Abouts Books

By Angela Leigh

Title: Confidential Letters to Lady Belle

Author: Dr Margarethe de Clermont

Publication date: 31 December 2006

Type of Book: Fictional e-book

Setting: Loire Valley, France

Pagecount:188 pages

Theme: The developing and enriching relationship between a Friesian mare and her ignorant owner

Summary: The book consists of 13 letters written to a very special Friesian mare who was at in livery at the time of the book's writing. The letters were written by her owner, M, who was traveling through France during the Christmas period, from 19 December, M's birthday, to the 31 of December, Belle's birthday. Several powerful NLP (neuro-linguisitic-programming) techniques are introducing with admirable subtlety. In fact, the whole book can be said to be a metaphor about one woman's life-changing crisis and the horse that helped her through it.

The Characters: There are two main characters: Belle, the Friesian mare and M, her owner. Belle is the catalyst that changes M's life forever and forces her to review her beliefs and convictions.

Highlights: The story about the arrival of the Lusitano stallion brings tears to the readers eyes, the mare's view of dieting and weight management is irresistibly funny and Belle's growing need for a foal of her own keeps the reader turning the pages in sympathy. Most certainly unputdownable. The clever way that several very effective and powerful NLP methods are introduced and demonstrated gives the reader food for reflection. One realises half-way through that this is about much more than just a story of a horse and her owner getting to know each other. Initially, it is entertaining and endearing, but soon the reader becomes part of the script, an active participant, on an emotional rollercoaster and ends up learning a lot about NLP as well as him/herself. This book will appeal to a wide audience, and not just to horse-lovers. It is aimed more at adult readers, but teenagers will also enjoy it.

Quote: "The stallion immediately recognised her, his heart leapt in his powerful chest. He had only met her once before, but he instantly knew that she was the one. He joyfully leaped around his field; she stared at him with large, alarmed eyes. He was somewhat taken aback, was she not thrilled to see him?

She approached very cautiously. He held his breath, and then blew through his nose. She froze. He tried to relax, stopped swishing his tail, willing her to come closer. After a while, she timidly opened and closed the gate behind her. She never took her eyes off him. She took a deep breath and walked towards him slowly, measuring each step. Initially, he stood as still as a statue, but eventually his emotions overcame him. In two powerful bounds he was right in front of her, tossing his abundant steel grey mane. She looked suspiciously as if she was going to faint. He was getting a bit worried..."

Any weak bits? More please! The ending is satisfying and complete, with a large dose of feel-good factor, but a sequel MUST be in the pipe-line...the reader will be thinking about this book and belle's story for months to come, and not just because of the positive subliminal suggestions woven into the text!

Overall Rating (out of 5 stars): ***** Highly Recommended.

Review by Browse eBooks Bookshop. More information and rest of extract from Confidential Letters to Lady Belle available at http://www.equestrian-life-coaching.com/gifts-for-horse-lovers.html

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