CQHA launches a virtual Book Club featuring Canadian authors of equine and equine related fiction, and nonfiction.

Ottawa, JUNE 29, 2020 - The Canadian Quarter Horse Association (CQHA), the Canadian affiliate of the American Quarter Horse Association (AQHA), and representative of the largest breed population within the Canadian herd, has announced that a Book Club will be launched in July 2020 as part of their community building initiatives. The books chosen are all written by Canadian authors, many of them CQHA members or with ties to the Quarter Horse industry in Canada. The Book Club will be run virtually, through social media platforms and kicked off with Long Ride Home: Guts, Guns and Grizzlies written by Ryerson University alumni and international long rider Filipe Masetti Leite. Soon to be made into a major motion picture, this book is the first installment of the author’s historic long ride through the whole of the Americas and back again. The book is available on Amazon and through Kindle Unlimited. Other selected authors include Ontario artist and first-time novelist Mark Grice; past CQHA president Marnie Sommers’ coauthored work with her mother Norma Sluman; and celebrated Canadian journalist and winner of the Western Writers of America Spur Award (first Canadian honoured) Paul St. Pierre of British Columbia.

“Canada is rich in literary talent, and there certainly isn’t a shortage of horse stories in this country, so when, out of personal curiosity, I started to look for new Canadian books to read which had an equine spin to them during this pandemic, it dawned on me just how many people I knew within the Canadian Quarter Horse industry who had published books, and that was pretty much how the idea for the CQHA Book Club happened,” stated CQHA Media Committee Chairperson Laurie Haughton. It didn’t take long for the CQHA Media Team to compile a list of over a dozen titles, and fortunately because many of the authors are either involved with Quarter Horses in Canada or are at least friends of the industry, it’s been a fairly easy process to welcome the authors to be involved with the Book Club as the idea has developed.

From the trail, Filipe Masetti Leite is quoted, “I am thrilled to have my bestseller, Long Ride Home, open the CQHA virtual Book Club! In the work, I talk about my passion for the Quarter Horse and how the breed helped inspire my dream of crossing the Americas on horseback. And it’s thanks to my horses Bruiser and Frenchie, two majestic Quarter Horses from Montana, that I managed to live that dream.” The accomplished cowboy and author was just kilometers and days away from completing his historic ride as he was welcomed back to Calgary this year as their 2020 Calgary Stampede Parade Marshal (The Parade Marshal without a parade due to Covid-19).

Plans are under way for authors to host Facebook LIVE readings of their works, help facilitate Book Club discussions, and even create contests for other aspiring authors who have a few good horse stories of their own tucked away. Author and renowned artist Mark Grice said about the inspiration for his book Paint The Horse Blue, “As a horseman I wanted to write a story that had all of the authenticity that horse people want in an equine- themed novel. At the same time, non-horse people can enjoy a glimpse into our industry and get caught up in the main plot of the story, which is in the characters and relationships.”

The Book Club will be open to Canadian and international book lovers and equine enthusiasts, with no fee to join. The primary purpose of the club is to be a social function of the CQHA and to assist in promoting the talent that exists beyond the barn, amongst Canada’s equestrians involved with the Quarter Horse industry. Book Club sign up information is now available on the CQHA Facebook page.

The Canadian Quarter Horse Association exists to address issues of concern to Canadian owners of American Quarter Horses; to be a communications vehicle for and with Canadian AQHA members; and to promote and market Canadian-bred and/or Canadian-owned American Quarter Horses, both globally and domestically. To learn more please visit the CQHA website or contact our media director Laurie Haughton by email at info@cqha.ca.

Photo: Shutterstock/Zuzule