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You are here: Home / Culture / Books / A powerful, coming of age parable – THE EQUESTRIENNE | BOOK REVIEW

A powerful, coming of age parable – THE EQUESTRIENNE | BOOK REVIEW

November 3, 2021 Category: Books, Reviews
Uršuľa Kovalyk
Uršuľa Kovalyk
The Equestrienne - Uršuľa Kovalyk
The Equestrienne – Uršuľa Kovalyk

Parthian continue to publish excellent translated fiction, this time in the form of a powerful parable set against the backdrop of the Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia. From Uršuľa Kovalyk, The Equestrienne tells the story of Karolína, a young girl bullied at school and unhappy at home. Her world brightens when she stumbles upon a riding centre, befriending another young girl called Romana, and a haggard horse called Sesil. The three of them form an unlikely surrogate family. With the help of their riding trainer, Matilda, they vigorously pursue their equestrian ambitions.

RELATED: ‘Sammy Wright’s book Fit casts a grim but absorbing view into young, contemporary Britain with mixed levels of detail.’

Despite this seemingly conventional premise, The Equestrienne is much more than just a coming-of age-story; it is a moving depiction of friendship and the loss of innocence, as well as being a convincing portrayal of what it was like to live in Czechoslovakia during this period, particularly from a female perspective. As the communist regime collapses, so do Karolina’s sporting dreams, and as the country gives into the modern pattern of consumerism, the young characters begin to conform to the expectations of adulthood, leaving behind their younger selves.

Moving and deceptively modern, The Equestrienne can be viewed as an ode to freedom, and the complications that can occur when we strive for it. 

The Equestrienne, Uršuľa Kovalyk [trans. Julia & Peter Sherwood] (Parthian)

Price: £8.99. Info: here
words JOSHUA REES

KEEP READING: ‘A sweeping narrative of a working-class kid exploring feelings of wanderlust, courtesy of the first memoir by Primal Scream frontman Bobby Gillespie.’

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About Noel Gardner

Noel is the listings, reviews, music and books editor at Buzz and has been doing some or all of these things here since the days of dial-up internet. He was raised in Cornwall, lives in Cardiff and that is more or less all he has ever known.
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Tag: buzz book review, joshua rees, Julia & Peter Sherwood, Parthian, Uršuľa Kovalyk

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