Six finalists have been announced for the 2021 Dr. Tony Ryan Book Award, which recognizes the year's best long-form writing on racing. The award is presented annually by Castleton Lyons.
A Hole Through the Wind, by Alan Patterson, reveals the lives of twin colts through the diary and remembrances of an old horseman.
Diane Crump, A Horse-Racing Pioneer's Life in the Saddle, by Mark Shrager, is a biography of the first woman to ride in a pari-mutuel race in the U.S.
First-Time Starter is a novella written by former owner and jockey's agent Stan Jensen.
Good Things Come is the first novel by equine artist Linda Shantz and mixes hope, heartbreak and romance on the Canadian racing scene.
Ruffian, by Precious McKenzie, is a fictional account of the life of the champion filly as seen through a young racing fan.
Sylvia Rideoutt Bishop Had a Way With Horses, by Vicky Moon, is the biography of the first black woman to obtain a trainer's license in the U.S.
The Tony Ryan Book Award winner had been announced at a Castleton Lyons reception in April since 2006, but the 2021 announcement was by necessity moved back to November and was conducted remotely for the first time, via Zoom conference. A similar format is expected this year with a tentative target date of late April.
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