Writer horsing around in new book

The bond between Rodney author Jo Emeney and her bush pony Amazing Blazing Billy inspired her new book, Horses & Us, which explores and celebrates the relationships between New Zealanders and their horses.

Emeney said the idea grew out of her relationship with Billy, who she described as her dream pony, and a desire to document how deeply horses shape people’s lives.

“I went all over the country finding some really great stories from different people and their horses, meeting plenty of four and two-legged characters along the way,” she said.

Published by Massey University Press, the 200-page, full-colour book took two years to research and write, and features 23 true stories from locations as remote as Mount Nicholas Station in the South Island.

Everything from mounted games riders at Turangi and Paralympian Louise Duncan to profiles of at-risk horse breeds in NZ such as Clydesdales.

One highlight was meeting Waimauku-based horse trainer Tyson Miller, whose work with horses is “about trust, communication and understanding”.

Another was Waitoki’s dressage rider Ben Weir, who has become one of the country’s leading young riders.

“Ben is a successful coach, trainer and show jumper/dressage rider. One of the things I liked most about Ben was finding he still owned his first childhood pony,” she said.

The project was supported by a Creative New Zealand grant, which funded travel, photography and illustrations, and made it possible to produce a high-quality publication.

“Without this grant, you just couldn’t produce such a beautiful book,” she said.

The final chapter is dedicated to Emeney’s pony Billy and tells the story of how he developed a life-threatening knee infection.

“It’s all about how his life was saved by one of the vet surgeons at Vet Associates. He had two knee operations and it was touch-and-go for a while. He’s recovered from his life-threatening sepsis now and, at 23,  enjoys rides down to the local cafe for a quick coffee with me – he’s the hero of the book.”

Horses & Us launches on March 12 at Takapuna Library at 6.30pm with a Q&A and will be available at major bookstores for $37.