Come on Seabiscuit! »

Ralph Moody (1898–1982) was a working cowboy from the age of ten, a trick rodeo rider, and a student of good horseflesh. He is the author of Come on Seabiscuit! as well as the Little Britches series about a boy's life on a Colorado ranch, all available in Bison Books editions.

It was the Thoroughbred race of the century! On November 1, 1938, the United States was in the middle of the Great Depression. Nevertheless, thousands of fans left behind their troubles that day to gather at the Pimlico racetrack in Baltimore, Maryland, to cheer on Seabiscuit, the horse from the West—the people's horse with the oversized head and the stubby little legs. Seabiscuit was competing against War Admiral, winner of the Triple Crown, the three greatest races in the Thoroughbred world. Exploding from the start, by the far turn of the track the two champions were running neck and neck, neither giving an inch. Then Seabiscuit looked War Admiral squarely in the eye, snorted his trademark challenge, and powered away from the eastern victor...

Seabiscuit was an unlikely hero. Considered lazy by his trainer, he was overraced, broken down, and in the lowest ranks of racehorses by the age of two. Then in 1936, old-time cowboy trainer Tom Smith—who saw something in Seabiscuit, despite the colt's reputation—convinced businessman Charles Howard to buy the horse. Howard did, for practically nothing, and hired jockey Jack "Red" Pollard to ride him. Smith and Pollard were as down-and-out as Seabiscuit at the time, but together the threesome made history!

With great courage and stamina, and an even greater heart, Seabiscuit overcame injuries in the course of his career that would have killed a lesser horse, and in his four years of racing topped the Thoroughbred earnings record of his time. The story of Seabiscuit's life—now a major motion picture starring Tobey Maguire—is in turn thrilling, heartbreaking and incredibly inspiring.

Ralph Moody, the second of six children, was born on December 16, 1898, in East Rochester, New Hampshire. In 1950, when he was fifty-two years old, Ralph enrolled in a short-story writing class. Encouraged by his teacher, he turned a class paper into a book, Little Britches, describing his childhood days living on a ranch in Colorado. Ralph wrote nineteen books, all based on his life. He died at age eighty-three in New England, at the home of his sister Elizabeth.

Robert Riger was born in Manhattan in 1924 and graduated from Pratt Art Institute. His distinctive sepia sketches appeared in the first issue of Sports Illustrated in 1954 and became a regular and familiar feature in the magazine for many years afterward. In 1963 Robert joined ABC's Wide World of Sports, where he became a producer/director of many groundbreaking and award-winning programs. Among his prizes are nine Emmy Awards. Other children's titles illustrated by Robert include Ralph Moody's Riders of the Pony Express; Sequoyah: Leader of the Cherokees by Alice Marriott; and Wren by Marie Killilea. He died in 1995 in Huntington Beach, California.

Publishers Weekly

Long before Laura Hillenbrand's Seabiscuit: An American Legend became a bestseller for adults, Moody's book (which is referenced in Hillenbrand's work) introduced the great racehorse to a younger audience. First published in 1963, Moody's title has recently experienced a resurgence, thanks to the more recent title and the feature film it inspired. Noted children's storyteller Weiss confidently takes the reins here, tracing the thoroughbred from his humble, knobby-kneed beginnings, through periods of doubt and scorn as expressed by his early owners to his triumph as one of the biggest-hearted racers in history. Weiss immediately assumes his typical leisurely pacing, drawing listeners in by capturing the flavor of historic details and setting the stage for exciting races, including the ultimate contest against his rival, Triple Crown winner War Admiral. This well-rounded selection is bound to captivate horse fans, sports fans and anyone who enjoys being wowed by a good story. Ages 8-up. (Dec. 2003) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.