American Pharoah by Joe Drape

 American Pharoah: The Untold Story of the Triple Crown Winner's Legendary Rise 

by Joe Drape

"The three hardest things to predict the outcome of are a ballgame, a love affair, and a horse race."

In 1978, a horse named Affirmed managed to win the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes, capturing the Triple Crown of horse racing. It would be a 37-years before the next horse was capable of accomplishing the same feat: American Pharoah in 2015.

This isn't a particularly long book, but it took me forever to read. It's not a particularly emotional book (I don't think, anyways) but it kept making me emotional. I've been a horse lover all of my life, even making the financially irresponsible decision to buy one of my own, and a longtime fan of horse racing. I wasn't even born in 1978 when Affirmed won the Triple Crown... and while I'd seen video of Secretariat moving 'like a tremendous machine' it wasn't the same as experiencing the event in my lifetime.

This book opens in the breeding shed with Littleprincessemma and Pioneerof the Nile, and while I admit the graphic mating of two horses at a commercial breeding farm was a bit off-putting, it segues nicely into a look at the economic impacts of the horse breeding industry.

It introduces the people in American Pharoah's life. Bob Baffert who coveted the Triple Crown and kept getting met with loss; the book details his run-ins with performance enhancing drugs and I appreciated the honesty with which the subject was handled. Few things compete with the beauty of the American Thoroughbred in motion, but with so much money on the line, it isn't without its fair share of cheats and abuses. It takes a look at Ahmed Zayat, American Pharoah's owner, fairly new to the sport and living his life on the edge of bankruptcy. And the rider, Victor Espinoza who was thrust into horse racing out of necessity before developing a love for it.

The book chronicles the life of American Pharoah from birth to his winning of the Breeder's Cup Classic. And while I loved the novel, I did wish there was more detail of the races that he won. I wanted to feel a little more in the moment than I did. On the upside, because Joe Drape isn't the most overly descriptive writer, the writing never felt 'heavy' or bogged down with unnecessary details. It wasn't a nonfiction book that droned on, like the teacher in Ferris Bueller. If you're a racing fan, or maybe just looking to learn a little more about the modern-day champion, this is a good book to have in your home library.