Books published by publisher Trafalgar Square

Natural horsemanship for kids ages 6-10!Horse trainers Andrea and Markus Eschbach have created easy lessons in “horse speak” for horse-crazy kids. Their book, chock full of beautiful color photographs, explains the basics of horse body language and how to “talk back” in a way horses understand, using body movement, expression, and physical distance. With a focus on groundwork that is safe and fun for children, this lovely book offers a one-of-a-kind introduction to the keys to natural horsemanship and how good communication can keep you safe in everything you do with your horse.

Would you like to enable your horse to perform and feel better, to overcome old limitations and restrictions and reach its full potential? In this book, Jim Masterson, Equine Massage Therapist for the 2006 and 2008 and 2010 USET Endurance Teams, and for equine clientele competing in FEI World Cup, Pan American and World Games competitions, teaches a unique method of equine bodywork, in which the practitioner recognizes and follows the responses of the horse to touch to release tension in key junctions of the body that most affect performance. This practical book: • has step-by-step instructions, photographs and illustrations • is ideally suited to accompany you to the barn, where you will practice the Masterson Method® techniques on horses. • includes chapters with Tips & Techniques, anatomical explanations and examples from Jim's practice help deepen your understanding. • has a "quick reference" section will point you to exercises that are specifically suited to your particular discipline, may it be dressage, endurance, eventing or barrel racing, or others in the vast realm of horse sports. By using these techniques, and knowing the responses to look for, you are able to: • achieve a release of accumulated stress in deep-seated key junctions of the horse's body that affects mobility, comfort, attitude, training and performance • restore muscular and structural balance, and natural alignment • enable your horse to perform optimally and respond to your training without stiffness and pain • achieve new levels of communication and trust with your horse that spill over into other areas of interaction.

With horses, we don't get a “do-over button,” as much as we'd sometimes like one. We have to live with the choices we make, even when–looking back–we know there might have been a better way to communicate, a different way to teach a new lesson, or another means to reach the desired end. In this smart, honest book chock full of valuable takeaways, gold medalist and renowned rider and coach Denny Emerson uses stories of the standout horses from his own riding career, which spans almost 70 years, to detail some of the things he wishes he'd known “then” that he knows now. With a candid willingness to share mistakes he's made over the years and clearly articulated ideas on how others can avoid them, he commits himself and those reading to finding more conscientious ways to ride, train, and work with horses. From basics like aids and equipment to more specialized subjects, such as rider fitness, emotional control, and how to determine what success with your horse really means, riders of all skill levels can gain valuable, hard-won knowledge from his bite-size lessons in life and horsemanship. Perhaps most importantly, Emerson insists that it is never, ever too late to change–for the good of the horse and for the good of oneself.

Internationally acclaimed horse trainer Mark Rashid shares and analyzes the remarkable events, quiet moments, and humbling stumbling blocks that—looking back—he can identify as significant in his personal journey to finding “softness” with both horses and people. “Softness,” via what many in the horse world today might refer to as “feel,” begins, Rashid says, with one simple truth: “It’s not about what we do that starts us on the path to softness, but rather, it’s what we don’t do.” Softness is having the sensitivity we need in order to feel when and if the horse tries to “give.”It is about developing the kind of awareness and feel it takes to know when we are working against our horses, rather than with them. In these forthright stories, readers get a glimpse of a life that has produced a man known for his ability to solve difficult problems with communication rather than force, as well as methods and techniques gleaned from decades of work with horses, horse people, and the “way of harmony” through the martial arts.

Fergus, the cartoon horse with an international following—now a bona fide social media star—is back! Following up the immensely popular 2015 release of the rollicking comic-strip treasury The Essential Fergus the Horse, this new book explores the rise and mass acceptance of natural horsemanship training techniques via a comical conversation between Fergus and “The Lad,” a young boy who is determined to ride him. Hilariously expressive illustrations and clever verse depict the dialog between horse and human as The Lad maintains his amiable approach, regardless of Fergus’ doubtful reactions and claim of equine superiority. Both endlessly entertaining and intentionally educational, Fergus: A Horse to Be Reckoned With is certain to inspire laughter in adult readers while making a positive impression on young, would-be equestrians.

Would you like to enable your horse to perform and feel better, to overcome old limitations and restrictions and reach its full potential? In this book, Jim Masterson, Equine Massage Therapist for the 2006 and 2008 and 2010 USET Endurance Teams, and for equine clientele competing in FEI World Cup, Pan American and World Games competitions, teaches a unique method of equine bodywork, in which the practitioner recognizes and follows the responses of the horse to touch to release tension in key junctions of the body that most affect performance. This practical book: • has step-by-step instructions, photographs and illustrations • is ideally suited to accompany you to the barn, where you will practice the Masterson Method® techniques on horses. • includes chapters with Tips & Techniques, anatomical explanations and examples from Jim's practice help deepen your understanding. • has a "quick reference" section will point you to exercises that are specifically suited to your particular discipline, may it be dressage, endurance, eventing or barrel racing, or others in the vast realm of horse sports. By using these techniques, and knowing the responses to look for, you are able to: • achieve a release of accumulated stress in deep-seated key junctions of the horse's body that affects mobility, comfort, attitude, training and performance • restore muscular and structural balance, and natural alignment • enable your horse to perform optimally and respond to your training without stiffness and pain • achieve new levels of communication and trust with your horse that spill over into other areas of interaction.

