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The Eighty-Dollar Champion: Snowman, the Horse That Inspired a Nation
Goodreads Choice Award
Nominee for Readers' Favorite History & Biography (2011)#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
November 1958: the National Horse Show at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Into the rarefied atmosphere of wealth and tradition comes the most unlikely of horses—a drab white former plow horse named Snowman—and his rider, Harry de Leyer. They were the longest of all longshots—and their win was the stuff of legend.
Harry de Leyer first saw the horse he would name Snowman on a bleak winter afternoon between the slats of a rickety truck bound for the slaughterhouse. He recognized the spark in the eye of the beaten-up horse and bought him for eighty dollars. On Harry’s modest farm on Long Island, the horse thrived. But the recent Dutch immigrant and his growing family needed money, and Harry was always on the lookout for the perfect thoroughbred to train for the show-jumping circuit—so he reluctantly sold Snowman to a farm a few miles down the road.
But Snowman had other ideas about what Harry needed. When he turned up back at Harry’s barn, dragging an old tire and a broken fence board, Harry knew that he had misjudged the horse. And so he set about teaching this shaggy, easygoing horse how to fly. One show at a time, against extraordinary odds and some of the most expensive thoroughbreds alive, the pair climbed to the very top of the sport of show jumping.
Here is the dramatic and inspiring rise to stardom of an unlikely duo, based on the insight and recollections of “the Flying Dutchman” himself. Their story captured the heart of Cold War–era America—a story of unstoppable hope, inconceivable dreams, and the chance to have it all. Elizabeth Letts’s message is Never give up, even when the obstacles seem sky-high. There is something extraordinary in all of us.
November 1958: the National Horse Show at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Into the rarefied atmosphere of wealth and tradition comes the most unlikely of horses—a drab white former plow horse named Snowman—and his rider, Harry de Leyer. They were the longest of all longshots—and their win was the stuff of legend.
Harry de Leyer first saw the horse he would name Snowman on a bleak winter afternoon between the slats of a rickety truck bound for the slaughterhouse. He recognized the spark in the eye of the beaten-up horse and bought him for eighty dollars. On Harry’s modest farm on Long Island, the horse thrived. But the recent Dutch immigrant and his growing family needed money, and Harry was always on the lookout for the perfect thoroughbred to train for the show-jumping circuit—so he reluctantly sold Snowman to a farm a few miles down the road.
But Snowman had other ideas about what Harry needed. When he turned up back at Harry’s barn, dragging an old tire and a broken fence board, Harry knew that he had misjudged the horse. And so he set about teaching this shaggy, easygoing horse how to fly. One show at a time, against extraordinary odds and some of the most expensive thoroughbreds alive, the pair climbed to the very top of the sport of show jumping.
Here is the dramatic and inspiring rise to stardom of an unlikely duo, based on the insight and recollections of “the Flying Dutchman” himself. Their story captured the heart of Cold War–era America—a story of unstoppable hope, inconceivable dreams, and the chance to have it all. Elizabeth Letts’s message is Never give up, even when the obstacles seem sky-high. There is something extraordinary in all of us.
329 pages, Hardcover
First published August 23, 2011
1470 people are currently reading
13079 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Letts
14 books1,084 followersELIZABETH LETTS is an award winning and bestselling author of both fiction and non-fiction. The Perfect Horse was the winner of the 2017 PEN USA Award for Research Non-fiction and a #1 Wall Street Journal bestseller. The Eighty-Dollar Champion was a #1 New York Times bestseller and winner of the 2012 Daniel P Lenehan Award for Media Excellence from the United States Equestrian Foundation. She is also the author of two novels, Quality of Care and Family Planning, and an award-winning children's book, The Butter Man. She lives in Southern California and Northern Michigan.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,995 reviews
March 10, 2013
There is a great story here, but you won't find it in this book. This author is not a good writer; what else can I say? What a disappointment after all the rave reviews! Chapters were repetitive, even using the same sentimental phrases, flashbacks, and allusions time and time again. The author really could have benefitted from a strong editor. As if the story didn't tell itself, we are told ad nauseum how we ought to feel. In effusive language, we read what a remarkable story we are being told!
Harry de Leyer worked hard at menial tasks that are described in detail, but how does he actually train horses? You don't learn anything about the methods or techniques Harry used. There is no excuse for the lack of detail since Harry is still alive and apparently granted the author unlimited access. As for Snowman, it is as if the horse trained himself. What you will learn, repeatedly, is that Harry just talked to the horse, and the horse flicked his ears and did what he was asked. Maybe in the hands of a skilled screenwriter, the book could be turned into a decent movie, but is there really enough material even for that?
On the human side, Harry was portrayed as a simple, hard-working, devoted family man, with a like-minded wife Johanna who bore them eight children. Yet suddenly in summarizing the period from Snowman's death in 1974 until the present day, we find that they got divorced.
I listened to the book, but it wasn't the narrator's fault. He did about as well as one could, given the material.
Harry de Leyer worked hard at menial tasks that are described in detail, but how does he actually train horses? You don't learn anything about the methods or techniques Harry used. There is no excuse for the lack of detail since Harry is still alive and apparently granted the author unlimited access. As for Snowman, it is as if the horse trained himself. What you will learn, repeatedly, is that Harry just talked to the horse, and the horse flicked his ears and did what he was asked. Maybe in the hands of a skilled screenwriter, the book could be turned into a decent movie, but is there really enough material even for that?
On the human side, Harry was portrayed as a simple, hard-working, devoted family man, with a like-minded wife Johanna who bore them eight children. Yet suddenly in summarizing the period from Snowman's death in 1974 until the present day, we find that they got divorced.
I listened to the book, but it wasn't the narrator's fault. He did about as well as one could, given the material.
