Wild Horse Annie and the Last of the Mustangs: The Life of Velma Johnston »

David Cruise and Alison Griffiths began writing together in 1983 and are the authors of seven bestselling books, including Fleecing the Lamb, Lords of the Line, Net Worth, On South Mountain, and The Great Adventure. Griffiths hosted the acclaimed financial television show “Maxed Out,” for three years and she writes the nationally syndicated columns, Alison on Money and Me and My Money. They have two daughters and divide their time between their small farms in southwestern Ontario and Brooksville, Florida. Please visit wildhorseanniestory.com

David Cruise and Alison Griffiths began writing together in 1983 and are the authors of seven bestselling books, including Fleecing the Lamb, Lords of the Line, Net Worth, On South Mountain, and The Great Adventure. Griffiths hosted the acclaimed financial television show “Maxed Out,” for three years and she writes the nationally syndicated columns, Alison on Money and Me and My Money. They have two daughters and divide their time between their small farms in southwestern Ontario and Brooksville, Florida. Please visit wildhorseanniestory.com

In 1950, Velma Johnston was a secretary at an insurance company in Reno, Nevada. Twenty years later, she had become a national hero, responsible for spurring Congress into passing legislation that protected wild horses, a feat that cemented her renown as "Wild Horse Annie." This stirring biography is the first to tell the story of Johnston's life and her extraordinary dedication to the mustangs that represent the spirit of the West.

Veteran writers David Cruise and Alison Griffiths paint a vivid portrait of this intrepid woman, who survived a cruelly disfiguring bout with polio as a child and channeled her energy and intellect into her career and marriage -- until she encountered a truck of injured, half-dead horses on her way to work in 1950. Those horses, destined for a pet food rendering plant, launched Johnston into a decades-long campaign against ranchers and the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to stop the roundup and slaughter of mustangs. At a time when animal rights was barely a cause and women were still expected to stay at home, Johnston embarked on dangerous vigilante missions to free captured horses and document roundups, and began a highly organized one-woman campaign to raise public awareness of their plight, all while continuing to work and maintain a household.

Johnston's courage, determination, and innovative tactics -- she initiated a children's letter-writing campaign that flooded Congress with more mail than it had received on any issue except the Vietnam War -- pitted her against ranchers and powerful politicians, but eventually won her support and admiration around the world, including the friendship of celebrated children's author Marguerite Henry, who fictionalized her story in a children's novel.

In this absorbing and carefully researched biography, Cruise and Griffiths depict the ups and downs of a remarkable woman's life and mission, reveal her lasting legacy, and capture the romance and magic of the wild horses that inspired her.

Publishers Weekly

Velma Johnston (1912-1977), the daughter of a Nevada horse wrangler, was stricken by polio as a child, but she fulfilled her youthful aspirations of owning a ranch and marrying the man of her dreams; her tenacity is the emotional core of this moving-and first-biography of the animal advocate. Cruise and Griffiths (coauthors of Fleecing the Lamb) weave a story of western grit and guts, showing how Velma's indignation and early efforts-rescuing wild mustangs from pet food poachers and angry ranchers-blossomed into the passage of landmark legislation that prevented the capture or killing of herds of horses and burros. Velma's intelligence, candor, and charm are eloquently conveyed by the authors, and their rich and detailed portrait of Velma and her beloved "wild ones" becomes a paean to the American West-of cherished wildness and spirited individualism. Photos.
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1 Velma 1

2 Charlie 15

3 The Double Lazy Heart Ranch 27

4 The Road to Reno 41

5 A Law of Our Own 64

6 Moccasin Walking 89

7 Mrs. Johnston Goes to Washington 105

8 It's a Hell of a Good Day 129

9 The Lady in the Green Coat 147

10 Out of Cold Storage 165

11 The Battle of the Pryor Mountains 185

12 A Perfect Storm 199

13 Trapped 220

14 The Children's Crusade 239

Epilogue 261

Acknowledgments 275

Notes 279

Index 295