I didn’t realize I could or would enjoy a book about horse racing, but here we are! I’m a bit bummed I missed my library book club meeting about this book because it would be fascinating for a discussion.
In 2019, a master’s student of art finds a painting of a horse in his neighbor’s trash pile by the side of the road. He is intrigued and takes it to see what he can learn about it. Maybe it can be part of his thesis? He meets a frustrating woman at the Smithsonian who might be able to help him uncover the mystery. In the 1850s, an enslaved man who has spent his life grooming and training horses so that white men can earn money off of his labor has bought his freedom. He also is proud to have earned a horse of his own, which looks to be a racing contender. He hopes for the day he can buy the freedom of his son, who is quickly following in his father’s footsteps with a knack for horse training. In the 1950s, an art dealer promises her house cleaner that she’ll take a look at the painting that has been a cherished family heirloom, but it probably won’t be worth much.
I’ve read a fair amount of historical fiction and books that jump around with POV, and this one tackles both arenas adeptly. The 1950s plot isn’t as well developed but it makes an interesting counterpoint to the other two time periods which are really the focal point of the book, and in many ways mirror each other. In each time period, a hopeful young black man is trying to make a way in a world that is judging him for the color of his skin.
Brooks uses foreshadowing adeptly leaving little cliffhanger moments when jumping through history. I almost couldn’t put this book down, except for when the foreshadowing alluded to something bad in store for the characters, and then it was hard to go back because she really made me care about them.
