Can you believe it’s time for holiday shopping already? Or are you one of those organized people who already have your shopping done and the gifts wrapped? These days, with internet shopping doubling every year, things are a lot easier for last-minute shoppers. But for those of you who do your Christmas shopping in November, here are a few wonderful books that make great gifts!

True Horsemanship Through Feel
This book is a classic … and sometimes that’s just what a horse lover needs to fill a gaping hole in the bookshelf. True Horsemanship Through Feel, by Bill Dorrance with Leslie Desmond, was first published in 1999, but the copy on my bookshelf is this year’s large-format soft-cover edition.
Bill Dorrance has been a name to conjure within natural horsemanship and western riding for years, and his passing in 1999 was deeply mourned. But in the years before his death, he’d worked with Leslie Desmond of Diamond Lu Productions on True Horsemanship Through Feel, so there’s a little bit of his knowledge left for the rest of us.
More than natural horsemanship techniques, and applicable to more than only western riders, True Horsemanship Through Feel contains a thorough education in horses: How they act, how they react, and what you can do to work with them, not against them.
There’s riding, and there’s horsemanship. True Horsemanship Through Feel is an education in the difference between the two.
“dummies” at one time … remember your first ride? Remember your first time to pat a horse on its neck and feel that satin-smooth sensation?

Horseback Riding for Dummies is a great book for anyone who’s at that point in their lives: New to horses, intrigued by the idea of riding and being around horses, but “they don’t know how much they don’t know” as I’ve heard it described. Author Audrey Pavia, with Shannon Sand, begins with the assumption that the reader recognizes a horse when he or she sees one … and begin their education from there.
I’ve always considered the books in the “For Dummies” series a great place to go for very basic information on a subject that’s completely new to the reader, and this book is no exception. The format of the book makes finding specific information easy, and the conversational writing style makes reading it quick and pleasant.
Horseback Riding for Dummies is a great place to begin when you’re just starting to ride.

The Lyons Press Horseman’s Dictionary
This is a book you could give anyone in the horse world and be assured that they would find something new inside its covers. Steven D. Price authored the first edition in 2000, and now, seven years later, Jessie Shiers teamed up with him to revise The Lyons Press Horseman’s Dictionary.
As the horse world has grown in size and expanded in scope, so has its vocabulary. New entries in this 2007 edition include PMU foal, Rollkur, and hooking on … among others. Also included in The Lyons Press Horseman’s Dictionary is a reference listing of breed associations, equestrian organizations, and web sites. There’s something for everyone in this dictionary, including photographs and illustrations.
“Dictionary” might leave you with an impression of a dry, dusty tome sitting on the classroom lectern … but that was then, and this is now! The Lyons Press Horseman’s Dictionary makes not just a great reference book, but interesting reading all by itself.
In particular, I enjoyed reading William Steinkraus’s foreword to the revised edition, and Don Burt’s foreword to the original edition. Both men draw on years of experience, with entertaining anecdotes, to shed light on the benefits of being educated about horsemanship … including its entertaining vocabulary.
For anyone who enjoys horses and language, a gift of The Lyons Press Horseman’s Dictionary is a sure winner.

Why Do Horses Sleep Standing Up?
That may be the most-asked question to come from people who know the front end of a horse from the back, but not much more. Now the book titled with this perennial question delves into this question and a hundred more.
Authors Marty Becker, DVM, Audrey Pavia, Gina Spadafori, and Teresa Becker must have had a great time narrowing down the list of questions to just 101. I know I had a great time reading their answers, along with the anecdotes sprinkled throughout the book.
As Monty Roberts says in his foreword, “You’ll learn more about horses than you ever imagined possible, and you’ll gain a better understanding and respect for one of humankind’s oldest and most important partners. Join up, listen, learn and have a laugh or two along the way. Life’s a great ride, and we have horses to thank for it.”
Thanks to Why Do Horses Sleep Standing Up?, we’ll have the answers to those crazy questions our non-horsey relatives ask around the holiday dinner table, too!

Happy Horsemanship
Here’s wishing you happy reading, happy riding, and happy holiday shopping!