August 17, 2013
A decent story of a horse who was rescued from a kill pen truck and turned into a champion show jumper. Sounds like a great read, but it was unfortunately poorly written. While the author obviously did her research, she crammed a lot of unnecessary and irrelevant information in the book. My hard cover copy is 280 pages and could easily have been 180. She also jumps around chronologically so at times I found myself lost. She was very repetitive, constantly reminding the reader of tiny, barely significant details. Not consistent either, she jumped back and forth between the story of the horse and the story of the rider.
It's a shame, it could definitely have been a good read with some better editing. It's not the best rags to riches horse story out there but it's a worthwhile one to tell.
ETA: I'm a horse person and I still couldn't enjoy this book, I think that made it frustrating.
It's a shame, it could definitely have been a good read with some better editing. It's not the best rags to riches horse story out there but it's a worthwhile one to tell.
ETA: I'm a horse person and I still couldn't enjoy this book, I think that made it frustrating.
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January 24, 2016I was very eager to read this story. I thought it was going to be a heart-warming story about a Dutch immigrant and his relationship with the horse he rescued from the knacker.
I should disclose that I am not a horse person but I am an animal lover. I recently read 'Beautiful Jim Key: The Lost History of the World's Smartest Horse' by Mim Rivas which I loved. And I hoped this would be a similarly heartwarming story about a man and his horse.
Unfortunately what could have been a great story was instead a dull and redundant story with a glut of horsey-world details told in a simplistic narrative style. The author is unable to paint a compelling portrait of either man or horse.
Letts sprinkles the interesting bits of Harry de Leyer's life throughout the book, instead of building his character into something cohesive for the reader, this style seems to dilute the man and his accomplishments. The same can be said for the horse, Snowman was clearly a special horse and he shared a strong bond with Harry de Leyer but reading this story I never felt that connection.
Letts tells the reader nearly ad nauseam that Harry wanted to be his own man, that Snowman cleans up nicely but is no beauty and that Harry knew better than to be sentimental about a horse. I would have preferred less telling and more showing in all aspects of this story.
While the horsey-world details on show jumping and competitions are relevant to the story the quantity was overwhelming for the general reader. The author's tendency to try to tell the whole story all at once was also overwhelming and more than halfway into the book I still didn't feel like I had any real sense of Harry de Leyer as a man or of Snowman as a horse. Their personalities just never came through.
Overall a disappointing telling of what could have been a fabulous story.
I should disclose that I am not a horse person but I am an animal lover. I recently read 'Beautiful Jim Key: The Lost History of the World's Smartest Horse' by Mim Rivas which I loved. And I hoped this would be a similarly heartwarming story about a man and his horse.
Unfortunately what could have been a great story was instead a dull and redundant story with a glut of horsey-world details told in a simplistic narrative style. The author is unable to paint a compelling portrait of either man or horse.
Letts sprinkles the interesting bits of Harry de Leyer's life throughout the book, instead of building his character into something cohesive for the reader, this style seems to dilute the man and his accomplishments. The same can be said for the horse, Snowman was clearly a special horse and he shared a strong bond with Harry de Leyer but reading this story I never felt that connection.
Letts tells the reader nearly ad nauseam that Harry wanted to be his own man, that Snowman cleans up nicely but is no beauty and that Harry knew better than to be sentimental about a horse. I would have preferred less telling and more showing in all aspects of this story.
While the horsey-world details on show jumping and competitions are relevant to the story the quantity was overwhelming for the general reader. The author's tendency to try to tell the whole story all at once was also overwhelming and more than halfway into the book I still didn't feel like I had any real sense of Harry de Leyer as a man or of Snowman as a horse. Their personalities just never came through.
Overall a disappointing telling of what could have been a fabulous story.
February 18, 2021
On an icy morning in February 1956, Harry De Leyer, a Dutch immigrant with a young family, is hoping to buy a horse at auction, but his car breaks down. When he arrives, the only horses left are the "kills" - already loaded onto the truck bound for the slaughter house. The horses are skittish and afraid, they know. Only the beat-up looking gray horse is calm and not taken by the understandable air of desperation.
Harry - himself a survivor of a slaughter house machine - the Nazi occupation of his Dutch village - returns home with the worn down horse. His young family happily makes the horse their own, naming him "Snowman" and returning him to good health.
Happy ending of story? No, just the beginning as small discoveries lead to larger ones.
Snowman's gentle nature makes him perfect for small children and he is soon carrying even the most timid of riding students. But it's his stubborn nature and love of jumping that causes him to leap paddock fences. Snowman returns home dragging a car tire and fence railing in his wake, giving Harry the first inkling that this horse likes to jump. However, the usual training does not work - and Snowman trips and stumbles over the smallest obstacles - until Harry discovers that what the horse really likes is not little obstacles but big ones.
This is the most unlikely story - and just as it takes perfect timing and skill to jump 4, 5, 6 foot obstacles - it takes perfect timing of events, and right decisions for the right reasons, to lead Harry from his war ravaged village in Holland to the place where his life and that of his noble horse Snowman intersect and remain forever. It's the kind of story that if it were imaginary would spring from a desire that such things really do exist - where human and animal share an unbreakable bond of trust and loyalty; where money cannot buy everything and is turned down; and where against all odds and with sheer determination a cast-off horse and a hard-working immigrant become a legend. This is the true story of Snowman, told with energy, empathy and illuminated with the turbulent social context reflective of the times.
Harry - himself a survivor of a slaughter house machine - the Nazi occupation of his Dutch village - returns home with the worn down horse. His young family happily makes the horse their own, naming him "Snowman" and returning him to good health.
Happy ending of story? No, just the beginning as small discoveries lead to larger ones.
Snowman's gentle nature makes him perfect for small children and he is soon carrying even the most timid of riding students. But it's his stubborn nature and love of jumping that causes him to leap paddock fences. Snowman returns home dragging a car tire and fence railing in his wake, giving Harry the first inkling that this horse likes to jump. However, the usual training does not work - and Snowman trips and stumbles over the smallest obstacles - until Harry discovers that what the horse really likes is not little obstacles but big ones.