Traditional knot and interlace patterns, combined to form uniquely striking contemporary designs. Ever since her ground-breaking book Viking Patterns for Knitting was published, Elsebeth Lavold has been recognized as one of the world’s leading experts on cabling. It was within the pages of her international bestseller―described as “an indispensable milestone in 20th century knitting literature”―that Lavold first introduced the world to her own innovation: using lifted increases to create interlace patterns, and bringing new life to the ornamental heritage of the Vikings as adornment on modern knitwear. In the years since, Lavold has sought new ideas and “design cousins” to Viking patterns to explore with her needles, and has undertaken a fascinating journey through archives, museums, libraries, and the internet. In more than a decade of continued research, she has studied cultures from all over the globe in search of similar types of ornamental expression, creating the foundation for this exciting new book: a glorious collection rich in imagery, history, patterns, and designs. Dozens of different sources of inspiration, catalogued and placed within their cultural and historical context, from all around the world. Complete, step-by-step instructions for an abundance of fresh and stunningly beautiful knit designs, presented in the book with full-color photographs. Lavold’s own painstaking analysis of a huge number of interlace motif types, displayed in both swatch and chart form, to allow you to compose your own patterns based on her research.

This story is a rare and utterly engaging experience. It tells the extraordinary story of a geisha -summoning up a quarter century from 1929 to the post-war years of Japan's dramatic history, and opening a window into a half-hidden world of eroticism and enchantment, exploitation and degradation. A young peasant girl is sold as servant and apprentice to a renowned geisha house. She tells her story many years later from the Waldorf Astoria in New York. Her memoirs conjure up the perfection and the ugliness of life behind rice-paper screens, where young girls learn the arts of geisha - dancing and singing, how to wind the kimono, how to walk and pour tea, and how to beguile the most land's powerful men.

Charlotte Dujardin and her charismatic horse Valegro burst onto the international sports scene with their record–breaking performance at the 2012 Olympic Games in London. The world was captivated by the young woman with the dazzling smile and her dancing horse. The YouTube clip of their Freestyle performance has since had over 1.7 million views, and Dujardin is considered the dominant dressage rider of her era. When Valegro (affectionately called “Blueberry”) retired from competition at the end of 2016, his farewell performance at the Olympia Grand Hall sold out and the dark bay gelding received a standing ovation. Dujardin began riding horses at the age of two, but dressage was the domain of the rich–not the life a girl from a middleclass family was born into. Her parents sacrificed to give her as many opportunities as they could, and she left school at 16 to focus on equestrian competition. It was at 22, when she was invited to be a groom for British Olympian Carl Hester, that she met the equine partner that would change her fortune. This is the story of an outsider, an unconventional horse, and the incredible bond that took them to the top.

With horses, we don't get a “do-over button,” as much as we'd sometimes like one. We have to live with the choices we make, even when–looking back–we know there might have been a better way to communicate, a different way to teach a new lesson, or another means to reach the desired end. In this smart, honest book chock full of valuable takeaways, gold medalist and renowned rider and coach Denny Emerson uses stories of the standout horses from his own riding career, which spans almost 70 years, to detail some of the things he wishes he'd known “then” that he knows now. With a candid willingness to share mistakes he's made over the years and clearly articulated ideas on how others can avoid them, he commits himself and those reading to finding more conscientious ways to ride, train, and work with horses. From basics like aids and equipment to more specialized subjects, such as rider fitness, emotional control, and how to determine what success with your horse really means, riders of all skill levels can gain valuable, hard-won knowledge from his bite-size lessons in life and horsemanship. Perhaps most importantly, Emerson insists that it is never, ever too late to change–for the good of the horse and for the good of oneself.

100 percent ability is in your hands! Conformation Balancing is deceptively simple. With patient, conscientious placement of your hands on specific areas of the horse’s body, you can bring about profound change in his physical and mental well-being. The secret? The internet-like web of fascia beneath the skin. Fascia is the connective tissue that “holds everything together”—it wraps around, attaches, and stabilizes muscles and internal organs, communicating with all parts while providing structure and organization. But here’s the thing: Fascia is also a reservoir for emotional trauma and tension. This means that when you help a horse find physical release in a “stuck” area of strain or stiffness, you invite psychological healing as well.