Review
"""There are plenty of tidbits for the equine ignorant like me -- why racehorses have such silly names, and a chapter on horse genital hygiene -- and gripping personal narratives of those behind-the-scenes of smalltime horse racing, but the heart of the book is Chong's personal story...Chong's personality becomes a metaphor for the heart of the track.""" (Landry Mike Telegraph-Journal 2012-04-07)
"""...a consistently entertaining and informative read.""" (Publishers Weekly 2012-05-31)
"""...a quirky, fast-paced gallop through the exhilaration, heartbreak, and financial responsibility of owning even a small share in racehorse...we learn more about Chong himself than he may have intended. The author can be cruel to his best buddies...strives to rekindle romances with old girlfriends, apparently with the primary goal of orchestrating tax-deductible dates to horse-related events. Frankly, Blackie is far more lovable than Chong. And, as we eventually learn, perhaps more reliable...Chong admits in an author's note at the end that in writing this work of non-fiction, he changed, exaggerated, or invented characters, names, dates, situations, and conversations. This admission will cause some readers to wonder just how much of this story is invented and how much actually happened the way it's described in the book. Does it matter? Not really. Chong's tale has the ring of truth to it: we feel his joy and pain throughout. And we learn a heck of a lot about the world of racehorses...""" (Quill & Quire 2012-03-19)
"""...It's a pleasure to offer our readers a respite by way of recommending this hilarious insight into the world of Canadian horseracing...Kevin Chong is a brilliant humorist and his autobiographical writing is ripe with salty dialogue and elegantly crafted narrative. This was an extraordinary experience that Chong has memorialized in an easy-to-read and hard-to-put-down book...""" (Fordham Glenda The Rider 2012-05-01)
"""Chong is a trigger-ready wit who's highly fluent in contemporary references.""" (Georgia Straight 2012-03-29)
"""Chong's prose transports you to grandstands of the Hastings track, where his laser-scalpel eye for detail catalogues its sights and patrons ('raceplayers'). Some of the most mesmerizing passages are descriptions of races themselves, where you find yourself cheering for Mocha Time and revelling in her victories, even in this low-stakes world.""" (National Post 2012-03-30)
"""Chong's tale has the ring of truth to it: we feel his joy and pain throughout. And we learn a heck of a lot about the world of racehorses...""" (Gessell Paul Quill & Quire 2012-04-12)
"""Kevin Chong's high-stakes story of winning and losing at the races offers all the drama you could hope for (plus everything you need to know about horse sex), laced with very funny autobiography. This is more than an insider's look at the world of the racetrack. This is extraordinary writing.""" (Henderson Lee 2012-01-11)
"""Chong's adventures with Blackie make for one hell of a bumpy ride. For the reader, his affecting memoir romps home into the winner's circle.""" (Ward Bruce Ottawa Citizen 2012-06-10)
"""For a life-long horse nut like me, maybe the most amazing thing about Kevin Chong's My Year of the Racehorse is that it exists at all.""" (Smiley Jane Globe & Mail 2012-04-01)
"""Here we have elegant style, a brilliant ear for dialogue both on and off the track, and a sure instinct for how to narrate a horse race. The running commentary of the narrator's unimpressed friends is one of the funniest refrains of this wise, poignant, one-of-a-kind book.""" (Gordon Jaimy 2012-01-11)
"""The vivid, affecting portraits of the people who live on the backstretch will remind readers of the HBO series Luck, just as the hardbitten manner in which Chong's veteran racetrackers deal with loss will evoke Jaimy Gordon's Lord of Misrule.""" (Ott Bill Booklist 2012-04-15)
"""...a consistently entertaining and informative read.""" (Publishers Weekly 2012-05-31)
"""...a quirky, fast-paced gallop through the exhilaration, heartbreak, and financial responsibility of owning even a small share in racehorse...we learn more about Chong himself than he may have intended. The author can be cruel to his best buddies...strives to rekindle romances with old girlfriends, apparently with the primary goal of orchestrating tax-deductible dates to horse-related events. Frankly, Blackie is far more lovable than Chong. And, as we eventually learn, perhaps more reliable...Chong admits in an author's note at the end that in writing this work of non-fiction, he changed, exaggerated, or invented characters, names, dates, situations, and conversations. This admission will cause some readers to wonder just how much of this story is invented and how much actually happened the way it's described in the book. Does it matter? Not really. Chong's tale has the ring of truth to it: we feel his joy and pain throughout. And we learn a heck of a lot about the world of racehorses...""" (Quill & Quire 2012-03-19)