This is the most unlikely story - and just as it takes perfect timing and skill to jump 4, 5, 6 foot obstacles - it takes perfect timing of events, and right decisions for the right reasons, to lead Harry from his war ravaged village in Holland to the place where his life and that of his noble horse Snowman intersect and remain forever. It's the kind of story that if it were imaginary would spring from a desire that such things really do exist - where human and animal share an unbreakable bond of trust and loyalty; where money cannot buy everything and is turned down; and where against all odds and with sheer determination a cast-off horse and a hard-working immigrant become a legend. This is the true story of Snowman, told with energy, empathy and illuminated with the turbulent social context reflective of the times.
February 10, 2015
I think this quote sums it up best... "Together they(Harry de Leyer and Snowman)represented the attitude of America: with skill, a little luck, a lot of grit, and most of all a belief that big dreams can come true" you can achieve anything. A very up lifting story of how an old plow horse bound for the 'glue factory' and a Dutch immigrant fleeing war torn Holland beat the odds and inspired a nation!!! Highly recommend!!!
July 29, 2012
I have loved horses my whole life. I read mostly westerns or horse stories right through high school. I can't believe I never heard about this amazing horse. As soon as I read the cover, I knew I HAD to have and read this book. I truely enjoyed the whole story. I really appreciated all of the photographs in the book also. It made me feel as if I knew the characters personally. Harry was an absolute natural with horses. He connected with them on a deeply personal level. I would have loved to watch Snowman perform and to have met him and Harry. If you love horses, or love to see the underdog win (repeatedly) this book is a must read. When I finished reading, I loaned it to my mother. She also loves horses. The interesting thing is, my father has never had much use for a horse. He always said that horses were nothing but expensive hayburners. Well, my mother is reading this story to my father, and he is loving every minute of it! So, you don't have to love, or even like horses, to enjoy this book. A GREAT read.
October 19, 2011
When I found this book at Costco, I knew I had to buy it. Harry de Leyer is an immigrant who, along with his wife Johanna, left Holland after WWII, having survived the Nazi occupation of their homeland. They came, as did many others, seeking the opportunity and freedom of the United States. Relegated to menial jobs, Harry was eventually able to use his experience and expertise with horses to secure a job as the instructor for equestrian activities at a prestigious girls' school on Long Island.
This true story opens with Harry showing up late for the day's bidding on horses at New Holland, a weekly auction in the PA Dutch country. No horses are left except those that are already loaded into a truck that will take them off to the "glue factory." A "moment" passes between Harry and a big gray waiting in the bed of the van. Although the horse is undernourished and has obviously been used as a plow horse, something pulls at Harry and he offers the driver $80 for the animal. Once back at his small farm on Long island, Harry spends time caring for the horse, healing the sores caused by pulling the plow, trimming his feet that were overgrown and cleaning his coat until it reflected the horse's improving health. Eventually the horse is put to work, as a lesson horse for the girls at the school. Summer comes and the students go home. Harry can't afford to feed the horse while it is not being used, so he sells the animal for $160 to a doctor who has a farm down the road. The horse is thoroughly quiet and perfectly suited to the doctor's child who is just beginning to ride. All is well until the horse starts showing up at Harry's farm. Gates and fences are checked, but ultimately all realize that the big gray horse is jumping the various obstacles and returning to Harry's farm. The new owner is finally ready to be rid of the horse who won't stay where he is put and Harry once again owns the horse who is known as Snowman. As the story unfolds, Snowman becomes, against all odds, a champion open jumper who wins many of the top competitions in the late 1950's and early 60's. He is jumping against horses well known both on the national and international show circuit.
The reason that I had to buy the book, aside from the obvious, is that as a teenager my parents took our family to the Pa National Horse Show every year. This was one of the shows where Snowman competed. I remember seeing him several times, along with one of his arch rivals, Windsor Castle among others. Also the book details the riders and horses that competed for the US and other national equestrian teams. I loved the pageantry and white-knuckled excitement as these beautiful animals soared over the most daunting and seemingly impossible jumps.
The author has written an very interesting book, but is a bit heavy handed when it comes to driving home such themes as the contrast between Snowman, the plow horse, and the highly refined and expensive thoroughbreds that were his competition. She also repeatedly emphasizes the difference between old money and the status of immigrants, as well as Harry's wartime experiences and Snowman's near end after the auction. If the author had been a bit more deft in portraying these very real differences, I would be tempted to give the book a 5 star rating.
A final note: One of the facts that I enjoyed most was that between competitive seasons, Snowman returned to the riding school and was a favorite of so many of the students who were just learning to ride. His calm demeanor and ability to care for his riders, in addition to his fantastic ability to fly over the most daunting fences, made him one of a kind.
This true story opens with Harry showing up late for the day's bidding on horses at New Holland, a weekly auction in the PA Dutch country. No horses are left except those that are already loaded into a truck that will take them off to the "glue factory." A "moment" passes between Harry and a big gray waiting in the bed of the van. Although the horse is undernourished and has obviously been used as a plow horse, something pulls at Harry and he offers the driver $80 for the animal. Once back at his small farm on Long island, Harry spends time caring for the horse, healing the sores caused by pulling the plow, trimming his feet that were overgrown and cleaning his coat until it reflected the horse's improving health. Eventually the horse is put to work, as a lesson horse for the girls at the school. Summer comes and the students go home. Harry can't afford to feed the horse while it is not being used, so he sells the animal for $160 to a doctor who has a farm down the road. The horse is thoroughly quiet and perfectly suited to the doctor's child who is just beginning to ride. All is well until the horse starts showing up at Harry's farm. Gates and fences are checked, but ultimately all realize that the big gray horse is jumping the various obstacles and returning to Harry's farm. The new owner is finally ready to be rid of the horse who won't stay where he is put and Harry once again owns the horse who is known as Snowman. As the story unfolds, Snowman becomes, against all odds, a champion open jumper who wins many of the top competitions in the late 1950's and early 60's. He is jumping against horses well known both on the national and international show circuit.
