The Man Who Listens to Horses

December 30, 1996
This book is important reading for those interested in communication, particularly interspecies communication and linguistics. Growing up in the late 1940s on his father's horse farm, which also had a rodeo area, Roberts began to develop his revolutionary view of horse behavior in his early teens by observing the wild mustangs in the Nevada high desert. He came to know what a horse was thinking, he claims, by noting the position of its body, head, tongue, ears, legs and tail, as well as the focus of its eyes. He held firm to his insight despite the violent opposition of his father, who felt his son's notion threatened everything he had built his business on, namely that a horse had to be "broken." On one occasion, Roberts's father beat him so badly that he had to be hospitalized. But in time, the son scored many successes with horses he had "started" (trained) rather than "broken," and he began to acquire followers. Among them was Queen Elizabeth II, an ardent horsewoman, who witnessed Roberts's demonstrations, became a convert and instituted his system for royal mounts. Roberts, who has worked as a movie stuntman since he was two and performed in rodeos, has "reformed" many problem animals. How he learned to listen to horses, to communicate nonverbally, is the central feature of his convincing book, which will certainly elicit controversy.

This title addresses the current interest in communication between animals and humans. Monty Roberts's amazing methods for schooling horses to accept saddle and rider were developed through his keen observation of how horses communicate in the wild. His determination to abolish the cruelty in the age-old "breaking" of horses and to break the abusive relationship within his own family inspires a passionate reading of his life and work. His Native American heritage and some of the rodeo circuit life give his voice a distinctive resonance that listeners will appreciate. R.F.W. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine


Not THE Horse Whisperer of Nicholas Evans's novel, but A horse whisperer, Monty Roberts has a personal history more engaging than many novels. He writes with the special clarity of someone who has no pretentions as a writer, but has a story he very much wants to tell and a deep understanding of his subject. This book is effective in audio much in the manner of good, non-theatrical storytelling--it's more like a conversation than a performance. Ed Sala's reading at first seems flat and deliberate. But it soon becomes apparent that he has achieved precisely the right tone for Robert's straightforward style. J.N. (c) AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine