And I based that on my own relationship with horses and the incredible understanding that you can have if you can bridge the species divide and win their trust and their affection. And so I imagined Jarret having a relationship with the horse from the time he was foaled until his late life. But it did lead me to learn about all the incredibly accomplished Black horsemen who were responsible for this racehorse's success. And I tried to learn about who that groom was, but I couldn't find anything about him on the record. And it describes Lexington being led out by, quote, 'Black Jarret, his groom.' And it's late in the stallion's life. So the character of Jarret was suggested to me by a reference to him describing a painting that is missing. SIMON: Help us understand the extraordinary relationship between Jarret Lewis and Lexington - because Jarret had a different view from the first about training a horse, didn't he?īROOKS: Well, that's right. He also had a lovely temperament and great courage. He had incredible strength and endurance and blistering speed.

SIMON: Tell us about Lexington in his prime.īROOKS: He was the most outstanding horse. GERALDINE BROOKS: It's such a pleasure to be with you, Scott. Geraldine Brooks' new novel is called 'Horse.' And the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist of 'March' and other bestsellers joins us now from Martha's Vineyard, Mass. It's a human story that takes us from the time of Jarret Lewis, the enslaved young man who becomes his groom, to the racing grounds of old New Orleans and contemporary scholars in Washington, D.C., who resurrect Lexington with a portrait and with his long-abandoned bones, discovered in the attic of the Smithsonian. The story of his career is the skeleton, if you please, in which Geraldine Brooks hangs her latest novel. Lexington was one of the most extraordinary athletes of the 19th century.

Geraldine brooks writer