"""...It's a pleasure to offer our readers a respite by way of recommending this hilarious insight into the world of Canadian horseracing...Kevin Chong is a brilliant humorist and his autobiographical writing is ripe with salty dialogue and elegantly crafted narrative. This was an extraordinary experience that Chong has memorialized in an easy-to-read and hard-to-put-down book...""" (Fordham Glenda The Rider 2012-05-01)
"""Chong is a trigger-ready wit who's highly fluent in contemporary references.""" (Georgia Straight 2012-03-29)
"""Chong's prose transports you to grandstands of the Hastings track, where his laser-scalpel eye for detail catalogues its sights and patrons ('raceplayers'). Some of the most mesmerizing passages are descriptions of races themselves, where you find yourself cheering for Mocha Time and revelling in her victories, even in this low-stakes world.""" (National Post 2012-03-30)
"""Chong's tale has the ring of truth to it: we feel his joy and pain throughout. And we learn a heck of a lot about the world of racehorses...""" (Gessell Paul Quill & Quire 2012-04-12)
"""Kevin Chong's high-stakes story of winning and losing at the races offers all the drama you could hope for (plus everything you need to know about horse sex), laced with very funny autobiography. This is more than an insider's look at the world of the racetrack. This is extraordinary writing.""" (Henderson Lee 2012-01-11)
"""Chong's adventures with Blackie make for one hell of a bumpy ride. For the reader, his affecting memoir romps home into the winner's circle.""" (Ward Bruce Ottawa Citizen 2012-06-10)
"""For a life-long horse nut like me, maybe the most amazing thing about Kevin Chong's My Year of the Racehorse is that it exists at all.""" (Smiley Jane Globe & Mail 2012-04-01)
"""Here we have elegant style, a brilliant ear for dialogue both on and off the track, and a sure instinct for how to narrate a horse race. The running commentary of the narrator's unimpressed friends is one of the funniest refrains of this wise, poignant, one-of-a-kind book.""" (Gordon Jaimy 2012-01-11)
"""The vivid, affecting portraits of the people who live on the backstretch will remind readers of the HBO series Luck, just as the hardbitten manner in which Chong's veteran racetrackers deal with loss will evoke Jaimy Gordon's Lord of Misrule.""" (Ott Bill Booklist 2012-04-15)
Product Description
Kevin Chong has grand plans. He draws up a to-do list of major milestones that will give him the life he always wanted—and the life that will inspire awe and envy in his friends. Things like settling down and starting a family; learning a foreign language; getting a tattoo. But these grand plans go out the window when Chong makes an unconventional decision: he's going to buy a racehorse. Not the whole thing—he'll become part—owner of the horse. Just don't ask him which part.
Thus Chong meets Blackie, the racehorse that will win his heart, even if she doesn't always win on the track. He meets Randi, the cantankerous and foul-mouthed horse trainer with a heart of gold. He meets an assorted array of characters who work, live and drink at the track—and, one by one, the items on his to-do list are crossed out and replaced with horse-related ambitions. His goals are a bit more humble (cussing like a track worker replaces learning a foreign language), but his life has gained new meaning.
The story is infused with the noise, excitement and faded glamour of the horse-racing world. It is strewn with fascinating tidbits about the history and tradition of this
Thus Chong meets Blackie, the racehorse that will win his heart, even if she doesn't always win on the track. He meets Randi, the cantankerous and foul-mouthed horse trainer with a heart of gold. He meets an assorted array of characters who work, live and drink at the track—and, one by one, the items on his to-do list are crossed out and replaced with horse-related ambitions. His goals are a bit more humble (cussing like a track worker replaces learning a foreign language), but his life has gained new meaning.
The story is infused with the noise, excitement and faded glamour of the horse-racing world. It is strewn with fascinating tidbits about the history and tradition of this
