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Battleship: A Daring Heiress, a Teenage Jockey, and America's Horse
Dorothy Ours's Battleship tells the moving story of a tough little horse, a gifted boy, and a woman ahead of her time.
The youngest jockey, the smallest horse, and an unconventional heiress who disliked publicizing herself. Together, near Liverpool, England, they made a leap of faith on a spring day in 1938: overriding the jockey's father, trusting the boy and the horse that the British nicknamed the "American pony" to handle a race course that newspapers called "Suicide Lane." There, Battleship might become the first American racer to win England's monumental, century-old Grand National steeplechase. His rider, Great Britain's Bruce Hobbs, was only 17 years old.
Hobbs started life with an his father, Reginald, was a superb professional horseman. But Reg Hobbs also made extreme demands, putting Bruce in situations that horrified the boy's mother and sometimes terrified the child. Bruce had to decide just how brave he could stand to be.
On the other side of the Atlantic, the enigmatic Marion duPont grew up at the estate now known as James Madison's Montpelier―the refuge of America's "Father of the Constitution." Rejecting her chance to be a debutante, denied a corporate role because of her gender, Marion chose a pursuit where horses spoke for her.
Taking on the world's toughest race, she would leave her film star husband, Randolph Scott, a continent away and be pulled beyond her own control. With its reach from Lindbergh's transatlantic flight to Cary Grant's Hollywood, Battleship is an epic tale of testing your true worth.
The youngest jockey, the smallest horse, and an unconventional heiress who disliked publicizing herself. Together, near Liverpool, England, they made a leap of faith on a spring day in 1938: overriding the jockey's father, trusting the boy and the horse that the British nicknamed the "American pony" to handle a race course that newspapers called "Suicide Lane." There, Battleship might become the first American racer to win England's monumental, century-old Grand National steeplechase. His rider, Great Britain's Bruce Hobbs, was only 17 years old.
Hobbs started life with an his father, Reginald, was a superb professional horseman. But Reg Hobbs also made extreme demands, putting Bruce in situations that horrified the boy's mother and sometimes terrified the child. Bruce had to decide just how brave he could stand to be.
On the other side of the Atlantic, the enigmatic Marion duPont grew up at the estate now known as James Madison's Montpelier―the refuge of America's "Father of the Constitution." Rejecting her chance to be a debutante, denied a corporate role because of her gender, Marion chose a pursuit where horses spoke for her.
Taking on the world's toughest race, she would leave her film star husband, Randolph Scott, a continent away and be pulled beyond her own control. With its reach from Lindbergh's transatlantic flight to Cary Grant's Hollywood, Battleship is an epic tale of testing your true worth.
381 pages, Paperback
First published April 30, 2013
9 people are currently reading
194 people want to read
About the author
Dorothy Ours
3 books20 followersAlways been a bookworm. Love horses. Love history. Horses led me to become an author, because too many goodies about the great Man o' War and his era had been buried in the past -- had to share.
And then Battleship and his people stepped up, and showed how researching their lives wasn't enough -- they made me hear the music of storytelling.
Along with books, horses, and history, I love music, visual and performing arts, travel, and ghost stories. What next -- who knows? (Smile)
And then Battleship and his people stepped up, and showed how researching their lives wasn't enough -- they made me hear the music of storytelling.
Along with books, horses, and history, I love music, visual and performing arts, travel, and ghost stories. What next -- who knows? (Smile)
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
February 19, 2019
My second five star book of the year, and it's non fiction. I loved this story, a human interest story, narrative non fiction at it's best. I've always had a soft spot for the underdogs, for people who do other than they are expected to do. Our Mavericks of the world. This book has it all, or at least all of the elements that appeal to moi. Horses and horse racing, a privileged lifestyle, but a woman who decided to live her way, follow her own interests, and even a little Hollywood gossip and glamour.
Miriam DuPont, a wealthy family, her father bought Montepelier and left it to her in his will. Although she does marry, twice in fact, no children, horses were her first love. Battleship is a small horse that those in racing seriously underestimate, but he'll show them. A young jockey, only seventeen, a young man whose father trained horses, and expected big things from his son. These three will accomplish something never done before, with a horse people gave nary a chance.
Such a great story, includes other historical elements, but the focus of the book is on those three. Now this would make a great movie. I was literally enthralled.
Miriam DuPont, a wealthy family, her father bought Montepelier and left it to her in his will. Although she does marry, twice in fact, no children, horses were her first love. Battleship is a small horse that those in racing seriously underestimate, but he'll show them. A young jockey, only seventeen, a young man whose father trained horses, and expected big things from his son. These three will accomplish something never done before, with a horse people gave nary a chance.
Such a great story, includes other historical elements, but the focus of the book is on those three. Now this would make a great movie. I was literally enthralled.
March 22, 2019
I loved this book. And not merely because it was about a horse, either!
Battleship was the first American-bred horse to win the Grand National Steeplechase at Aintree in Great Britain. I've seen that race on tv over the years, and of course I've read National Velvet (and seen the movie) a zillion times. But I had never heard of Battleship, who was a son of the great Man o' War.
The book is a biography of a horse, a behind the scenes peek at exclusive equine sports, and the life story of Marion duPont, the woman who made Battleship's stunning 1938 victory possible. The author brought both horse and woman to life brilliantly, in my opinion, and each was equally fascinating to me.
I wish I could have met them both!
Battleship was the first American-bred horse to win the Grand National Steeplechase at Aintree in Great Britain. I've seen that race on tv over the years, and of course I've read National Velvet (and seen the movie) a zillion times. But I had never heard of Battleship, who was a son of the great Man o' War.
The book is a biography of a horse, a behind the scenes peek at exclusive equine sports, and the life story of Marion duPont, the woman who made Battleship's stunning 1938 victory possible. The author brought both horse and woman to life brilliantly, in my opinion, and each was equally fascinating to me.
I wish I could have met them both!
