Purdy’s first book is an ambitious if disjointed account of how horses, mules, burros, and donkeys were central to the economic, cultural, and social development of America. The author, whose longstanding admiration of horses led her to do the research that developed into this book, begins by describing the historic role equines played in shaping the eastern United States, then goes on to describe how they influenced the new economies of the Midwest and West. She also examines the ways that horses and other equines served the nation, specifically focusing on equines during the Civil War and WWI and in sports, entertainment, and culture in the 19th and 20th centuries. To describe the importance of equines and their close relationship to their handlers during the “heyday of horses,” Purdy fills her book with interesting anecdotes and facts as well as quotations from primary sources. However thorough her research, though, Purdy struggles to meld her findings into a coherent narrative and as a result the writing often reads like a list of interesting tidbits about horses in American history. (BookLife)