The reason that I had to buy the book, aside from the obvious, is that as a teenager my parents took our family to the Pa National Horse Show every year. This was one of the shows where Snowman competed. I remember seeing him several times, along with one of his arch rivals, Windsor Castle among others. Also the book details the riders and horses that competed for the US and other national equestrian teams. I loved the pageantry and white-knuckled excitement as these beautiful animals soared over the most daunting and seemingly impossible jumps.
The author has written an very interesting book, but is a bit heavy handed when it comes to driving home such themes as the contrast between Snowman, the plow horse, and the highly refined and expensive thoroughbreds that were his competition. She also repeatedly emphasizes the difference between old money and the status of immigrants, as well as Harry's wartime experiences and Snowman's near end after the auction. If the author had been a bit more deft in portraying these very real differences, I would be tempted to give the book a 5 star rating.
A final note: One of the facts that I enjoyed most was that between competitive seasons, Snowman returned to the riding school and was a favorite of so many of the students who were just learning to ride. His calm demeanor and ability to care for his riders, in addition to his fantastic ability to fly over the most daunting fences, made him one of a kind.
July 22, 2012
This is not just a book, it is a story - a true story - about a man who picked a horse from a truck bound for the slaughter house, purchased him for eighty dollars in 1956, and went on win the National Horse Show open jumper championship at Madison Square Garden in 1958.
The horse, nicknamed Snowman, was an old plow horse - big, gray and gentle. The man, Harry de Leyer, an immigrant from Holland, began using the horse for lessons at an all girls boarding school. He was a gentle, predictable and safe ride for the girls, but one they felt proud to surpass for the flashy, higher strung horses in the barn. He tried to teach the horse to jump by asking him to step over poles barely off the ground, but the horse knocked his feet on them every time. A while later, hard times prompted Harry to sell Snowman to a man down the road for $160. But the horse returned to Harry by jumping the pasture fence. This continued day after day until the new owner was so fed up with the 'jumper' that Harry sold him, that Harry bought Snowman back. At one point, the man told Harry he had promised the man a quiet horse and instead sold him an overpriced jumped. Harry responded by saying 'had he known he was a jumper, he would have charged the man more.' Harry put Snowman back in the barn at the school as a lesson horse, but began working with Snowman at jumping. He cleared five-foot fences with little effort at all! Snowman excelled so much and so effortlessly that Harry began entering Snowman in shows - putting the big eighty-dollar gray ex-plow horse up against the country's top horses - lean, expensive, and hot-blooded - and rode Snowman himself. Harry and Snowman were quite a sight, compared to the other riders and owners, and they were laughed at early on. But as the big horse began winning ribbons and trophies, he quickly gained notoriety as the 'Cinderella Horse', and Harry as 'the Flying Dutchman'. Everyone was fascinated with the unlikely pair who rose from nothing to champions in only a few years time.
The book is chocked full of history - of Harry and his life in Holland before coming to America, and of horses - helping readers to understand where Harry came from and what the horse world is really like. It is told in great detail, and the writing is excellent. Elizabeth Letts ties the story together with truth and emotion. But the real story, the one that touched me, is the story of a bond between a horse and the man who chose him because he 'saw something in his eyes'. It is the story of a man who loved and trusted a horse, and a horse who loved and aimed to please the man. It is the story of a horse who flicked his ears back to hear the man speak just before he entered the show ring. The story of a man who jumped a horse on a loose rein to communicate trust to the horse. Of a man who refused to sell the horse after his championship win for a blank check. Of a man who took off his riding clothes after a show and stepped into his coveralls to do chores and care for his home and horses. Of a horse who carried the man's children on his back - three and four at a time - to the beach and swam in the water with them on his back. A horse who continued to earn his keep as a dependable lesson horse, even after he won the highest honor bestowable on a horse. A horse who would run and jump a course -without a rider on his back! A horse who jumped over a ribbon at his retirement celebration at Madison Square Garden, instead of running through it. A horse who whined three times in greeting each morning when the man entered the barn.
And of a horse who, when his time came - after the first morning of his life he had not issued the three whiny greeting - wouldn't move from his stall without the man leading him to take his final breath. And a man so affected by the loss he walked away from the grave and didn't return for two days.
It is a beautiful story of a bond between an animal and a human, which is something we can all relate to. And it is the story of a horse who rose to greatness because of a patient and loving horseman.
Before the Horse Whisperer, or Clinton Anderson, there was Harry de Leyer. His way with horses is legend, and he is still alive today - now known as the 'Galloping Grandfather' - and rides despite falling from a haystack on his head and breaking his back in several places.
The horse, nicknamed Snowman, was an old plow horse - big, gray and gentle. The man, Harry de Leyer, an immigrant from Holland, began using the horse for lessons at an all girls boarding school. He was a gentle, predictable and safe ride for the girls, but one they felt proud to surpass for the flashy, higher strung horses in the barn. He tried to teach the horse to jump by asking him to step over poles barely off the ground, but the horse knocked his feet on them every time. A while later, hard times prompted Harry to sell Snowman to a man down the road for $160. But the horse returned to Harry by jumping the pasture fence. This continued day after day until the new owner was so fed up with the 'jumper' that Harry sold him, that Harry bought Snowman back. At one point, the man told Harry he had promised the man a quiet horse and instead sold him an overpriced jumped. Harry responded by saying 'had he known he was a jumper, he would have charged the man more.' Harry put Snowman back in the barn at the school as a lesson horse, but began working with Snowman at jumping. He cleared five-foot fences with little effort at all! Snowman excelled so much and so effortlessly that Harry began entering Snowman in shows - putting the big eighty-dollar gray ex-plow horse up against the country's top horses - lean, expensive, and hot-blooded - and rode Snowman himself. Harry and Snowman were quite a sight, compared to the other riders and owners, and they were laughed at early on. But as the big horse began winning ribbons and trophies, he quickly gained notoriety as the 'Cinderella Horse', and Harry as 'the Flying Dutchman'. Everyone was fascinated with the unlikely pair who rose from nothing to champions in only a few years time.