March 13, 2019
Excellent non-fiction. It sets you as a live presence in these times, places and with this set of people. People who are in percentages of 75% for having their lives (in hours, locations, motivations) entwined with thoroughbred horses.
An era of such varied sensibilities to our present! And in this culture and placements so resource ($$$$$$$$) available, doubly so. But never, ever is there a forgetting with the wealth that there is a proper set of societal exchanges and appropriations. Up is down and down is up from our present's culturally approved strictures or trends for ideally inspired mores. Especially within two or three main concentrations that core this historic record of a particular farm and American bred race horse and jumping track as it developed in the years between the two World Wars. And on Montpelier's (James Madison's home) site, on top of it!
One of them is how Bruce Hobbs was trained. The other was the response of the world to a women with a career as the center of her life. The third might be the mannerly "or not" methods to circumvent all the "never can break" cultural rules.
Marion did all three spheres for these just named book concentrations. Or had them heavily encompassed in the route of her life and the lives that produced the win at the National of the title listed fame.
Intricately detailed by year in a chronological order, this is an intriguing window into the effort, sacrifices, devotion, almost "other worldly" animal communication skills, and the pure nerve to accomplish what these tasks included. It's long but it's also inclusive for the feel of the period.
Loved the read! And I'll not soon forget that 6 year old with blind concussion staying in a room for 10 days/ 2 weeks before he can see again and then following the hunt on a racing pony the next week after. With his own father insisting on it. Never could happen in this century for this set or almost any other in these days' allowances. Nor in most of the employments. All would be considered abuse. Especially within the record of both human and animal death in the 40 horse jump races.
Marion was a trip. Tough, responsible and resourceful as well.
An era of such varied sensibilities to our present! And in this culture and placements so resource ($$$$$$$$) available, doubly so. But never, ever is there a forgetting with the wealth that there is a proper set of societal exchanges and appropriations. Up is down and down is up from our present's culturally approved strictures or trends for ideally inspired mores. Especially within two or three main concentrations that core this historic record of a particular farm and American bred race horse and jumping track as it developed in the years between the two World Wars. And on Montpelier's (James Madison's home) site, on top of it!
One of them is how Bruce Hobbs was trained. The other was the response of the world to a women with a career as the center of her life. The third might be the mannerly "or not" methods to circumvent all the "never can break" cultural rules.
Marion did all three spheres for these just named book concentrations. Or had them heavily encompassed in the route of her life and the lives that produced the win at the National of the title listed fame.
Intricately detailed by year in a chronological order, this is an intriguing window into the effort, sacrifices, devotion, almost "other worldly" animal communication skills, and the pure nerve to accomplish what these tasks included. It's long but it's also inclusive for the feel of the period.
Loved the read! And I'll not soon forget that 6 year old with blind concussion staying in a room for 10 days/ 2 weeks before he can see again and then following the hunt on a racing pony the next week after. With his own father insisting on it. Never could happen in this century for this set or almost any other in these days' allowances. Nor in most of the employments. All would be considered abuse. Especially within the record of both human and animal death in the 40 horse jump races.
Marion was a trip. Tough, responsible and resourceful as well.
October 2, 2013
This story was more like the biography of Marion Dupont -- not that I'm complaining -- with flashes of Bruce Hobbs's terrifying childhood mixed in. Marion duPont, is more than an heiress, although her family never wanted for money because they had the good fortune to invent gunpowder--and no matter how bad a recession is, war never goes out of style.
Her father, William Sr. was the black sheep of the du Pont family, cast out of the family and the family business after a scandalous divorce, he chose to retreat with his new wife and growing kids to an estate with show horses. She and her brother William Jr. grew up in the country; Marion duPont learned to ride with both legs on either side of a horse; first riding saddle-seat horses and later hunters until the fateful day she saw legendary Man o'War auctioned off and her dream made itself known. Both Marion and William would come to love racehorses, Marion preferring hunt races, her brother preferring flats.
Bruce Hobbs was born to a fanatical father; Reginald Hobbs was a legendary trainer and he dreamed of a son whose name would be more famous than his own. Bruce was asked for perfection with horses from a very young age-- as someone who rides horses I can honestly say that some of Bruce's training would border on child abuse today-- But that training eventually paid off.
Battleship is the undersized son of Man o War...And nobody knows what to think of him. One day he sets blistering fractions and the next he looks like he's dead on his feet...and Marion can hardly wait to own him.
First, I can't imagine the amount of research Dorothy Ours needed to do to get all her facts straight; this book reads like fiction. At times its easy to dissociate from the fact that this really happened, and imagine "characters" playing this drama out. Its all to easy to cry over fatal accidents, sick and hurting friends, and broken hearts, even though part of you knows it happened over 70 years ago.
Secondly, I love that it reads like fiction! The whole problem I have with non-fiction is that too many facts can be boring. Dorothy Ours managed to write about races that happened years ago as if she were watching them in person. You get to see the attachments these people had to each other and to their horses. The dedication they had to the sport and their attempts to better it. I love the references to events happening internationally (the second world war) and seeing horse people in their own little bubble.
And considering the era, its really a remarkable event. Marion duPont was stepping outside the realm of what was traditionally expected of women. She was an accomplished rider and managed her own racing stable and the horses inside of it. Bruce Hobbs was the youngest jockey to win the Grand National, but he was also groomed since birth to win it. Battleship, a stallion too small to be a National horse, too temperamental, running in a race that didn't favor stallions or small horses.
I think this is a fantastic book for horse lovers, race fans, or anyone looking to read a nonfiction that reads like fiction.
Her father, William Sr. was the black sheep of the du Pont family, cast out of the family and the family business after a scandalous divorce, he chose to retreat with his new wife and growing kids to an estate with show horses. She and her brother William Jr. grew up in the country; Marion duPont learned to ride with both legs on either side of a horse; first riding saddle-seat horses and later hunters until the fateful day she saw legendary Man o'War auctioned off and her dream made itself known. Both Marion and William would come to love racehorses, Marion preferring hunt races, her brother preferring flats.
