie Havener · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good horse story for horse lovers. Queen is the wild lead mare of a herd of horses and you follow her adventures in Canada’s prairie. Clean, interesting and fun.

[Pandemo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I became sensitized to the relationship between horse and human through his writing. I ended up with Arabian horses and Irish setter dogs due to the influence of other writers - their sensitive personalities better suited me, but that initial building was through a well-done childhood birthday gift, probably selected by topic and a perfect fit by serendipity.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nostalgia. First read this book in the 1950's as a young person. It was written in the 1940s and is still a well-written book from a horse's (Queen) point of view. Takes places on the prairies of North Dakota and Canada. Reflects the beginning of the end for wild horses on the open plains.