The book is chocked full of history - of Harry and his life in Holland before coming to America, and of horses - helping readers to understand where Harry came from and what the horse world is really like. It is told in great detail, and the writing is excellent. Elizabeth Letts ties the story together with truth and emotion. But the real story, the one that touched me, is the story of a bond between a horse and the man who chose him because he 'saw something in his eyes'. It is the story of a man who loved and trusted a horse, and a horse who loved and aimed to please the man. It is the story of a horse who flicked his ears back to hear the man speak just before he entered the show ring. The story of a man who jumped a horse on a loose rein to communicate trust to the horse. Of a man who refused to sell the horse after his championship win for a blank check. Of a man who took off his riding clothes after a show and stepped into his coveralls to do chores and care for his home and horses. Of a horse who carried the man's children on his back - three and four at a time - to the beach and swam in the water with them on his back. A horse who continued to earn his keep as a dependable lesson horse, even after he won the highest honor bestowable on a horse. A horse who would run and jump a course -without a rider on his back! A horse who jumped over a ribbon at his retirement celebration at Madison Square Garden, instead of running through it. A horse who whined three times in greeting each morning when the man entered the barn.
And of a horse who, when his time came - after the first morning of his life he had not issued the three whiny greeting - wouldn't move from his stall without the man leading him to take his final breath. And a man so affected by the loss he walked away from the grave and didn't return for two days.
It is a beautiful story of a bond between an animal and a human, which is something we can all relate to. And it is the story of a horse who rose to greatness because of a patient and loving horseman.
Before the Horse Whisperer, or Clinton Anderson, there was Harry de Leyer. His way with horses is legend, and he is still alive today - now known as the 'Galloping Grandfather' - and rides despite falling from a haystack on his head and breaking his back in several places.
December 3, 2013
4.5 stars
Harry DeLeyer saw something in the big grey plowhorse and took a chance on him. Snowman spent his life repaying that belief and never let the quiet man down. Together they chased their dreams and learned to fly together.
A true story of determination and a lot of heart this book takes you back to a time when horse shows were for the elite.This unlikely pair break into that world and capture the heart of nation who needed someone to root for. Harry and Snowman become heroes, a team that a nation pinned there hopes on. Though they were champions, the core of this story is the relationship between the man and the horse.
A must read for any horse lover, and a highly recommended read for anyone who wants a feel good story.
Harry DeLeyer saw something in the big grey plowhorse and took a chance on him. Snowman spent his life repaying that belief and never let the quiet man down. Together they chased their dreams and learned to fly together.
A true story of determination and a lot of heart this book takes you back to a time when horse shows were for the elite.This unlikely pair break into that world and capture the heart of nation who needed someone to root for. Harry and Snowman become heroes, a team that a nation pinned there hopes on. Though they were champions, the core of this story is the relationship between the man and the horse.
A must read for any horse lover, and a highly recommended read for anyone who wants a feel good story.
May 17, 2023
A lovely story of hope and commitment.
The characters are wonderful. What really touched me was the relationship between the horse and his master.
This is really a great book that I recommend to everyone.
The characters are wonderful. What really touched me was the relationship between the horse and his master.
This is really a great book that I recommend to everyone.
December 15, 2022
Who doesn’t love a Cinderella story?? I enjoyed how this book educated the reader on the history of horse shows, something I was unfamiliar with.
June 18, 2019
Amazing book. I had never before heard of Snowman and his owner/rider, Harry de Leyer. I am so grateful for having read this book and learned about this spectacular duo. Stories about underdogs overcoming nearly insurmountable obstacles melt me into mush… but I LOVE them. I’ll be rereading this one at some point. Highly recommend!
July 4, 2020
Fantastic story about an amish plow horse rescued by chance on the way to a slaughter house who turned into a champion just by his talent. His sheer love of jumping was amazing.
May 22, 2021
Originally heard on chapter a day a few years ago but missed quite a bit.
April 23, 2023
This is a story of a beautiful and inspiring team: a horse named Snowman and the family who owned him. Absolutely worth reading!! Very, very nice!!
November 25, 2019
3.5* rounded up.
September 11, 2016
I knew some of the story of "Snowman" the plough horse turned champion from before. I believe it was a cartoon in some horse magazine I read as a child, and one of those stories with enough substance to be remembered. When this book came out, I ordered it immediately. Then it just sat there in my shelf, eyeing me accusingly.
Finally, after several years, I decided to read it since I wasn't getting anywhere with Kate Atkinson. After reading the first few pages, I knew I would love it. It was elegantly written and the story was well-fleshed out. I was informed about the changing farming in the United States, the diminishing role of the horse and the great surplus of horses that existed in the 1950's. Quite soon there was a nostalgic feel about horses disappearing from streets. However, somewhere in the book there is mentioned that now that only people who like horses keep them, it is far better for the horse. Only a hundred years ago, the horse was still the main transportation method.
Harry de Leyer moved the United States with his wife Johanna from the Netherlands. He had intended to be a farm hand, but his true passion was working with horses. Eventually he got a job at a riding school and also started buying and selling his own horses. One of the horses he picked up, "Snowman", was destined for dog food. Harry took him in, taught him to be a riding horse, and then sold him again. However, Snowman didn't accept this. He kept coming home, eventhough it meant jumping fences. His new owner got fed up and Harry bought Snowman back and started to train him as a show jumper.
It's a "rags to riches" story, a black swan, the sort of unlikely event everyone loves. Snowman's achviements went straight to the heart of the average American. Here was a creature who truly beat the odds. A total anomaly - big-boned, calm - among the high-strung horses he competed against.