Bruce Hobbs was born to a fanatical father; Reginald Hobbs was a legendary trainer and he dreamed of a son whose name would be more famous than his own. Bruce was asked for perfection with horses from a very young age-- as someone who rides horses I can honestly say that some of Bruce's training would border on child abuse today-- But that training eventually paid off.
Battleship is the undersized son of Man o War...And nobody knows what to think of him. One day he sets blistering fractions and the next he looks like he's dead on his feet...and Marion can hardly wait to own him.
First, I can't imagine the amount of research Dorothy Ours needed to do to get all her facts straight; this book reads like fiction. At times its easy to dissociate from the fact that this really happened, and imagine "characters" playing this drama out. Its all to easy to cry over fatal accidents, sick and hurting friends, and broken hearts, even though part of you knows it happened over 70 years ago.
Secondly, I love that it reads like fiction! The whole problem I have with non-fiction is that too many facts can be boring. Dorothy Ours managed to write about races that happened years ago as if she were watching them in person. You get to see the attachments these people had to each other and to their horses. The dedication they had to the sport and their attempts to better it. I love the references to events happening internationally (the second world war) and seeing horse people in their own little bubble.
And considering the era, its really a remarkable event. Marion duPont was stepping outside the realm of what was traditionally expected of women. She was an accomplished rider and managed her own racing stable and the horses inside of it. Bruce Hobbs was the youngest jockey to win the Grand National, but he was also groomed since birth to win it. Battleship, a stallion too small to be a National horse, too temperamental, running in a race that didn't favor stallions or small horses.
I think this is a fantastic book for horse lovers, race fans, or anyone looking to read a nonfiction that reads like fiction.
April 21, 2013
BATTLESHIP is filled with detail and is a fascinating look at life in the 1930s especially in the horse country of the East Coast. It tells the story of Marion duPont Somerville Scott who was a fascinating woman who routinely listed herself as a home maker on her travels but who was a horse breeder and horse trainer who, along with her brother Will, did much to set the landscape for American horse racing.
It is also the story of a horse. Battleship is the descendant of Man o'War who made his mark by winning the Grand National at Aintree. He was an unlikely winner because of his small size and his advanced age but he was a spectacular horse.
Finally, it is the story of the jockey - Bruce Hobbs - who rode Battleship in his historic victory. We meet him as a child and watch him grow as a rider under the tutelage of his horse trainer father Reg. The picture of the riding and racing scene in England between the wars was well described.
The book is filled with detail and, because of Marion's second marriage to actor Randolph Scott, Hollywood celebrities. It is also filled with other horse loving socialites who were friends of Marion. I liked the details about her friendship with Noel Laing and Carroll Bassett.
Readers with an interest in horseracing, the 1930s, or the lives of the rich and famous will enjoy this well-researched and documented story.
It is also the story of a horse. Battleship is the descendant of Man o'War who made his mark by winning the Grand National at Aintree. He was an unlikely winner because of his small size and his advanced age but he was a spectacular horse.
Finally, it is the story of the jockey - Bruce Hobbs - who rode Battleship in his historic victory. We meet him as a child and watch him grow as a rider under the tutelage of his horse trainer father Reg. The picture of the riding and racing scene in England between the wars was well described.
The book is filled with detail and, because of Marion's second marriage to actor Randolph Scott, Hollywood celebrities. It is also filled with other horse loving socialites who were friends of Marion. I liked the details about her friendship with Noel Laing and Carroll Bassett.
Readers with an interest in horseracing, the 1930s, or the lives of the rich and famous will enjoy this well-researched and documented story.
February 12, 2013
There are really no other words to describe this book other than simply beautiful. This story is one of triumph, glory and defeating unbeatable odds.
If you have ever read a book before and wished it would never end, then you will understand how I felt about Battleship: The Story of a Champion.
As I was not familiar with this piece of racing history, I did some research before reading this book. When I began reading, I was impressed with the way the author managed to tell a compelling story that made you want to keep reading, while still keeping her facts in order.
The way this story is presented immediately captured my attention and made me feel something. The character the book begins with is strong, determined and the type of person that you know you will love if you keep reading. I felt rewarded when a short while later that proved to be true.
The different areas of this story tie together cleanly and make for the type of book that you can't wait to tell your friends and family about. I was amazed at how time passed while I was busy reading this. Glancing at the clock on my wall hours had gone by when it only felt like minutes.
There is humor, inspiration and portions of this book that will move you to tears. The indomitable power of the human spirit and the bonds we can form with animals make up the heart of this tale.
If you are looking for a story that is tragic, awe-inspiring and everything you could hope for in a book based on real events, this is the one to choose.
Truly deserving of a five star rating.
This review is based on an ARC from the publisher.
If you have ever read a book before and wished it would never end, then you will understand how I felt about Battleship: The Story of a Champion.
As I was not familiar with this piece of racing history, I did some research before reading this book. When I began reading, I was impressed with the way the author managed to tell a compelling story that made you want to keep reading, while still keeping her facts in order.
The way this story is presented immediately captured my attention and made me feel something. The character the book begins with is strong, determined and the type of person that you know you will love if you keep reading. I felt rewarded when a short while later that proved to be true.
The different areas of this story tie together cleanly and make for the type of book that you can't wait to tell your friends and family about. I was amazed at how time passed while I was busy reading this. Glancing at the clock on my wall hours had gone by when it only felt like minutes.
There is humor, inspiration and portions of this book that will move you to tears. The indomitable power of the human spirit and the bonds we can form with animals make up the heart of this tale.
If you are looking for a story that is tragic, awe-inspiring and everything you could hope for in a book based on real events, this is the one to choose.
Truly deserving of a five star rating.
This review is based on an ARC from the publisher.
April 5, 2013
Read my full review @ http://bit.ly/YXeKQ9
My opinion: Another unique offering from St. Martin's Press.
First, I must admit that I absolutely LOVE stories like Battleship. Stories of underdogs who prove everyone wrong to make big things happen in history. That sums up Battleship. It was truly a great book that had me on edge for the entire ride and had me sucked in very early into the read even though I am not into horse-racing nor the lives of America's wealthy. Ms. Ours wrote characters so strong, inviting and approachable that I couldn't help but cheer for all three "characters".
Second, it was very clear that Ms. Ours did her research in writing this book. She not only knew the story of Battleship, but the period of time inside and out. As a result, readers are painted a very vivid picture of not only the occurrences surrounding the story but in that period of time in the US as well.
So, why the 4 stars instead of 5? There was NOT one picture of the individuals nor the horse associated with this story. I can't believe there wouldn't be one picture in existence given the "cast" of characters or the incidents. Now, I did have an ebook ARC, but still if there were pictures in the book, they should have shown up on my Nook. Call me silly, but I was so drawn to this story that I wanted to put faces to names or see the sites described in the book. That would have made my reading experience complete.
My opinion: Another unique offering from St. Martin's Press.
First, I must admit that I absolutely LOVE stories like Battleship. Stories of underdogs who prove everyone wrong to make big things happen in history. That sums up Battleship. It was truly a great book that had me on edge for the entire ride and had me sucked in very early into the read even though I am not into horse-racing nor the lives of America's wealthy. Ms. Ours wrote characters so strong, inviting and approachable that I couldn't help but cheer for all three "characters".
Second, it was very clear that Ms. Ours did her research in writing this book. She not only knew the story of Battleship, but the period of time inside and out. As a result, readers are painted a very vivid picture of not only the occurrences surrounding the story but in that period of time in the US as well.
So, why the 4 stars instead of 5? There was NOT one picture of the individuals nor the horse associated with this story. I can't believe there wouldn't be one picture in existence given the "cast" of characters or the incidents. Now, I did have an ebook ARC, but still if there were pictures in the book, they should have shown up on my Nook. Call me silly, but I was so drawn to this story that I wanted to put faces to names or see the sites described in the book. That would have made my reading experience complete.
May 12, 2017
Good story I never knew about Battleship and his owner Marion duPont. A bit long and drags in spots as too much information sometimes it seems to me. Still I never knew about the 'pocket Battleship' and the Grand National and Marion dupont as well.
July 23, 2016
Dorothy Ours, Battleship: A Daring Heiress, a Teenage Jockey, and America's Horse (St. Martin's Press, 2013)
Full disclosure: this book was provided to me free of charge by Amazon Vine.
This is the stuff Hollywood dreams are made of, but Hollywood never made a picture of it, despite there being a Hollywood connection to this tale (more on that later). Why? Because, I'm guessing, when Sam Goldwyn and his lot heard the story, they collectively snorted and said “it may be true, but audiences will never believe it!” And to be fair, it does stretch the imagination—but the evidence is all there.
We all know, at least those of us who follow horse racing at all, that there is some sort of germ in the minds of horsemen that isn't satisfied with being the best in their own country. We've all gotta cross borders and do stuff in other places to let 'em know how good we are. Secretariat's final race was his first time in Canada. Sheikh Mohammed and his brothers from Dubai have spent millions upon millions of dollars trying to win the Kentucky Derby. Gary Stevens, before his first retirement, was one of the first American jockeys to be a regular at England's fabled Ascot meet. Horses from around the world contest France's famous Arc de Triomphe, the Japan Cup, and the Vase Stakes (at Hong Kong's Sha Tin racecourse). And, of course, one has to have the money to do it, so the fact that the owner of the horse in question, Battleship, was filthy rich isn't news. But there are a lot of people in America (and there were a lot of people in America even during the depression) who are filthy rich without also being filthy famous. That's where you start adding the icing to this cake, with the duPont family. Everyone in America knows who the duPonts are, and in depression-era America, everyone knew it even more. Marion duPont, the heiress of the book's title, was quite the fan of the jumps (and rode them quite well too, by all accounts I've read). And if you're a fan of the jumps, and you have some horses who are really, really good at them, there's one place you dream of being: the Grand National, England's most famous, and most dangerous, race. In the ensuing seventy-odd years between the events that take place in this book and now, there have been a number of changes made to Ascot's storied course for safety reasons, and it's still the most harrowing professional course in the world. In America, the headlines blare whenever a horse dies during a race. In England, the headlines blare when a horse doesn't die during the Grand National. It's a race that remembers tradition—that jumping isn't about watching horses or betting or any of that dross, it's about whether the 1,200-pound beast under you is going to be able to handle obstacles while you're chasing down your (and, most likely, his) dinner without killing either or both of you. The jumps are life and death. And when some of the obstacles you are going to be facing are damned close to six feet high, the conventional wisdom goes, you want a horse that can at least see over them, and a jockey experienced enough to not get shaken. In America, the conventional wisdom is that you never back a first-time jockey at the Kentucky Derby. The average crowd at a racetrack, even a marquee track like Keeneland, rarely exceeds 10,000 spectators on a non-major-stakes-race day. Derby day? The crowd is sixteen times that size. The roar when the crowd hears that bell is about the same volume as a jumbo jet engine...if you happen to be standing inside it. It can be...a little disorienting. Jocks can get shaken. But some first-timers win the Derby. And some little horses take to jumps higher than they are with the kind of aplomb that makes you wonder how these generally ungainly creatures can fly like swans.
And that bit about the experienced jockey? How about you grab a green teenager—granted, one trained by the best horseman in England, who just happens to be his father—and stick him on the back of the minuscule animal, called by the press leading up to the race “the American pony”? And then send them out there in one of those massive Grand National fields (the Kenctucky Derby field is capped at twenty; I don't know if they've implemented caps at the Grand National yet, but I remember watching one back in the nineties where forty-five started the race. It was gorgeous chaos.) and, the cheek of it all, expect them to win? Against the best horses the British Isles, and few other countries to boot, had to offer?
