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sians's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.5
Wow. There is huge hype around this memoir and it didn't disappoint. Such beautiful phrasing throughout this book, but especially in the opening and final chapters, and the epilogue.
I loved Clover's authenticity and how in tune she is with her needs and impulses, and how she follows her intuition to act on them.
The only part I didn't quite connect with was the part set in Russia, but the rest was truly stunning.
I loved Clover's authenticity and how in tune she is with her needs and impulses, and how she follows her intuition to act on them.
The only part I didn't quite connect with was the part set in Russia, but the rest was truly stunning.
sometimesi's review against another edition
5.0
utterly brilliant, i was invested from the start to the last sentence
leah_huolohan's review against another edition
4.0
An absolutely beautifully written journey that leaves you feeling bruised but enlighten.
what_heather_loves's review against another edition
3.0
"No one knows why the White Horse is there above the hill in Uffington. It's a mystery that belongs to ancient man, and we can speculate. It we are only ever guessing."
Horse-mad Clover Stroud enjoyed a childhood blessed with ponies and the great outdoors in Wiltshire, with her exuberant and eccentric mother, Charlotte (known as Char), and father Rick Stroud.
In 1991, when Clover was sixteen, this came to an abrupt end when Char was thrown from her horse while out riding and suffered a catastrophic blow to the head. Defying the medical prognosis, Char regained consciousness, but could never be the mother Clover needed.
After her mother's accident, Clover sought comfort in friends, lovers and drugs and she embarked on a journey to regain the sense of home that had been so cruelly disrupted. Travelling through gypsy camps in Ireland, to rodeos in Texas and then to Russia’s Caucasus, Clover eventually found her way home to the Wiltshire countryside.
The Wild Other is an emotional account of love, loss and family, written with honesty. During traumatic times, horses and the landscape of her home county were Clover's anchor. This memoir is a reminder to live life to the fullest. Powerful but difficult reading.
Horse-mad Clover Stroud enjoyed a childhood blessed with ponies and the great outdoors in Wiltshire, with her exuberant and eccentric mother, Charlotte (known as Char), and father Rick Stroud.
In 1991, when Clover was sixteen, this came to an abrupt end when Char was thrown from her horse while out riding and suffered a catastrophic blow to the head. Defying the medical prognosis, Char regained consciousness, but could never be the mother Clover needed.
After her mother's accident, Clover sought comfort in friends, lovers and drugs and she embarked on a journey to regain the sense of home that had been so cruelly disrupted. Travelling through gypsy camps in Ireland, to rodeos in Texas and then to Russia’s Caucasus, Clover eventually found her way home to the Wiltshire countryside.
The Wild Other is an emotional account of love, loss and family, written with honesty. During traumatic times, horses and the landscape of her home county were Clover's anchor. This memoir is a reminder to live life to the fullest. Powerful but difficult reading.
mdwinter's review
3.0
A difficult book to rate because while I could not relate to the major narrative device of horses and horse-riding, the book definitely made me think and feel a lot. Stroud's response to tragedy is to throw herself into dangerous situations, mostly related to horses and men. Some of the passages about horses are too descriptive for someone who has had no contact with them, but Stroud makes up for it in her descriptions of her interactions with people. I did find her writing about her husband at the end very cringeworthy but appreciate that when it comes to writing about emotional attachments, to each their own.
A gift from Mum and Dad for my 25th.
A gift from Mum and Dad for my 25th.
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