The show-jumping sport has changed a great deal since the 1950's. I would say it is highly unlikely that something like this could happen again - that a horse with no "blood" would be able to reach the upper echelons of the sport. This doesn't make Snowman's achievements in the 1950's to a poor Dutch immigrant any less astounding. The show-jumping was a sport for the rich even then.
A book recommended for any horse-lover! Well-written, great story, loveable characters. Particularly Snowman the horse, but also his owner, Harry, who refused to sell his ward again despite the fortunes offered for him.
Finally, after several years, I decided to read it since I wasn't getting anywhere with Kate Atkinson. After reading the first few pages, I knew I would love it. It was elegantly written and the story was well-fleshed out. I was informed about the changing farming in the United States, the diminishing role of the horse and the great surplus of horses that existed in the 1950's. Quite soon there was a nostalgic feel about horses disappearing from streets. However, somewhere in the book there is mentioned that now that only people who like horses keep them, it is far better for the horse. Only a hundred years ago, the horse was still the main transportation method.
Harry de Leyer moved the United States with his wife Johanna from the Netherlands. He had intended to be a farm hand, but his true passion was working with horses. Eventually he got a job at a riding school and also started buying and selling his own horses. One of the horses he picked up, "Snowman", was destined for dog food. Harry took him in, taught him to be a riding horse, and then sold him again. However, Snowman didn't accept this. He kept coming home, eventhough it meant jumping fences. His new owner got fed up and Harry bought Snowman back and started to train him as a show jumper.
It's a "rags to riches" story, a black swan, the sort of unlikely event everyone loves. Snowman's achviements went straight to the heart of the average American. Here was a creature who truly beat the odds. A total anomaly - big-boned, calm - among the high-strung horses he competed against.
The show-jumping sport has changed a great deal since the 1950's. I would say it is highly unlikely that something like this could happen again - that a horse with no "blood" would be able to reach the upper echelons of the sport. This doesn't make Snowman's achievements in the 1950's to a poor Dutch immigrant any less astounding. The show-jumping was a sport for the rich even then.
A book recommended for any horse-lover! Well-written, great story, loveable characters. Particularly Snowman the horse, but also his owner, Harry, who refused to sell his ward again despite the fortunes offered for him.
January 31, 2016
Harry deLeyer immigrated to the States after surviving war-torn Holland. He and his wife build a home for themselves here in the U.S. deLeyer's talent is with horses and so he finds his way to training young girls at a private school.
One day deLeyer travels to Pennsylvania to the largest horse auction in the states. While there, he saves a horse from the slaughterhouse. The price: $80. This horse is snowman and he is a retired field horse. But when deLeyer sells him off to a neighbor down the road when school breaks for the summer, Snowman somehow ends up at his home time and time again. deLeyer finally realizes Snowman has been jumping the fences in the paddock. It is this realization that transforms Snowman's life (and that of the deLeyer family).
As Snowman's story unfolds, I found myself smiling and holding my breath. This is a tribute to the spirit of man and horse both. deLeyer is loyal to his horse and never compromises his principals in what can be a cut throat business.
There is a nice portrait given of the socioeconomic divide between rich and working class in 1950's America (and what a divide it is). The history of horse jumping competitions is compelling also. Letts does a good job of filling in all areas of the puzzle.
I let this book sit on my shelf for far too long. I'm glad I finally got to it.
One day deLeyer travels to Pennsylvania to the largest horse auction in the states. While there, he saves a horse from the slaughterhouse. The price: $80. This horse is snowman and he is a retired field horse. But when deLeyer sells him off to a neighbor down the road when school breaks for the summer, Snowman somehow ends up at his home time and time again. deLeyer finally realizes Snowman has been jumping the fences in the paddock. It is this realization that transforms Snowman's life (and that of the deLeyer family).
As Snowman's story unfolds, I found myself smiling and holding my breath. This is a tribute to the spirit of man and horse both. deLeyer is loyal to his horse and never compromises his principals in what can be a cut throat business.
There is a nice portrait given of the socioeconomic divide between rich and working class in 1950's America (and what a divide it is). The history of horse jumping competitions is compelling also. Letts does a good job of filling in all areas of the puzzle.
I let this book sit on my shelf for far too long. I'm glad I finally got to it.
September 15, 2011
Poorly done. Rather than take the greatness of an underdog on the equestrian circuit, Ms. Letts expounded on the New York area's history, the arena, the school and students who attended (and their drivers, clothes, activities, etc), the horse bits, the competitors, the journalists, the newspapers’ history for God's sake! I don't care about them.
I want to read about the plow horse and the Dutch immigrant who made horse jumping history; about Snowman’s jumping itself, not the closest challenger; about Harry’s training of Snowman. Don’t toss names at me that have no meaning to the greater story. This isn’t a history of the late 50s in New York, but rather of the underdog horse and how a former plow horse made it from death’s row to national champion.
Repetitiveness—I won’t even go into that. Sufficient to say, I skimmed huge quantities of the book looking for more about Snowman, the poor horse who was neglected through a story around him.
I want to read about the plow horse and the Dutch immigrant who made horse jumping history; about Snowman’s jumping itself, not the closest challenger; about Harry’s training of Snowman. Don’t toss names at me that have no meaning to the greater story. This isn’t a history of the late 50s in New York, but rather of the underdog horse and how a former plow horse made it from death’s row to national champion.
Repetitiveness—I won’t even go into that. Sufficient to say, I skimmed huge quantities of the book looking for more about Snowman, the poor horse who was neglected through a story around him.
August 7, 2011
This was a free book from the GoodReads First Read Giveaway. It is the story about a four legged hero named Snowman and his owner Harry de Leyer. Not only is it a heart warming story about the special bond between the two but it is also a true story that gives historical facts that are quite interesting (especially if you are from Suffolk County, NY). I highly recommend it to anyone that loves history, a good story and most of all, horses.