It's an incredible story. (And I'd meant to make note of the Hollywood connection, but this is getting ridiculously long, so I'll just mention that one of Battleship's most ardent fans was actor Randolph Scott, who eventually married Marion. Ever since I finished this book I've been watching Randolph Scott movies on Netflix every chance I get. None of them feature jump racing.) I'm not sure Dorothy Ours would have been my first choice to tell it, though I rush to qualify that by saying she'd be somewhere in my top five. Horse biographies have a tendency to focus more on the people around the horse than the beasts themselves, and one can lose sight of the actual animal on occasion. Getting the balance right can be tricky. It's the difference between a worldbeater-style horse bio like Hillenbrand's Seabiscuit and Elizabeth Mitchell's somewhat disappointing Three Strides Before the Wire (about the tragic career of 1999 Kentucky Derby winner Charismatic). Ours gets it right about ninety percent of the time, but she gets caught up in the family drama between Bruce and Reginald Hobbs a bit more than is really necessary in service of this particular tale. That is, however, a minor quibble at best. Less so is Ours' air of detachment at times. I hate to keep coming back to Seabiscuit, but it really is the gold standard of horse bios, for my money; another of the things that make that book great is that Hillenbrand gets a horse race in a way Ours doesn't (and that, to be fair to Ours, very few authors do, in my experience). There's a rhythm to every race, and that rhythm can be different between any two races on a given card. Writing a horse race may be even more difficult than writing a good love scene. And when the race you're attacking is the Grand National, you've set yourself a monumental task. Ours reached, and she outperformed about 95% of those who would deign to try such a thing. But that last 5% is priceless.
Neither of these downsides is enough of a showstopper for me to not recommend this book; it is very good. It could have been better, but you can say that about almost any book. If you're interested in the source material, you'll probably like it a great deal. If you're not, this is most likely not a book that will get you there. (I should also note for the record that those who are squeamish about animal injuries would probably do well to steer clear.) *** ½
Full disclosure: this book was provided to me free of charge by Amazon Vine.
This is the stuff Hollywood dreams are made of, but Hollywood never made a picture of it, despite there being a Hollywood connection to this tale (more on that later). Why? Because, I'm guessing, when Sam Goldwyn and his lot heard the story, they collectively snorted and said “it may be true, but audiences will never believe it!” And to be fair, it does stretch the imagination—but the evidence is all there.
We all know, at least those of us who follow horse racing at all, that there is some sort of germ in the minds of horsemen that isn't satisfied with being the best in their own country. We've all gotta cross borders and do stuff in other places to let 'em know how good we are. Secretariat's final race was his first time in Canada. Sheikh Mohammed and his brothers from Dubai have spent millions upon millions of dollars trying to win the Kentucky Derby. Gary Stevens, before his first retirement, was one of the first American jockeys to be a regular at England's fabled Ascot meet. Horses from around the world contest France's famous Arc de Triomphe, the Japan Cup, and the Vase Stakes (at Hong Kong's Sha Tin racecourse). And, of course, one has to have the money to do it, so the fact that the owner of the horse in question, Battleship, was filthy rich isn't news. But there are a lot of people in America (and there were a lot of people in America even during the depression) who are filthy rich without also being filthy famous. That's where you start adding the icing to this cake, with the duPont family. Everyone in America knows who the duPonts are, and in depression-era America, everyone knew it even more. Marion duPont, the heiress of the book's title, was quite the fan of the jumps (and rode them quite well too, by all accounts I've read). And if you're a fan of the jumps, and you have some horses who are really, really good at them, there's one place you dream of being: the Grand National, England's most famous, and most dangerous, race. In the ensuing seventy-odd years between the events that take place in this book and now, there have been a number of changes made to Ascot's storied course for safety reasons, and it's still the most harrowing professional course in the world. In America, the headlines blare whenever a horse dies during a race. In England, the headlines blare when a horse doesn't die during the Grand National. It's a race that remembers tradition—that jumping isn't about watching horses or betting or any of that dross, it's about whether the 1,200-pound beast under you is going to be able to handle obstacles while you're chasing down your (and, most likely, his) dinner without killing either or both of you. The jumps are life and death. And when some of the obstacles you are going to be facing are damned close to six feet high, the conventional wisdom goes, you want a horse that can at least see over them, and a jockey experienced enough to not get shaken. In America, the conventional wisdom is that you never back a first-time jockey at the Kentucky Derby. The average crowd at a racetrack, even a marquee track like Keeneland, rarely exceeds 10,000 spectators on a non-major-stakes-race day. Derby day? The crowd is sixteen times that size. The roar when the crowd hears that bell is about the same volume as a jumbo jet engine...if you happen to be standing inside it. It can be...a little disorienting. Jocks can get shaken. But some first-timers win the Derby. And some little horses take to jumps higher than they are with the kind of aplomb that makes you wonder how these generally ungainly creatures can fly like swans.
And that bit about the experienced jockey? How about you grab a green teenager—granted, one trained by the best horseman in England, who just happens to be his father—and stick him on the back of the minuscule animal, called by the press leading up to the race “the American pony”? And then send them out there in one of those massive Grand National fields (the Kenctucky Derby field is capped at twenty; I don't know if they've implemented caps at the Grand National yet, but I remember watching one back in the nineties where forty-five started the race. It was gorgeous chaos.) and, the cheek of it all, expect them to win? Against the best horses the British Isles, and few other countries to boot, had to offer?
