Half Broke Horses

Jeannette Walls

Average Rating 9/10 (1 Review)

A debut novel based on the extraordinary life of Jeannette Walls' maternal grandmother - a sassy, straight-talking heroine for whom saving lives, taming wild horses and beating ranch hands at poker are all in a day's work. Born in 1901 in the rolling grassland of West Texas, at the age of 15, with very little formal education, Lily Casey Smith left home to begin teaching in a frontier town, riding 500 miles on her beloved pony, Patch, all alone, to get to her job. She went on, with her husband, to run an 180,000 acre ranch in Arizona and to raise two children, one of whom is Jeannette's memorable mother, Rosemary Smith Walls. Readers will love and marvel at this intrepid woman, for her fearlessness, her courage, her wicked sense of humour. A true adventurer!

'Half Broke Horses has immense power and readability.'

Review by Hidayah Ismawi (310112) Rating (9/10)

Review by Hidayah Ismawi
Rating 9/10
This book was based on the true life story of the author's grandmother Lily Casey Smith. Lily was spunky, resourceful child who grew up to be a resilient and amazing woman. Despite having odds stacked against her, she managed to persevere and adapt to every imaginable situation. Breaking in wild horses, learning to drive an automobile and even a plane, also teaching kids in distant one-pony towns across the deserts.

What I liked about this book:
It is said that in order to write a great book, one must find a great story. The story of Lily Casey Smith is definitely a great story. Her life was told with such straightforwardness and honesty that every character in this book came to life. Lily Casey was not only a survivor, she was a fighter. An inspirational read.

What I disliked about the book:
Nothing much really. I loved it.

A quote I liked from the book:
God had saved us, but had also taken our house from us. Whether as payment for saving us or as punishment because we didn't deserve it, I couldn't say. Maybe he was just giving us a kick in the behind to say: Time to move on.
Hidayah Ismawi (31st January 2012)