January 26, 2024
This would never make it as a fictional story-too unbelievable. A horse gets a last minute reprieve off the slaughter truck. When sold to a neighbor, the horse jumps fences several times to return home, the last time dragging a tire. The nine year old, former plow horse becomes a champion jumper. Except it's true and makes a great feel-good story. Four and a half stars
Edited: Almost ten years later I fondly remember this story. Bumping up the half star to a solid five
Edited: Almost ten years later I fondly remember this story. Bumping up the half star to a solid five
January 9, 2020
A heartwarming story of an exceptional horse. If you loved Marguerite Henry’s stories, or the Black Stallion books, or any other horse stories, you’ve got to grab a copy of this and learn about a real-life horse who went from the glue-factory auction to national fame because of one trainer he loved.
November 30, 2020
I loved this book and will tell everyone to read it. It is well written and a great feel good story.
PS I am getting the movie Harry and Snowman from Netflix and can't wait to see this beauty show off
PS I am getting the movie Harry and Snowman from Netflix and can't wait to see this beauty show off
December 11, 2016
Loved this story about Snowman the Cinderella horse and the family that gave him a second chance at life. Inspiring!
May 22, 2022
2.5 stars — i enjoyed the story, but oh boy the writing is repetitive, stylistically very odd, at at times incredibly unnecessarily detailed.
June 12, 2011
The Eighty-Dollar Champion: Snowman, the Horse that Inspired a Nation is about a man and a horse. I know, that sounds super corny and we’ve heard that said a million times about a man and a fill-in-the-blank. But this really is.
First, let me say that I am not a fan of the horse industry. Horses used for sport, and animals in general, are too often treated as throwaways (former Kentucky Derby winner, Ferdinand, was sold for human consumption in Japan in 2002) and suffer catastrophic injuries (remember Barbaro?). The fact that this book is actually about a horse that was on the truck ready for the slaughterhouse before he was rescued and a well-known and much loved horse has to be killed in the jumping ring serve to highlight my problems with these sports and the horse industry. In the book, the owners who sold a famous horse during the middle of a show stated that they weren’t sentimentally attached to the horse, it was just business.
Well, one of the reasons I loved this book so much was that for Harry De Leyer, it wasn’t just business. He’d survived Nazi occupation of his country, Holland, during World War II, never realized his dreams of representing his country at the Olympics or on the competitive horse circuit and gave up his chance to work his family farm in order to help his younger brother. Then, in 1950, in order to create a better life for himself, he decided to move to America, bringing his young wife, Johanna, with him. He even gave up working with animals and riding when he first came to the United States, instead working on a tobacco farm in an effort to provide for his family, though he eventually found a way to do the thing he loved most, ride horses. So Harry knew about hardship and the desire to fulfill your dreams. And when he saw a dirty gray plow horse standing calmly on a slaughterhouse-bound truck, he recognized something in that horse and knew he couldn’t leave him there to die. I know, this sounds like the tagline for a sappy movie, but the book is anything but sappy.
The book is written in such great detail, I felt like I was with Harry and Snowy every step of the way. When reading about the shows they were entered in I felt like I was watching the events unfold and often found myself gasping when reading about the height of the jumps and how the horses fared when flying over them. More than once I groaned when a sentence started or finished with “Harry could tell something was not right...” or when Snowman clipped a pole. And when Snowman and Harry won events, I was probably grinning like an idiot as I was reading. And in the end, reading about the death of Snowman (I’m not spoiling anything here ‘cause, let’s face it, this horse isn’t over sixty and tooling around a meadow somewhere) I was biting my lip and my eyes were definitely doing that burning you-know-you-want-to-cry thing. I wondered if the author was taking descriptive liberties with the events of the book, as they were so detailed, but when I read a note about the sources she used, I realized she did an amazing amount of research to make sure her story was accurate, with the most important primary source being Harry himself.
I really wish that I hadn’t just won an advance uncorrected proof of this book from Goodreads. And no, I’m not, sorry for the phrase, looking a gift horse in the mouth, I know I’m lucky to not only get a copy for free but be able to read it before it’s published, but I loved this book so much it’s staying in my library and I would’ve loved to have the hardbound version of it.
The only real problem I had with it, which is super minor and they might be different in the finished version, is the pictures. There were a fair amount of them throughout, which is great, but they were all black and white (I know color film was available, but maybe it wasn’t used by the De Leyers and others who supplied photos), and many are so dark that it’s hard to see detail. Also, some of them didn’t seem like they were placed with the corresponding story and the titles could have had a bit more detail. Like I said, this may just be due to the fact that this is not a final copy of the book.
The Eighty-Dollar Champion is a quick, effortless read. Harry was the ultimate horseman, not only was he one of the best riders of his time, but he truly loved his horses, especially Snowman, while Snowman was a supremely calm, gentle horse who showed that he had more heart and talent than anyone would expect a former workhorse could have. Pick up this book, you won’t be sorry you did.
First, let me say that I am not a fan of the horse industry. Horses used for sport, and animals in general, are too often treated as throwaways (former Kentucky Derby winner, Ferdinand, was sold for human consumption in Japan in 2002) and suffer catastrophic injuries (remember Barbaro?). The fact that this book is actually about a horse that was on the truck ready for the slaughterhouse before he was rescued and a well-known and much loved horse has to be killed in the jumping ring serve to highlight my problems with these sports and the horse industry. In the book, the owners who sold a famous horse during the middle of a show stated that they weren’t sentimentally attached to the horse, it was just business.
Well, one of the reasons I loved this book so much was that for Harry De Leyer, it wasn’t just business. He’d survived Nazi occupation of his country, Holland, during World War II, never realized his dreams of representing his country at the Olympics or on the competitive horse circuit and gave up his chance to work his family farm in order to help his younger brother. Then, in 1950, in order to create a better life for himself, he decided to move to America, bringing his young wife, Johanna, with him. He even gave up working with animals and riding when he first came to the United States, instead working on a tobacco farm in an effort to provide for his family, though he eventually found a way to do the thing he loved most, ride horses. So Harry knew about hardship and the desire to fulfill your dreams. And when he saw a dirty gray plow horse standing calmly on a slaughterhouse-bound truck, he recognized something in that horse and knew he couldn’t leave him there to die. I know, this sounds like the tagline for a sappy movie, but the book is anything but sappy.