It's an incredible story. (And I'd meant to make note of the Hollywood connection, but this is getting ridiculously long, so I'll just mention that one of Battleship's most ardent fans was actor Randolph Scott, who eventually married Marion. Ever since I finished this book I've been watching Randolph Scott movies on Netflix every chance I get. None of them feature jump racing.) I'm not sure Dorothy Ours would have been my first choice to tell it, though I rush to qualify that by saying she'd be somewhere in my top five. Horse biographies have a tendency to focus more on the people around the horse than the beasts themselves, and one can lose sight of the actual animal on occasion. Getting the balance right can be tricky. It's the difference between a worldbeater-style horse bio like Hillenbrand's Seabiscuit and Elizabeth Mitchell's somewhat disappointing Three Strides Before the Wire (about the tragic career of 1999 Kentucky Derby winner Charismatic). Ours gets it right about ninety percent of the time, but she gets caught up in the family drama between Bruce and Reginald Hobbs a bit more than is really necessary in service of this particular tale. That is, however, a minor quibble at best. Less so is Ours' air of detachment at times. I hate to keep coming back to Seabiscuit, but it really is the gold standard of horse bios, for my money; another of the things that make that book great is that Hillenbrand gets a horse race in a way Ours doesn't (and that, to be fair to Ours, very few authors do, in my experience). There's a rhythm to every race, and that rhythm can be different between any two races on a given card. Writing a horse race may be even more difficult than writing a good love scene. And when the race you're attacking is the Grand National, you've set yourself a monumental task. Ours reached, and she outperformed about 95% of those who would deign to try such a thing. But that last 5% is priceless.
Neither of these downsides is enough of a showstopper for me to not recommend this book; it is very good. It could have been better, but you can say that about almost any book. If you're interested in the source material, you'll probably like it a great deal. If you're not, this is most likely not a book that will get you there. (I should also note for the record that those who are squeamish about animal injuries would probably do well to steer clear.) *** ½
June 24, 2019
So interesting to learn much more about a subject that I've only known a little bit about. I am lucky to live close enough to visit Montpelier frequently, and any time I can learn any more about this gorgeous property's history I get very excited.
I've seen the horses' graves near James Madison's home many times, but never knew anything about the exciting details of Battleship's win at both the British and the American Grand Nationals. The author's description of the British GN was written superbly and I could feel the excitement as Battleship cleared jump after jump to win the race!
If you ever find yourselves in Central Virginia please visit James Madison's Montpelier. It is a beautiful, serene, historic sight and worth seeing for yourselves!
I've seen the horses' graves near James Madison's home many times, but never knew anything about the exciting details of Battleship's win at both the British and the American Grand Nationals. The author's description of the British GN was written superbly and I could feel the excitement as Battleship cleared jump after jump to win the race!
If you ever find yourselves in Central Virginia please visit James Madison's Montpelier. It is a beautiful, serene, historic sight and worth seeing for yourselves!
November 28, 2025
This is a review of the June 2014 paperback edition, which has a revised subtitle.
When the horse is a bit player in a book named after him, I know I'm in real trouble. What made it worse was I bought a copy of this book solely on the strength of Ours' previous and much, much better book about Battleship's sire, Man o' War.
This book is about people -- NOT horses. Specifically, this book centers on Battleship's most famous and final owner, Marion DuPont Scott. She's introduced at the age of six ... at a cockfight. As well as abusing Anerican Saddlebreds for the show ring, and torturing foxes during foxhunts, she also was involved with fighting chickens for decades. There were also hints that she was involved with dogfighting. One of her best friends, Carroll K. Bassett, was DEFINITELY involved with dog fighting in his youth.
There was hardly anything about horses in here. Easily 100 pages could've been cut, since they meandered off into the wild blue yonder. Did we really need a lengthy description of Charles Lindberg's historic trans-Atlantic flight, or pages about WHO CARY GRANT WAS? There was also an incredibly embarrassing comparison between the fall of a rich white girl off of a show horse ... and the Anschluss in 1938.
Was there no editor for this thing? I'm guessing no.
The introduction, during a brief moment in Battleship's Grand National, is stunning. Then it goes sharply downhill from there. By chapter 12, I was hurting. By chapter 16, I was getting ready to fling the book across the room. When I finally finished, I still had the back matter to read. Yeah -- I'm the kind of nut who reads bibliographies, source notes -- that kind of thing. The first page of the Acknowledgements was so pretentious that I gave up.
It didn't help that my copy had very small print. There are a few photos, but nothing impressive.
There was a moment where Ours actually asked the unaskable, in why put horses through the almost certain death of American timber racing in the early 1930s? She disappointed me by bending over backwards to make excuses for spoiled rich, heartless morons like Marion DuPont Scott, and modern horse racing owners, trainers and breeders. (Yes, heartless -- when she discovered that old dairy cows were being pensioned on her father's farm, she had them all slaughtered to make more room for milk producers. HER FATHER WAS A DUPONT. HE COULD AFFORD TO KEEP OLD COWS.)
It was through my own research that I discovered that Marion DuPont Scott left a big chunk of money to a veterinary university to create the Marion DuPont Scott Equine Medical Center of Leesburg, Virginia. Least she could do.
And there is zero mention of John E. DuPont, hater of anything equine and convicted murderer, who was Marion's grand-nephew. The building of Foxcatcher was mentioned once ... and that was as close as we got.
A whole fucking chapter on the mediocre actor and second husband of Marion, Randolph Scott, but NOTHING about the most infamous DuPont of them all? Unbelievable.
No wonder this was Ours' last book.
When the horse is a bit player in a book named after him, I know I'm in real trouble. What made it worse was I bought a copy of this book solely on the strength of Ours' previous and much, much better book about Battleship's sire, Man o' War.
This book is about people -- NOT horses. Specifically, this book centers on Battleship's most famous and final owner, Marion DuPont Scott. She's introduced at the age of six ... at a cockfight. As well as abusing Anerican Saddlebreds for the show ring, and torturing foxes during foxhunts, she also was involved with fighting chickens for decades. There were also hints that she was involved with dogfighting. One of her best friends, Carroll K. Bassett, was DEFINITELY involved with dog fighting in his youth.
