Ours, Dorothy

PERSONAL:

Female.

ADDRESSES:

E-mail—DorothyOurs@aol.com.

CAREER:

National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, Saratoga Springs, NY, staff member, 1998-2005.

WRITINGS:

Man o' War: A Legend Like Lightning, St. Martin's Press (New York, NY), 2006.

SIDELIGHTS:

Dorothy Ours first became fascinated by horses and horse racing when she was a child. She would watch the thoroughbred races on television, and became particularly interested in Man o' War after watching Secretariat. She began to research the horse's history and career in her spare time and eventually, while working at the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame in Saratoga Springs, New York, gained access to many original sources. Ours's debut book, Man o' War: A Legend Like Lightning, addresses all the details of this remarkable horse and the people involved in his life. She includes information about his pedigree, owner, jockey, and trainer, and the history of the various races he won, looking at how he eventually became unbeatable because few owners were willing to pit their horses against such a legendary champion. A reviewer for Horse-Races.net noted: "Clearly, this is the most comprehensive work on Man o' War ever seen. Ours' research is thorough, in-depth and no stone was left unturned." Comparing Ours's effort to a 2001 best-selling biography of Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand, Booklist critic Dennis Dodge stated: "Very much to her credit, Ours meets Hillenbrand's standard in her exhaustively researched account of the career and human connections of Man o' War."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Biography, summer, 2006, Bill Barich, review of Man o' War: A Legend Like Lightning.

Booklist, April 15, 2006, Dennis Dodge, review of Man o' War, p. 20.

Books, May 7, 2006, Elizabeth Mitchell, "Tracking Down Some Legends," review of Man o' War, p. 1.

Kirkus Reviews, March 15, 2006, review of Man o' War, p. 278.

Library Journal, April 1, 2006, Patsy Gray, review of Man o' War, p. 102.

ONLINE

Dorothy Ours Home Page,http://www.dorothyours.com (May 15, 2007).

Horse-Races.net,http://www.horse-races.net/ (May 15, 2007), review of Man o' War.