{"title":"Biography \u0026 Memoir","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"life-as-a-dressage-trainer-in-three-countries","title":"Life As a Dressage Trainer in Three Countries","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003ciframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/7Mz42gBk0jc?si=FdvfGUhxjemej1z4\" height=\"315\" width=\"560\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" frameborder=\"0\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA delightfully entertaining journey following the lifelong development of a devoted horseman, and the opportunities and challenges native to such a pursuit in different parts of the world.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt was at the age of thirteen that Gunnar Ostergaard wrote in his journal, “Is there anything more beautiful than horses?” The rhetorical question would come to guide his every step as he sought a way to build a life around that which he loved most. What transpired was a journey through three lands and cultures, each providing a different window into the body and mind of the horse and the heart and soul of the horseman. In these pages he traces his path from Denmark to Germany to the United States, providing a glimpse into the world of rider development in three vastly different places, as well as a rare peek behind the curtain of top international dressage training and competition. Throughout, Gunnar is funny and frank, generously sharing both his struggles and successes. The result is a highly entertaining history lesson that is at the same time rich in equestrian philosophy readers can immediately apply to their own riding lives.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"TSB","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":50728280949033,"sku":"9781646012503","price":26.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0832\/4422\/0713\/files\/LifeAsaDressageTrainercopy.png?v=1752861540"},{"product_id":"the-horses-who-made-me","title":"The Horses Who Made Me","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003ciframe title=\"YouTube video player\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/iuAI8W2VWq4?si=1DUzPxWUcvYRu7Q5\" height=\"315\" width=\"560\" allowfullscreen=\"\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" frameborder=\"0\"\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHow a Grand Prix dressage rider competed at the highest level before finding her way to liberty work, and the extraordinary lessons that molded her perceptions, understandings, and feelings along the way.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“In my eyes,” says former French international dressage competitor Alizée Froment, “dressage is the journey to perfect communication and absolute harmony between horse and rider.” Her own journey began on the backs of Shetland ponies under the watchful eyes of her mother and then found its way into jumping competitions, and later on, dressage arenas. Along the way, many horses entered and exited her life, each bringing with them a depth of personality that steadily built her understanding of the relationship a rider can build with an equine partner.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn her deeply personal and strikingly beautiful book, Froment traces her evolution as a horsewoman, a dressage competitor, and now a world-renowned performer and liberty trainer. Readers meet the ponies she learned on, and the challenging mounts that helped her grow as a junior rider. There were horses she immediately loved and horses she had to work to connect with—and eventually there were Mistral and Sultan, who she calls her “yin and yang,” and who elevated her aspirations both beside and on the back of a horse. It is with these two special souls that Froment further explored riding the Grand Prix movements with only a neck rope—no bridle or bit, and often bareback as well—and demonstrating to the world the potential that is there for all riders to enjoy, if they are open to the experience and are willing to take the time for it to evolve.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eReaders will be entranced by Froment's willingness to bare her soul, powerfully articulating her feelings when confronted with jealousy, with performance expectations, with the possibility of losing the horse she loved to an unknown buyer, with retiring a beloved partner, and with the changing circumstances and altered allegiances of her heart when her daughter Louise is born. As tender as a story about riding, competing, and performing with horses at the highest levels can be, \u003ci\u003eThe Horses Who Made Me\u003c\/i\u003e is first a story of one woman's personal journey, eternally questioning herself, and second, an inspiration for anyone who is forever striving for a better way of training horses, because of the profound beauty you just might find.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"TSB","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":50728280129833,"sku":"9781646012152","price":35.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0832\/4422\/0713\/files\/TheHorsesWhoMadeMe-web.png?v=1752861503"},{"product_id":"to-borrow-freedom","title":"To Borrow Freedom","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eA memoir of building a life around hospitality and horseback riding, and the delicate dance of creating happiness for others and finding it for oneself.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eStarting out with nothing but a tent, a couple of dogs, five horses, and a lot of energy, Sheila Greenfield and her husband Robert set out to build their dream: a company that provided high-end horseback riding vacations, based in the Lower Alentejo, along Portugal's idyllic southwestern coast. The couple bought an ancient and run-down farm in a remote area of the region's nature park and worked to transform it into a popular lifestyle hotel—a horseback rider's paradise.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn her debut memoir, Greenfield tells the story of their unique business's genesis and its heyday as it became a favored European travel destination, with repeat visitors returning every year. From high-speed gallops through the surf to free-spirited parties under starlit skies, readers will be entranced by the stunning natural world Greenfield's uniquely sensitive prose brings to life. With honesty and vivid reflection, she captures the unglamorous realities and daily challenges of life as a host, entertainer, employer, and caretaker. It is a story of endurance and discipline, but also of camaraderie and communion as guests had the chance to experience life-altering partnerships with Greenfield's herd of 35 exceptional pure or cross-bred Lusitano horses, the breed native to Portugal. Along the way, readers meet the horses and learn their backstories, benefitting from the remarkable lessons the animals with both their day-to-day caretakers, and the visiting riders who knew them only for short but intense periods.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDetermined to promote the most natural methods of horse care, Greenfield found conscientious tools and practices that promoted her horses' well-being while enhancing their natural versatility, endurance, courage, and generosity. The result was fit, happy, independently minded horses who gave their all to their riders. And it was this that became the heart of their company's successful business model.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut all was not smooth sailing, as any interweaving of lives, human and animal, brings to the fore questions, insecurities, complexities, and injuries. After all, no life is simple. With a tenderness of word choice that embodies the author's own emotional investment in her singular story, Greenfield shares the heartbreak of a young staff member faced with the hardest of life choices, and admits her own uneasiness and uncertainty when confronted with her evolving relationship with Robert and the demanding life they have chosen together. The result is a beautiful book, daring in its richness of detail and generous in its authenticity, certain to be enjoyed by all those who love adventure, or travel, or horses, or profoundly unique stories of coming together and coming undone.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"TSB","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50725480431913,"sku":"9781646012183","price":26.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0832\/4422\/0713\/files\/ToBorrowFreedom1-web.png?v=1752861490"}],"url":"https:\/\/trafalgarsquarebooks.myshopify.com\/collections\/biography-memoir.oembed","provider":"Trafalgar Square Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}