There was hardly anything about horses in here. Easily 100 pages could've been cut, since they meandered off into the wild blue yonder. Did we really need a lengthy description of Charles Lindberg's historic trans-Atlantic flight, or pages about WHO CARY GRANT WAS? There was also an incredibly embarrassing comparison between the fall of a rich white girl off of a show horse ... and the Anschluss in 1938.
Was there no editor for this thing? I'm guessing no.
The introduction, during a brief moment in Battleship's Grand National, is stunning. Then it goes sharply downhill from there. By chapter 12, I was hurting. By chapter 16, I was getting ready to fling the book across the room. When I finally finished, I still had the back matter to read. Yeah -- I'm the kind of nut who reads bibliographies, source notes -- that kind of thing. The first page of the Acknowledgements was so pretentious that I gave up.
It didn't help that my copy had very small print. There are a few photos, but nothing impressive.
There was a moment where Ours actually asked the unaskable, in why put horses through the almost certain death of American timber racing in the early 1930s? She disappointed me by bending over backwards to make excuses for spoiled rich, heartless morons like Marion DuPont Scott, and modern horse racing owners, trainers and breeders. (Yes, heartless -- when she discovered that old dairy cows were being pensioned on her father's farm, she had them all slaughtered to make more room for milk producers. HER FATHER WAS A DUPONT. HE COULD AFFORD TO KEEP OLD COWS.)
It was through my own research that I discovered that Marion DuPont Scott left a big chunk of money to a veterinary university to create the Marion DuPont Scott Equine Medical Center of Leesburg, Virginia. Least she could do.
And there is zero mention of John E. DuPont, hater of anything equine and convicted murderer, who was Marion's grand-nephew. The building of Foxcatcher was mentioned once ... and that was as close as we got.
A whole fucking chapter on the mediocre actor and second husband of Marion, Randolph Scott, but NOTHING about the most infamous DuPont of them all? Unbelievable.
No wonder this was Ours' last book.
February 13, 2019
I loved the book. It was a great biography of MARION duPont SCOTT with some history on other members of her family. It also told the story of battleship and her effort to win the grand national. Also the story of Bruce and Reg Hobbs is told in detail with real honesty.
November 26, 2017
This book was interesting but took so long to finish...I lost interest halfway thru but pressed on. I think some stuff could’ve been cut out. Definitely not as good as Seabiscuit...but ok.
April 19, 2023
This is a fascinating true story, mainly set in the 30's and 40's, that features Marion duPont, a wealthy woman who lived for her horses and the racing industry; Bruce Hobbs, a 17-year-old jockey who was raised by his father who was also a jockey and a horse named Battleship who becomes the unlikely hero of this book. Very interesting!
May 15, 2018
Interesting story, well written!
December 27, 2013
This book might not have originally caught my attention except for the fact that I recognized the horse’s name from my visit to Montpelier last year and the visit left such a lasting impression on me that I immediately had to read this book that was connected to it. I loved horses as a kid, did some riding in my teen years, and before my love of historical fiction came my love for horse-themed novels. This book takes the whole horse experience that I loved to read about as a kid and made the people and animals real.
The narrative starts out with three distinct threads – one following Marion DuPont (horse lover, owner, socialite), one following the Hobbs men (the father Reginald and son Bruce who were horse trainers and jockeys respectively), and one following an unknown, Battleship (the horse at the center of the book). Through these threads you can watch the perfect storm come together as these three eventually are brought to each other and reach for the stars. You get a little bit of everything: the life of a wealth socialite in the early 1900’s, a little Hollywood glitz and glamour, and are immersed in everything horse related. Even with my knowledge about horses, I did look up quite a few things.
For the most part I think that the author did a good job of carrying off two very different types of stories – a story of both human and animal lives – and each was just as interesting as the other. I did find some strange elements – for instance, somehow the author brings references to Charles Lindberg into the story but I didn’t find that there was any purpose to it. I also thought that the ending wrapped up much too quickly following the competition at Aintree. It was one of those plot maps with a very long exposition, quick climax, and then even faster resolution. I would have liked to know a little more how they spent their days following the competition.
I would recommend this book to anyone who has a love for horses and also loves the story of an underdog. Stay tuned for some Battleship related posts later this week, including a story relating my personal connection to this book and a particular passage from it that grabbed me.
This review was previously posted @ The Maiden's Court. Was received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
The narrative starts out with three distinct threads – one following Marion DuPont (horse lover, owner, socialite), one following the Hobbs men (the father Reginald and son Bruce who were horse trainers and jockeys respectively), and one following an unknown, Battleship (the horse at the center of the book). Through these threads you can watch the perfect storm come together as these three eventually are brought to each other and reach for the stars. You get a little bit of everything: the life of a wealth socialite in the early 1900’s, a little Hollywood glitz and glamour, and are immersed in everything horse related. Even with my knowledge about horses, I did look up quite a few things.
For the most part I think that the author did a good job of carrying off two very different types of stories – a story of both human and animal lives – and each was just as interesting as the other. I did find some strange elements – for instance, somehow the author brings references to Charles Lindberg into the story but I didn’t find that there was any purpose to it. I also thought that the ending wrapped up much too quickly following the competition at Aintree. It was one of those plot maps with a very long exposition, quick climax, and then even faster resolution. I would have liked to know a little more how they spent their days following the competition.
I would recommend this book to anyone who has a love for horses and also loves the story of an underdog. Stay tuned for some Battleship related posts later this week, including a story relating my personal connection to this book and a particular passage from it that grabbed me.
This review was previously posted @ The Maiden's Court. Was received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
July 13, 2013
Source: Received an ARC from Amazon Vine in exchange for an honest review.
This book first got my attention when I saw it featured by the publisher on Netgalley; unfortunately my copy expired before I got to it so I was pleased to see it for offer on Amazon Vine, giving me another chance to check out what seemed to be billed as a very gripping read. While it was not to my taste, I think there will be fans of the story.
