The Ride of Her Life by Elizabeth Letts is the story of Annie Wilkins, the 63 year old who decided to ride across country from Maine to California in the 1950s. This book adds to Annie's story with inserts about the history of the United States at that time. The information builds on an incident, a location, or even a person along Annie journey and expands to present the history. The history at times seems to interrupt Annie's story, but, at the same time, provides the context. However, the uniqueness of Annie and her journey is definitely the ultimate lasting impression of this book.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2022/01/the-ride-of-her-life.html

Reviewed for NetGalley.

This was a story of courage and pluck. Annie is a 63 year old woman in the early 1950's who is told she only has a few years left to live. With no money, no family and poor health she decides she has one last chance to follow her dream of seeing the Pacific Ocean. So, Annie gathers her few belongs, her little dog and her horse and sets off on a cross-country trip from Maine to California! (And starts off in the winter!) Interesting story and had me wondering if something like this could be done in today's world!

I enjoyed reading The Ride of Her Life by Elizabeth Letts - treat yourself to a new book today.
I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and the publisher ~ Thank you ~ !! This is my honest and personal review.

Loved this book! I read the story of Snowman (show jumper) by this author and loved it! It feels so real (and it is a true story so that’s good) and authentic and I enjoyed reading about the Annie Wilkins and her travels from Maine to California. The unique people she met along the way and the fun stories she collected.

The Ride of Her Life will grow on you. Elizabeth Letts takes us along on a journey that seems unlikely to succeed. A 63 years young woman named Annie has not much to loose. With her dog, an horse, and as much as she can carry, sets out on a journey from Maine. Her goal is to achieve her dream of seeing the Pacific Ocean. Set in the 1950’s this true story takes you on a nostalgic trip to a simpler time. A time when a more small town agrarian country is rapidly changing as Americans moved further from congestion of cities to suburbs on a ribbon of interstates. Annie is a real character that’s going to grab hold of you. It’s a great read for those who love a bit of memoir , Americana, traveling, an nostalgia. I enjoyed it very much. Again I thank #Netgalley for an advance copy that too me far to long to get to. 3.5 stars.

I'm just not sure about this book, it was just an okay read. Felt it was more for a young person to read. I have read her books before, I really liked them.

This was a breathtaking book about Annie Wilkins, a 63 year old farmer, who decides to take a cross country journey on her horse in 1954. She leaves from Maine and heads to California to see the Pacific Ocean. Her journey is full of community, peril, and excitement. Annie is one tough lady and I really enjoyed this story of her life and adventure.

Rich in historical detail, I loved following along on Annie’s travels across our nation. And I learned so much!! The book is very well written and Annie’s story is captivating.
Many thanks to Random House Publishing and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Ride of Her Life

The True Story of a Woman, Her horse and the Last-Chance Journey Across America

By: Elizabeth Letts

Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine

Ballantine Books

History/Nonfiction (Adult)/outdoors and Nature

Publish Date 01 June 2021

#TheRideofHerLife#NetGalley

100 Book ReviewsProfessional Reader

I would like to thank Kathleen Quinlan from Random House Publishing who recommended this book to me back in March of 2021.

Good Reads Synopsis:

The incredible true story of a woman who rode her horse across America in the 1950s, fulfilling her dying wish to see the Pacific Ocean, from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Perfect Horse and The Eighty-Dollar Champion .

In 1954, Annie Wilkins, a sixty-three-year-old farmer from Maine, embarked on an impossible journey. She had no relatives left, she’d lost her family farm to back taxes, and her doctor had just given her two years to live–but only if she lived restfully. He offered her a spot in the county’s charity home. Instead, she decided she wanted to see the Pacific Ocean just once before she died. She bought a cast-off brown gelding named Tarzan, donned men’s dungarees, loaded up her horse, and headed out from Maine in mid-November, hoping to beat the snow. She had no map, no GPS, no phone. But she had her ex-racehorse, her faithful mutt, and her own unfailing belief that Americans would treat a stranger with kindness.

Between 1954 and 1956, Annie, Tarzan, and her dog, Depeche Toi, journeyed more than 4,000 miles, through America’s big cities and small towns, meeting ordinary people and celebrities–from Andrew Wyeth (who sketched Tarzan) to Art Linkletter and Groucho Marx. She received many offers–a permanent home at a riding stable in New Jersey, a job at a gas station in rural Kentucky, even a marriage proposal from a Wyoming rancher who loved animals as much as she did. As Annie trudged through blizzards, forded rivers, climbed mountains, and clung to the narrow shoulder as cars whipped by her at terrifying speeds, she captured the imagination of an apprehensive Cold War America. At a time when small towns were being bypassed by Eisenhower’s brand-new interstate highway system, and the reach and impact of television was just beginning to be understood, Annie and her four-footed companions inspired an outpouring of neighborliness in a rapidly changing world.

