Overview

The horse Jim was known as Beautiful Jim Key from the moment he stepped into the American spotlight in 1897 at age eight until his death in 1912. This horse was beloved for his remarkable intelligence, cultivated by human kindness and patience. Proclaimed a genius, a leader of his species, the smartest horse who ever lived, with an IQ the equivalent of a twelve-year-old human, Jim Key appeared to read, write, spell, do mathematics, tell time, sort mail, use a cash register and a telephone, cite bible passages by chapter and verse, and engage in political debate. Jim Key and his owner travelled the country performing these tricks, and whether true or not, the public believed it was so. No less extraordinary was the man who trained Jim, Dr. William Key of Shelbyville, Tennessee, a former slave who in his life had seen horrific cruelty toward humans and animals. Bill Key was a self-schooled veterinarian and Black entrepreneur who refused to use force in any guise while breaking and training horses. It was thanks to this rare and intimate relationship between horse and man, championed by a second man named Albert R. Rogers--inventor, philanthropist, and founding member of the American Humane Society--that the animal rights movement was legitimized and born into the twentieth century.

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9781665042895

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Reviews

A wonderful slice of American life at the turn of the last century. -- Contra Costa Times Beautiful Jim Key represents a rediscovered treasure that has lain hidden for almost a century. -- Bob Womack, author of The Echo of Hoof Beats Chronicles the adventures of a great horse and the men who loved him...Rivas's engaging story is filled with eyebrow-raising details -- Entertainment Weekly Compelling...provides a vivid slice of Americana. -- Parade If Beautiful Jim Key were alive today, he'd have a movie deal. -- People Jim Key, in his own beautiful way, whispered to Americans' hearts and awakened their soul. -- Los Angeles Times Just might be the bottled lightning that was Hillenbrand's Seabiscuit. -- Kirkus Reviews Rivas performs an important service by bringing this story to light and reminding us how it was almost lost. -- Knoxville News-Sentinel Rivas shows how the intimate bond between horse and man prompted hundreds of thousands of schoolchildren to pledge 'always to be kind to animals' and propelled the growth of animal-rights and anti-cruelty groups. -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) Seabiscuit had nothing on Beautiful Jim Key. -- Sacramento Bee

Author Information

Mim Eichler Rivas has worked as an author, coauthor and collaborator on more than eighteen books, including the New York Times Bestsellers The Pursuit of Happyness with Chris Gardner Finding Fish with Antwone Fisher, and A Mother For All Seasons with Debbie Phelp. Mim is the sole author of the highly acclaimed Beautiful Jim Key. Mim and her family live in Hermosa Beach, California. Mim Eichler Rivas has worked as an author, coauthor and collaborator on more than eighteen books, including the New York Times Bestsellers The Pursuit of Happyness with Chris Gardner Finding Fish with Antwone Fisher, and A Mother For All Seasons with Debbie Phelp. Mim is the sole author of the highly acclaimed Beautiful Jim Key. Mim and her family live in Hermosa Beach, California.

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