I've always heard that little girls love horses but maybe there was something wrong with me because I never got it. Horses are big and smelly and I had less than zero interest in them. Instead I was interested in this book because of the billing of a daring heiress (Marion duPont), teenage jockey (Bruce Hobbs), an American horse (the titular Battleship), and the converging paths of all the people necessary to make a racing legend like Battleship.
The conclusion to this book with that final race that made his name was very exciting. It shows clearly all the hard work and time invested that was necessary to reach that point. However many of the passages before that bored me. There was so much information about horses and racing and I did not care nor did I need full recaps of all the races that even remotely related to the story. My expectation of this book was that it would be filled with engaging writing and be accessible to laymen and I don't feel like it met either of those.
I did enjoy the passages that focused more on the humans especially Marion's life of seemingly confirmed spinsterhood in an era that really condemned such a fate to two somewhat surprising marriages against her lifelong passion for horses. The jockey, Bruce's, story was also fascinating with his tough upbringing under his strict horse-mad trainer father that led to the very tall young man riding to victory on a comparatively small horse.
Overall: Not to my taste at all!
Note: As I read an ARC, it lacked footnotes or endnotes and pictures, both of which I hope are in the final product. I would love to see how Battleship stacked up next to the bigger horses mentioned over the course of the novel.
This book first got my attention when I saw it featured by the publisher on Netgalley; unfortunately my copy expired before I got to it so I was pleased to see it for offer on Amazon Vine, giving me another chance to check out what seemed to be billed as a very gripping read. While it was not to my taste, I think there will be fans of the story.
I've always heard that little girls love horses but maybe there was something wrong with me because I never got it. Horses are big and smelly and I had less than zero interest in them. Instead I was interested in this book because of the billing of a daring heiress (Marion duPont), teenage jockey (Bruce Hobbs), an American horse (the titular Battleship), and the converging paths of all the people necessary to make a racing legend like Battleship.
The conclusion to this book with that final race that made his name was very exciting. It shows clearly all the hard work and time invested that was necessary to reach that point. However many of the passages before that bored me. There was so much information about horses and racing and I did not care nor did I need full recaps of all the races that even remotely related to the story. My expectation of this book was that it would be filled with engaging writing and be accessible to laymen and I don't feel like it met either of those.
I did enjoy the passages that focused more on the humans especially Marion's life of seemingly confirmed spinsterhood in an era that really condemned such a fate to two somewhat surprising marriages against her lifelong passion for horses. The jockey, Bruce's, story was also fascinating with his tough upbringing under his strict horse-mad trainer father that led to the very tall young man riding to victory on a comparatively small horse.
Overall: Not to my taste at all!
Note: As I read an ARC, it lacked footnotes or endnotes and pictures, both of which I hope are in the final product. I would love to see how Battleship stacked up next to the bigger horses mentioned over the course of the novel.
August 22, 2013
This book is as much about the horse as Seabiscuit was...meaning it's not, it wasn't meant to be. Battleship wouldn't have become the legend that he was without the people around him. They molded him into what he became, helping him fulfill his potential to the fullest. I rank this book among my favorites, right up there with Laura Hillenbrand's Seabiscuit, and hope that some day a movie is made out of it. So much history, so much detail, it was like I was living their world, in a time when women and horses didn't exist. It is because of people like Marion duPont Scott that people like me can sit astride a horse and compete against men. Without Marion and the people she surrounded herself with...Battleship would've just been another name lost in time. It's because of her that Dorothy Ours had a legend to write a book about.
Thank you for telling her story, Dorothy...I enjoyed the ride!
Thank you for telling her story, Dorothy...I enjoyed the ride!
July 6, 2013
For a work of non-fiction, Battleship was a fast and pleasant read. Steeple racing (jump racing) is not as popular in U.S. as in England hence these unusual and athletic horses are often missed. For horse lovers, Dorothy Ours' book offers a window on the underbelly of steeple racing and the society pages that chronicle the season.
November 22, 2013
Very interesting. I learned a lot about the DuPont history at Montpelier, which I knew very little history of their residency there. I'm glad that they've kept Marion's Red Room and the other DuPont room which is a bit tacky. Very interesting and, serious, Battleship and Annapolis are buried at the end of the Mansion front yard.
June 17, 2015
Note to self, NOT A REVIEW!!! Found this great at the beginning, loved the history and the careful consideration that goes into caring for a horse, as well as the breeding. But then it got weighed down in the middle with much of the same, just not enough new material to keep me interested, even though I love reading about horses more than any other topic. Stopped at page 200.
August 29, 2013
well written book about a little known piece of history. I enjoyed learning about Battleship and his owner, Marion du Pont. its always a joy to read about strong women who change history. A very good book for any history enthusiast and especially a sport and horse lover.
Read
January 7, 2016I am glad to have read about Marion DuPont Scott and her wonderful horse "Battleship." It was tedious at the beginning, especially about equine lineage and numerous races, but the last third, when actor Randolph Scott, gets involved and Battleship goes to England, made the tedium worthwhile.
September 9, 2016
A must read for horse lovers. The story recounts the life of Marion duPont, the owner, as well as jockey, Bruce Hobbs. The entire book compels with all the exploits of duPont and her life as a horsewoman.
January 23, 2023
"There was nothing like your own young horses coming along to make the future seem sunny."
This story always makes me so sad, but I loved seeing Battleship's earlier years and how much a single horse can mean to so many people.
This story always makes me so sad, but I loved seeing Battleship's earlier years and how much a single horse can mean to so many people.
December 16, 2013
Interesting history, an awful lot of horse racing/steeplechase information which somewhat broke up the flow. Not as good as Snowball or Seabiscuit, but still a good read.
June 4, 2015
I really enjoyed the book, but found it slow reading. There are so many details, all wonderfully done, that I couldn't speed through it.
February 16, 2015
I loved it. Recommended to all horse lovers.
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