Reveiw:

I give tis book 3 stars. I always feel funny giving a biography or memoir a low rating. 3 stars isn’t bad but it does mean I didn’t enjoy it as much. It might be that I never heard of her before and didn’t have a connection to start with.

This is about Annie who is 63 years and has been given two years to live. She has lost her farm but her dream is to the Pacific Ocean. She decides to do this before she dies. The problem is she doesn’t have any money and she lives in Maine.

This book is about her journey across the Us to go see the Pacific Ocean. She does this on horse back. She takes her little dog along with her. She meets some great people along the way who end up being life time friends and a great help along the way.

I received a free electric ARC of this amazing biography of Annie Wilkins, and the detailed record of her journey on horseback beginning in 1955 from Minot, Maine to Los Angeles, California, from Netgalley, Elizabeth Letts, and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine Books. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read this wonderful story of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work. I can always recommend Elizabeth Letts to friends and family. This book is a tear-jerker, a story with heart and soul.

Be sure you have lots of tea and Kleenex before you start this excellent biography. Annie Wilkins is a third-generation farmer, a single woman 63 years old with no family left after the death of her Uncle and after a couple of bad years on the farm and a diagnosis from her doctor of only two to four years left to live, she decided to take the last of her money, let the farm go for back taxes, buy a horse and with her little dog Depeche Toi take a journey to warm, sunny California. Part of her decision to make this rash trip is the certainty that if she stays in Maine she will become a burden to someone. She can't stand the thought of that. And in part, it is a last-ditch effort to see something of the United States. She always thought she would, eventually. But she is running out of time.

And things fall into place for her like clockwork. She finds Rex, a small gelding though considered aged. Rex is all brown, fading to red with no white whatsoever, reminding Annie of the Morgan horses she watched race in her youth. Rex is a bit twitchy but raring to go. It doesn't take long for Annie to sort out what she wants to take with her. She herself is five foot tall but like Rex, very solid, so weight has to be a consideration. Of course, it is October - she will have to make her way south fairly fast to avoid another Yankee winter. Thus, her journey begins.

And we see America passing by through her eyes, we experience American's at their finest as she travels south, and then west, always seeking the warmth of the sun. Annie and her critters make it all seem real again, one nation, undivided. It is a story meant to be shared, a reminder of just what made America a great place to be 70 years ago. What it will take to make it great again.

And if you haven't read Finding Dorothy, do so! It too is remarkable.

This book told an amazing story about an amazing woman and her animal companions. When she undertook the horseback journey to the Pacific Ocean, this woman most likely did not expect to meet the many people and situations she encountered. Our world sadly needs the kind of neighborliness Annie encountered in her marvelous ride. This story evoked a feeling for the 1950's, a time that most likely we will never again experience.

Despite being in poor health and only being given a couple more years to live, 63 year old Annie Wilkins embarks on a cross country road trip with only a horse and her pet dog. Along her 4,000+ mile trip from Maine to California, she is embraced by the kindness of strangers who give her food, shelter, and other traveling necessities. It was rather interesting to read about how her travels sparked a nationwide interest in her travels and how fellow Americans stepped up to help her. I found that the first part of the book grabbed me, but my interest started to wane near the end. I guess since this is based on a true story, you can't make a lot of action if it never happened. I was glad that I read the book, nonetheless, because I enjoy reading about overlooked historical figures. I also found that it was inspiring to read about someone going against the odds and making a trip of a lifetime. Thanks to Random House/Ballantine and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book. All thoughts expressed are my honest opinions of this book.

This book was great! I loved the story and now I want to go buy a horse! I have loved this author and think this may be the first time I truly appreciated her!

I am a lover of non-fiction that tells like a story and I really thought I would enjoy this based on the description. Unfortunately, I just didn’t care for the author’s choice of historical descriptive sources of information such as highway construction, etc. The pace of the book honestly felt like I was on horseback, so I guess it was a successful in that regard. I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I grew up watching horses that she bred go on to be champion show horses. This story in not only inspirational but heart felt. You dont have to be an equestrian to enjoy it but if you are you will LOVE it

Elizabeth Letts has become one of my drop-everything authors. Instead of writing about the same historical figures that everybody else writes about, she finds noteworthy women that have fallen through the cracks of history. The Ride of Her Life chronicles the latter years of Annie Wilkins, a senior citizen that given not long to live, and not much to lose, decides to embark on a cross-country journey on horseback so that she can see the Pacific Ocean before she dies. I was invited to read and review this remarkable novel by Net Galley and Random House Ballantine. It’s for sale now.

