--- product_id: 2084662 title: "Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel" price: "€ 18.12" currency: EUR in_stock: true reviews_count: 9 url: https://www.desertcart.ie/products/2084662-half-broke-horses-a-true-life-novel store_origin: IE region: Ireland --- # Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel **Price:** € 18.12 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel - **How much does it cost?** € 18.12 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.ie](https://www.desertcart.ie/products/2084662-half-broke-horses-a-true-life-novel) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description desertcart.com: Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel: 9781416586296: Walls, Jeannette: Books Review: MEMORABLE CHARACTERS & BEAUTIFUL PROSE - "Those old cows knew trouble was coming before we did." So begins the story of Lily Casey Smith, in Jeannette Walls's magnificent, true-life novel based on her no-nonsense, resourceful, hard working, and spectacularly compelling grandmother. By age six, Lily was helping her father break horses. At fifteen, she left home to teach in a frontier town -- riding five hundred miles on her pony, all alone, to get to her job. She learned to drive a car ("I loved cars even more than I loved horses. They didn't need to be fed if they weren't working, and they didn't leave big piles of manure all over the place") and fly a plane, and, with her husband, ran a vast ranch in Arizona. She raised two children, one of whom is Jeannette's memorable mother, Rosemary Smith Walls, unforgettably portrayed in Glass Castle . From the very first page of Half Broke Horses , I was hooked. Lily Casey's first person narrative brought me right into the midst of her world: a world that started in West Texas, but would lead her to numerous places, from Arizona to Chicago and back to Arizona, with a few jogs along the way. Through her eyes I saw the gorgeous, yet sometimes brutal Southwest, from a new perspective. I could admire her energy as she trained those "half broke horses" that occasionally came along. And her determination to earn her education in spite of the odds against her. Some might describe her as stubborn, while others can see that she had the stamina necessary for the life she had chosen. A life thrust upon her by birth and family, but one to which she returned after deciding that "city life" was not for her. Her persistence in showing her children the life lessons she wanted them to learn had the opposite effect on her daughter Rosemary (the author's mother). Rosemary preferred living life for the moment, since the future was not something one could count on. I liked this excerpt that shows us the companionship between Lily and her husband Jim, and their philosophy, too, as they watch their daughter after her wedding to Rex Walls: "Jim put his arm around me and we watched them take off up the street, heading out into open country like a couple of half-broke horses." The author describes that she gleaned the facts of the story from those she interviewed, but that she recalls her grandmother's distinctive voice: a wonderful detail she has brought to the reader as she tells the story. A story that I won't forget...and to which I offer five stars. Review: Not The Glass Castle But A Great Book That Hearkens Back To A Simpler Harder Time In A Beautiful Way - This book reminded me of the stories that my grandmother and her sisters told of growing up in Texas and Oklahoma during the depression. Told in the first person, this book may be hard for some tor read as it reads as a story being recounted by the person being written about. I think the book does a great job of capturing (if not romanticizing) the enduring spirit of women and men who settled this country and built it in the early 1900's. The story does a wonderful job of recounting stories that were handed down through generations about the matriarchal figure of the writer's family. It also chronicles to some extent the life of her mother, one of the big figures in The Glass Castle. I liked this book a lot because it really did deliver on the promise of describing a woman who is bigger than life and who overcomes unthinkable adversity with grace and determination. The story ultimately reminded me of many similar stories that the older women in my own family recounted and the values they developed as a result of living them. An interesting thing that the story does if provide hope in a time currently where many people are facing one of the toughest times of their lives. It provides hope and a lesson for how to live when times are difficult. And, I think that it is also a history lesson in ways for younger generations who are out of touch with the experiences of people who lived through those times. I believe that many women will find Lily Casey Smith, the central figure of the book inspirational and in interesting ways a model for life that they themselves might adopt in times of stress or difficulty. I think Janette Walls has done another phenomenal job, I can't wait for her next book. Her books are a joy to read. ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #41,004 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #80 in Biographical & Autofiction #298 in Contemporary Literature & Fiction #1,216 in Literary Fiction (Books) | | Customer Reviews | 4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars (9,614) | | Dimensions | 5.25 x 0.76 x 8 inches | | Edition | Reprint | | ISBN-10 | 1416586296 | | ISBN-13 | 978-1416586296 | | Item Weight | 2.31 pounds | | Language | English | | Print length | 272 pages | | Publication date | September 7, 2010 | | Publisher | Scribner | ## Images ![Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71j8w7SSlPL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ MEMORABLE CHARACTERS & BEAUTIFUL PROSE *by L***W on March 8, 2013* "Those old cows knew trouble was coming before we did." So begins the story of Lily Casey Smith, in Jeannette Walls's magnificent, true-life novel based on her no-nonsense, resourceful, hard working, and spectacularly compelling grandmother. By age six, Lily was helping her father break horses. At fifteen, she left home to teach in a frontier town -- riding five hundred miles on her pony, all alone, to get to her job. She learned to drive a car ("I loved cars even more than I loved horses. They didn't need to be fed if they weren't working, and they didn't leave big piles of manure all over the place") and fly a plane, and, with her husband, ran a vast ranch in Arizona. She raised two children, one of whom is Jeannette's memorable mother, Rosemary Smith Walls, unforgettably portrayed in Glass Castle . From the very first page of Half Broke Horses , I was hooked. Lily Casey's first person narrative brought me right into the midst of her world: a world that started in West Texas, but would lead her to numerous places, from Arizona to Chicago and back to Arizona, with a few jogs along the way. Through her eyes I saw the gorgeous, yet sometimes brutal Southwest, from a new perspective. I could admire her energy as she trained those "half broke horses" that occasionally came along. And her determination to earn her education in spite of the odds against her. Some might describe her as stubborn, while others can see that she had the stamina necessary for the life she had chosen. A life thrust upon her by birth and family, but one to which she returned after deciding that "city life" was not for her. Her persistence in showing her children the life lessons she wanted them to learn had the opposite effect on her daughter Rosemary (the author's mother). Rosemary preferred living life for the moment, since the future was not something one could count on. I liked this excerpt that shows us the companionship between Lily and her husband Jim, and their philosophy, too, as they watch their daughter after her wedding to Rex Walls: "Jim put his arm around me and we watched them take off up the street, heading out into open country like a couple of half-broke horses." The author describes that she gleaned the facts of the story from those she interviewed, but that she recalls her grandmother's distinctive voice: a wonderful detail she has brought to the reader as she tells the story. A story that I won't forget...and to which I offer five stars. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Not The Glass Castle But A Great Book That Hearkens Back To A Simpler Harder Time In A Beautiful Way *by D***I on November 9, 2009* This book reminded me of the stories that my grandmother and her sisters told of growing up in Texas and Oklahoma during the depression. Told in the first person, this book may be hard for some tor read as it reads as a story being recounted by the person being written about. I think the book does a great job of capturing (if not romanticizing) the enduring spirit of women and men who settled this country and built it in the early 1900's. The story does a wonderful job of recounting stories that were handed down through generations about the matriarchal figure of the writer's family. It also chronicles to some extent the life of her mother, one of the big figures in The Glass Castle. I liked this book a lot because it really did deliver on the promise of describing a woman who is bigger than life and who overcomes unthinkable adversity with grace and determination. The story ultimately reminded me of many similar stories that the older women in my own family recounted and the values they developed as a result of living them. An interesting thing that the story does if provide hope in a time currently where many people are facing one of the toughest times of their lives. It provides hope and a lesson for how to live when times are difficult. And, I think that it is also a history lesson in ways for younger generations who are out of touch with the experiences of people who lived through those times. I believe that many women will find Lily Casey Smith, the central figure of the book inspirational and in interesting ways a model for life that they themselves might adopt in times of stress or difficulty. I think Janette Walls has done another phenomenal job, I can't wait for her next book. Her books are a joy to read. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ The story of one incredible, resourceful woman *by M***H on October 27, 2012* I loved this book. The style of writing was engaging, the story incredibly interesting. Lily Casey Smith, was one pretty brave, resourceful, curious, creative, cunning, strong woman. I don't think they make many like her any more! The bulk of the story is set in Arizona, and what a sense of hardship it must have been living in that time, in that manner. But, for Lily, I don't think she saw it that way. Lily rose to every challenge and made the best of her situation in life. The people she met, whose names are on buildings or etched in Arizona history color this book. In fact, Lily's name should be etched into the fabric of Arizona history. I liked her resourcefulness in that when she was looking for a bus, for a small frontier school where she taught, she that it an excellent deal to purchase a used hearse! Writing school bus on it, didn't really change the fact, but it did the job. I got a sense that she felt happier, more alive and free in the country than when she lived in Phoenix. And, the pictures of the countryside, painted through the story where really sharp, desolate, yet gave such an incredible sense of freedom. This is one very enjoyable book. I urge you to read it. ## Frequently Bought Together - Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel - The Glass Castle: A Memoir (book) - The Silver Star: A Novel --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.ie/products/2084662-half-broke-horses-a-true-life-novel](https://www.desertcart.ie/products/2084662-half-broke-horses-a-true-life-novel) --- *Product available on Desertcart Ireland* *Store origin: IE* *Last updated: 2026-05-23*