When thoroughbreds race, their hooves float magically above the ground, inspiring awe in the cheering crowd. They are graceful horses, full of power and strength. Except for one. In Come on Seabiscuit! By Ralph Moody, this brave horse's story is told.

Despite of the fact that he was Man O War's very own grandson, Seabiscuit ran like a pig being chased: clumpy, unevenly, always at the rear of the pack. The unfortunate horse didn't even have a set of good looks to make up for his terrible racing ability. His knobby knees flew haphazardly, his oversized head was lowered against the wind, and his short little legs beat out the staccato of an awkward gallop. His owners gave up on him a few seconds after he was born.

That one decision, however, turned out to be the mistake of their lives, as Seabiscuit possessed the most important trait a racehorse could have: a fighting spirit. Every race he ran with the other foals, he lost, and lost badly. While the frontrunners had already galloped over to their mothers for congratulations, Seabiscuit would pound along behind, determined to finish, no matter how far away he was. When he became older, he was used as a tool to help train the more “promising” horses, racing them, but always being stopped by his rider just before winning. The training jockeys who rode Seabiscuit could feel the strength of the horse that ran underneath them. He was getting faster, slowly but surely. In spite of his improvement, Seabiscuit's trainer entered him in too many races, beating down the tender joints and ligaments of his legs before they were fully grown and hardened. Such treatment would've broken a weaker horse, but Seabiscuit's spirit wouldn't let him be beaten. He wanted to run and do his best, but not for greedy owners like his, who beat him to make him run faster.

Suddenly, in the middle of his bad luck, a light shone, and Seabiscuit was bought by a retired cowboy, who promised he could “Make something out of him.” From then on, the little horse's fate changed. Under the skillful care of the cowboy, Tom Smith, Seabiscuit's abused legs were healed, and his fighting spirit came out of hiding. It wasn't very long before the ugly duckling's name was plastered all over newspapers, and the racetrack crowds couldn't believe their eyes. In spite of repeated injuries from his earlier abuse, Seabiscuit overcame perhaps the greatest odds in horseracing history to become a national hero, and a well-loved horse.

The roar of the crowds comes alive in this exciting novel, which beautifully depicts Seabiscuit's historic rise to fame. The doughty horse has finally received the recognition he deserved in this fascinating book. Horseracing fans and newcomers alike will be won over by Seabiscuit's amazing story.