Annie Wilkins lives in rural Maine, and is endeavoring to continue to run the family farm. It hasn’t gone well. Between a series of events beyond her control and an aging body, she falls behind, and then more so, until the bank gives notice of foreclosure. At the same time her lungs aren’t doing well; the doctor gives her two or three years to live, but only if she does so restfully. She is offered a place at the county home, which is essentially a charity lodging for the indigent.

Under similar circumstances and with no family to fall back on, most of us would have sold the farm and gone to rest in the county poorhouse, but Annie is not like most people. She sells up, and she plans her next move carefully. She packs up the things she and her dog will need for their trip, and since the purchase and maintenance of a car are beyond her means, she buys a good horse. That’s it. She packs up her maps and gets on the horse. (The dog alternates between walking and riding.)

Part of the joy in reading of her adventures is the window it provides into the United States in 1954, before most of us were born. For those outside of cities, horseback travel is still not unusual; Annie’s greatest challenge, of course, is her lack of awareness about highway safety. Her initial plan is to ride alongside the road when possible, and on the shoulder when it isn’t, but there are a host of dangers out there, and almost everything that can happen to her, does. But people are essentially goodhearted, and in every instance, someone kind and decent comes along and does right by her and her critters.

In the polarized time in which we live, this is exactly the story we need. I suspect that if Annie were to do the same thing today, there would still be people that would come along, and without inquiring who she voted for in the most recent election or whether she has received a vaccine, would feed her, or offer up their guest room for a night or two, or would drive her to the hospital. Those people were there then; their descendants are here still. We have not changed all that much.

Letts has told an engaging story, but part of my mad respect for her has to do with her attention to detail. The very best historical fiction is essentially true, with dialogue added for interest, and Letts writes the best, no doubt about it. Her endnotes are impressive, and she tells us that she drove more than 10,000 miles while researching her book.

Because I had fallen behind with my reviews, I checked out the audio version from Seattle Bibliocommons and alternated it with my digital galley. Both are outstanding; you can’t go wrong either way. Highly recommended!

This is an interesting book about a woman's dream to see the Pacific Ocean before she dies. She decides to take a cross country trip on her horse so that she can see the ocean. Defying her doctor and expectations and does what she wants and goes on the trip. She meets lots of people on her journey and discovers kindness as she travels across the county.

This is one of those stories that will stick with you for a long time; it follows you long after you put the book down. It's the story of Annie Wilkins, a 63-year-old woman from a hardscrabble farm in Maine in the 1950s, who, when she loses the farm to taxes, realizes she is free to do whatever she couldn't before, and buys a horse (Tarzan), packs up, and with her dog, Depeche Toi, sets off for California and the Pacific Ocean. She is both starkly realistic and deeply naive, and learns a great deal about the trio's abilities and American society of the time. And the story is absolutely fascinating. The historical and sociological background adds profound depth and layers to the experience, and point out what make this time period unique. But the fortitude and intense trust between the threesome, and eventually the addition of another horse, Rex, is what is most memorable and moving about this particular story. The author has done a truly wonderful job of recreating the relationship between human and horse and dog, absolutely exceptional.

In 1953 Annie was alone in life at 63 years old and not expected to live beyond another two years. She had a dream of seeing the pacific ocean. She had just lost her family farm and had no one that cared about her. She loved her dog and horse. She bought a horse no one wanted, packed up saddlebags and took her dog and horses across country to reach the pacific before she died.
This telling of her story is one of American resilience,, of honoring ones dreams and of a woman's last dying wish. What follows is her amazing story and a wonderful telling of our country and our people of that time. Annie was looked upon by many on her journey with disdain but she also was met with kindness by so many and it was through this kindness that she continued in the worse of times. . Soon her story was told by many and when she made it to California two years later after many difficulties, she was a celebrity.
This is both heartwarming and heartbreaking. She was a remarkable brave woman and I was honored to read her story. She is a woman of our history to be admired. I loved reading her story and will treasure the memory of Annie and her journey.
Thank you to the author and to Net Galley. My review opinions are my own.

This is a gem of a book about a woman in her 60s who has led a very difficult life and lives on a farm in Maine when she decides, having received a poor prognosis from a doctor, that she wants to see California before she dies. That in itself wouldn't be a story, but she decides to travel cross country via horseback. Now that's a story. The author intersperses the story of Annie with the changing landscape of America. Annie will leave you uplifted about the American spirit. Elizabeth Letts has done an excellent job researching America of the 1950s and the changing transportation, city and towns, and landscapes of this country.