The book is written in such great detail, I felt like I was with Harry and Snowy every step of the way. When reading about the shows they were entered in I felt like I was watching the events unfold and often found myself gasping when reading about the height of the jumps and how the horses fared when flying over them. More than once I groaned when a sentence started or finished with “Harry could tell something was not right...” or when Snowman clipped a pole. And when Snowman and Harry won events, I was probably grinning like an idiot as I was reading. And in the end, reading about the death of Snowman (I’m not spoiling anything here ‘cause, let’s face it, this horse isn’t over sixty and tooling around a meadow somewhere) I was biting my lip and my eyes were definitely doing that burning you-know-you-want-to-cry thing. I wondered if the author was taking descriptive liberties with the events of the book, as they were so detailed, but when I read a note about the sources she used, I realized she did an amazing amount of research to make sure her story was accurate, with the most important primary source being Harry himself.
I really wish that I hadn’t just won an advance uncorrected proof of this book from Goodreads. And no, I’m not, sorry for the phrase, looking a gift horse in the mouth, I know I’m lucky to not only get a copy for free but be able to read it before it’s published, but I loved this book so much it’s staying in my library and I would’ve loved to have the hardbound version of it.
The only real problem I had with it, which is super minor and they might be different in the finished version, is the pictures. There were a fair amount of them throughout, which is great, but they were all black and white (I know color film was available, but maybe it wasn’t used by the De Leyers and others who supplied photos), and many are so dark that it’s hard to see detail. Also, some of them didn’t seem like they were placed with the corresponding story and the titles could have had a bit more detail. Like I said, this may just be due to the fact that this is not a final copy of the book.
The Eighty-Dollar Champion is a quick, effortless read. Harry was the ultimate horseman, not only was he one of the best riders of his time, but he truly loved his horses, especially Snowman, while Snowman was a supremely calm, gentle horse who showed that he had more heart and talent than anyone would expect a former workhorse could have. Pick up this book, you won’t be sorry you did.
October 21, 2012
One star for writing a book so popular about an activity and a period that not all readers know about. One star for making me tear up when Snowman had to be put down. (Don't worry: he was twenty-six, a respectable age for a horse that had worked so hard throughout its lifetime. Trust me, show jumping at Snowman's level is every bit as stressful as pulling a plow.)
Minus a star for anthropomorphising Snowman as much as she did--ascribing human emotions to an animal to that degree gets up my nose. While I'm sure animals do have emotions and thought processes, they can't approach human levels of either one. Minus a point for the endless repetition of descriptions, phrases, and commentary, to the point of collapsing thirty years of de Leyer's life after Snowman's death down enough that life-changing events such as his divorce get only one sentence in the epilogue. Minus a star for not going into more detail about de Leyer's training techniques; while it's true that Snowman had both a tremendous innate talent and the temperament for performing in front of a noisy audience, de Leyer must have done something. As it is, there didn't seem to be much connecting the early lessons attempting to trot over cavaletti and entering him in shows.
Minus a star for anthropomorphising Snowman as much as she did--ascribing human emotions to an animal to that degree gets up my nose. While I'm sure animals do have emotions and thought processes, they can't approach human levels of either one. Minus a point for the endless repetition of descriptions, phrases, and commentary, to the point of collapsing thirty years of de Leyer's life after Snowman's death down enough that life-changing events such as his divorce get only one sentence in the epilogue. Minus a star for not going into more detail about de Leyer's training techniques; while it's true that Snowman had both a tremendous innate talent and the temperament for performing in front of a noisy audience, de Leyer must have done something. As it is, there didn't seem to be much connecting the early lessons attempting to trot over cavaletti and entering him in shows.
September 24, 2012
First let me say that I read nearly every horse book ever written as a child, every dog book, every raccoon book, every animal book. As an adult, I am still a sucker for a good animal story. And this is a GREAT animal story. I cried when Snowman died (don't worry - of old age) because I had become so attached to the horse. The writing is fine - the author is knowledgable about horses, horse jumping, and adds some nice historical facts about the times, the sport, and horses in America that are fun to read if you like trivia and also helps keep the book grounded in the times the horse lived. Maybe there is a little too much emphasis on the impact of WWII and the Germans on Harry, who buys Snowman and turns him into a jumper. But the story of man and horse (and to a certain extent family) is so good, all by itself, that the writer is almost incidental. There is no way to make this story anything but a triumph. It was fun to read, and I am already imagining the movie..... if whichever fighting prevented one during the horse's lifetime have finally been resolved. Go Snowy. Go Harry (still alive, as of this writing).
November 27, 2021
In 2006, I was finishing my mission and Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin gave a talk called "The Abundant Life", in which he shared the story of Snowman, the 80-dollar champion. That talk was exactly what I needed to hear at that time in my life, and to this day I still think about it and read it often. Reading this book with that talk as my lens made it even more powerful and moving for me.
One thing I love about the book that isn't apparent in the talk, is that Snowman wasn't just instantly good at jumping. Despite his natural abilities, he had to practice and improve bit by bit, just like the rest of us. He had his share of stumbles and disappointments. I think this fact makes his achievements all the more meaningful.
"The big gray is long gone, but living on is the memory of the horse who was yoked to a plow yet wanted to soar. Snowman and Harry showed the world how extraordinary the most ordinary among us can be."
One thing I love about the book that isn't apparent in the talk, is that Snowman wasn't just instantly good at jumping. Despite his natural abilities, he had to practice and improve bit by bit, just like the rest of us. He had his share of stumbles and disappointments. I think this fact makes his achievements all the more meaningful.
"The big gray is long gone, but living on is the memory of the horse who was yoked to a plow yet wanted to soar. Snowman and Harry showed the world how extraordinary the most ordinary among us can be."
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