A necessary read for Historical Fiction Authors.
If your novel has any stretches of a long journey involving horses, the Horse Travel Handbook is an essential reference!
I am a writer of historical fiction. My current project covers a lot of territory over the old Silk Road in the 10th century CE. Modes of transportation at this time were exclusively animal drawn or were animals themselves. I find that Mr O'Reilly's effort to gather together in one, concise volume, all the wise counsel of past and present experts who have themselves embarked on such journeys to be absolutely invaluable to my own work!
The Horse Travel Handbook has opened up several entirely new avenues of understanding of my characters, leaving only the necessity for me to research the cultural applications of the Laws of the Long Ride to my plot. Because of this book, I know what skill sets my characters will need if they are to stay on long-term with the caravan (or who will be create conflict later on due to 'chance encounters' on the trail), which of the characters are likely to only be local problems, etc.
Additionally, I am much more deeply aware of the processes which my protagonist and her party will need to work through before they can even leave on their journey. My novel will be much more accurate and real feeling as a result of my purchase!
Please note that this volume is remarkably dense, requiring several re-reads to fully absorb the data inside. I am eagerly anticipating the release of the full three volume Encyclopaedia of Equestrian Exploration, which I fully intend to purchase as soon as possible to assist with the more detailed bits of my novel series.
American author M.T. Noah became fascinated with Korea's history at a young
age. In addition to participating in archaeological excavations in that country,
Noah has documented how the fabled Silk Road connected Korea with
Constantinople. A series of books entitled "Jinjoo's Journey" recounts how a
young Korean woman sets off in 946 CE to traverse the length of the Silk Road to
Constantinople. The epic travel tale begins with the explosion of the Baekdusan
volcano, one of the most destructive eruptions in history. Known as the
millennial volcano, the event dramatically affected the climate and culture of
the Koreans. The forthcoming book, "The Wind Changed, Father", recounts how Jinjoo
departs on horseback after the ecological disaster occurred.