ok bois, because the horsekin tag is deader than my will to live, this is a list for all the other equines looking for some actual good media!!
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HORSE THERIANS :
BOOKS
BLACK BEAUTY (1877) anna sewell wanna know how old this is?? i first watched it on vcr when i was 4-5 and i’m 17. black beauty is a book written about an english farm horse set in 1800s london, england. it’s told from the perspective of the horse and is a must-read for any horsekin. there is also a 1944 FILM ADAPTION directed by caroline thompson.
NATIONAL VELVET (1935) enid bagnold national velvet is about a 14yo girl who wins a horse in a raffle and goes on to win the grand national steeplechase. although it focuses more on the ideal that ordinary people can do anything, the horse is still the main focus. there was a 1944 FILM ADAPTION, as well as a relatively successful TV SHOW.
THE HORSE GOD BUILT (2006) lawrence scanlan i'm pretty fucking sure everyone in the entire history of equestrian has heard of secretariat. have u not?? ur missin out pal. secretariat was the only two-year-old to ever win horse of the year (a prestigious racing award given to the best thoroughbred), and his record times in the triple crown (that he won all of) still unbeaten. this book tells secretariat’s story from the perspective of his groom, eddie sweat, and gives an insight to the racing community at that time.
MOVIES
SPIRIT: STALLION OF THE CIMARRON (2002) spirit is a mustang living in the old west - again, the story is told “straight from the horse’s mouth”, and it’s fucking good my pals. the animation is absolutely beAUTIF U L and i’ve cried more times in this entire fucking movie than i have in my entire life!! if you were a wild horse, this is the best movie i can recommend.
SECRETARIAT (2010) didn’t hear me yell about secretariat?? well now u can because this movie is the Fucking Best. not told from the horse’s point of view, but it’s an amazing film with lots of feels nonetheless. it focuses more on the economic side of things & the people, but this is probably one of my new go-to movies for the Horsey Feels after black beauty.
PHAR LAP (1983) phar lap was a champion new zealand thoroughbred (fUKC AUSTRALIA YALL GOT THE WINS BUT WE GAVE B I R TH TO HIM) who won, and i’m not shittin y’all honestly look this up, all of his races except three (two he came close second, his first ever race he lost completely). he raced during the great depression and was found mysteriously poisoned in his stall after winning the agua caliente handicap. he is, quite possibly, the most famous racehorse in history. his skeleton is housed in melbourne(?) museum, and his coat is in te papa museum.
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UNICORNKIN
BOOKS
UNICORNS OF BALINOR - THE SERIES (1999) mary stanton i’m not gonna lie to y’all, i’ve never fuckin read these books. i was a goosebumps kid, not unicorns of balinor. so!! this series starts off with a young girl recovering in hospital after a mysterious accident gives her memory loss.
THE LAST UNICORN (1968) peter s. beagle an evil wizard christopher lee is trying to kill all unicorns?? and mia (a unicorn) leaves the forest to try and take on christopher lee with a clumsy sorcerer. there’s also a 1982 FILM ADAPTION.
THE LITTLE WHITE HORSE (1946) elizabeth goudge i read a book like this when i was a kid but honestly i haven no fuckin clue if this is the same one b uT!! from what i gather the main girl becomes an orphan and moves to a country estate to live with her relatives?? and there’s a bunch of magical creatures hiding out there and the house has a secret or smth. the 1994 TV SERIES moonacre was based on the book, as was the 2008 FILM ADAPTION they renamed the secret of moonacre.
MOVIES
THE LITTLE UNICORN (2002) so this kid has a pony right?? and that pony dies, so she’s grieving and grieving uNT I L she finds a baby unicorn?? so they (as in she and her grandfather) rescue it from the circus it was captured by. seems p good tbh, i might watch it later.
THE SECRET OF MOONACRE (2008) ok so i know i already kinda put it up there, but because it’s under two titles (the book and the movie are the same plot!!) i’ll put it up again.
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ZEBRA THERIANS
i shit y’all not, there are like 0 fiction books about zebras. the closest y’all are gonna get to books about zebras are from national geographic.
MOVIES
RACING STRIPES (2005) if y’all haven’t seen this movie pleasure for the love of god watch it!! this was actual the best movie in my childhood it was s O ridiculous. a zebra foal is left behind from a circus and a girl + her grandfather find him and raise him as a farm horse, but they live by a racetrack right?? so the girl decides to train him as a racer it is the b e st
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if i’ve missed any or you know any better, feel free to add on!!