Review by Christine Schwartz
Lately I have found that most books are quite alike and there are not that many new ideas and concepts out on the market. Having met the energetic and forward thinking charming Brit in the past, I knew to expect more from her book. Sarah has put TTEAM on the map in England with dozens of published how to articles addressing horse and dog owners, a nine part TV series called Talking with Animals where she traveled to farms and people's houses, working with horses that won't load, dogs that won't stop barking and a charging ram So when I opened Sarah Fisher's new book, Know Your Horse Inside out I was expecting more than the average horse book, but it still delivered far more than I expected.
When first flipping through the 150 page book the crisp colour pictures jump out at you. I wanted to just skip through it, but got stuck at the first 2 sections, Body Talk, and Assess Your Horse. I have seldom seen so much new information in a book. Sarah shows the reader about tension patterns, balance and proprioception (after reading the book I now know that that means), pain memory, and opens a new view to body language and responses. Assessing your horse covers 42 pages and will get every horse owner to see his horse in a new light. Not only are we taught how to see what's there, we are also shown how to interpret what we find. In typical Sarah fashion she does not leave us hanging there, but gives detailed how to information in the last half of the book, using TTEAM and Connected Riding ground and bodywork to help the horses and riders overcome their issues.
Boxes with little hints throughout the book, many titled "My horse doesn't like …. ie ear work" allow the reader to skip from page to page or read it cover to cover. For me this is one of the best new books on the market.
Can't wait for Know Your Dog Inside Out to be released in 2007.