The Bridleway cover art

The Bridleway

How Horses Shaped the British Landscape

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The Bridleway

By: Tiffany Francis-Baker
Narrated by: Olivia Mace
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About this listen

 Bloomsbury presents The Bridleway by Tiffany Francis-Baker, read by Olivia Mace.

WINNER OF THE ELWYN HARTLEY-EDWARDS AWARD FOR EQUINE WRITING, 2023.

Tiffany Francis-Baker explores how the relationship between humans and horses has shaped the British landscape and how this connection has become part of our nation’s ecosystems.

Many of us enjoy walking or riding on bridleways. These ancient networks crisscross the British countryside, but we rarely pause to ponder how they came to be.

Tiffany Francis-Baker tells the intriguing history of Britain’s bridleways, revealing how our relationship with horses is deeply woven into the fabric of British culture, from street and pub names to trading routes and coaching inns. She meets the closest living descendants of wild horses and investigates our evolving relationship with horses, exploring equestrian sports, horse fairs, horseback travellers and adventurers, and how humans and horses have worked together for millennia.

Part-domesticated and part-fiercely independent, horses have long captured our imaginations, and in The Bridleway, Francis-Baker reveals how deeply rooted they have been in our culture for thousands of years and how they can help us understand the natural world and our place within it.©2023 Tiffany Francis-Baker (P)2023 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc Animals Biological Sciences Equestrian Sports Horses Human Geography Outdoors & Nature Pets & Animal Care Riding & Horsemanship Science Social Sciences Sports Animal Sports

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All stars
Most relevant
This is a beautiful book and I enjoyed every minute of it . A joyful journey that meanders through history and geography - so many amazing facts and insights and observations . It’s a wonderful book .

Delightful descriptions, wonderful wisdom and a wealth of life changing knowledge !

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It took me two goes at listening to this audio book, but then I was lost in the story of the horse. As a lifelong lover of all things to do with the noble horse it was a joy to listen to. Their story in being part in our life's through history was well told. Definitely worth a listen and would certainly recommend. The narration was good apart from the annoying mispronounced word of livery.

Delightful

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A fascinating history of the horse in British history and culture and a valuable insight into the lives of these beautiful animals. Most enjoyable.

Horses for courses

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I didn't know what to expect when I purchased the audio book, all that I can say is I'm very glad I did.
The narrator has done the writer a great service with her narration, picking up all of the nuances the writer put down.
The book took me back to my helping out on farms in our village, from brushing horses to cleaning cows' uddeds in preparation for milking..
I rode to cart horses bareback in the fields and was shown by the farmlands how to groom them, and watch out for agitations, especially at the rear ends.
This book took me back to those days between 7 and 11 years old, but I lost track of horses over the years until 2018 when a dog had been placed in a field by a very uncaring and uncouth individual, who I had a face off with about his not looking after the horse at all. Anyway, I ended up feeding, bedding and grooming that horse "Bobby" for two or more years, until one morning when I brought his straw and hay, plus his feed, Bobby had gone. I was 77_years old then and it kind of broke my heart that he wasn't there any more.
I assume the owner had sold Bobby due to his very healthy appearance, and made a profit at my expense. I don't care about that. I loved being part of Bobby's life and showing him a loving human being. I really miss that horse, he gave me a purpose to extend myself and overcome a very bad spinal injury. When I was with Bobby my pain never bothered me.
And this book has brought back lovely memories from my life.
Thank you
Thi

An excellent story of horses & riders

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I thought this book would be about various bridleway rides but it was about how bridleways have evolved through hundreds of years and the people and horses who used them.
it was very informative and I enjoyed learning about the history of bridleways.
If you have ever ridden a horse on a bridleway and wondered why it was there this book will tell you.

A detailed hack through horse history

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