Brother Mendel's Perfect Horse: Man and Beast in an Age of Human Warfare

Europe's twentieth-century history told through the incredible story of a horse: the Lippizaner. 'When you touch a Lippizaner,' Frank Westerman was told as a child, 'you are touching history.' In Brother Mendel's Perfect Horsehe explores the history of these unique creatures, an extraordinary troop of pedigree horses first bred as personal mounts for the Emperor of Austria-Hungary. Following the bloodlines of the studbook, he reconstructs the story of four generations of imperial steeds as they survive the fall of the Habsburg Empire, two world wars and the insane breeding experiments conducted under Hitler, Stalin and Ceausescu. But what begins as a fairytale becomes a chronicle of the quest for racial purity. Carrying the reader across Europe, from imperial stables and stud farms to the controversial gene labs of today, Westerman asks, if animal breeders are so good at genetic engineering, why do attempts to perfect the human strain always end in tragedy? Brother Mendel's Perfect Horse, a unique and engrossing fusion of history and travel writing, is a modern fable in which the pureblood horse ends up revealing man's own shortcomings.
ASIN: 1846550882
VSKU: BVV.1846550882.G
Condition: Good
Author/Artist:Westerman, Frank
Binding: Hardcover
Note: Any images shown are stock photographs and product may differ from what is shown.
Condition Notes: The item shows wear from consistent use, but it remains in good condition and works perfectly. All pages and cover are intact including the dust cover, if applicable . Spine may show signs of wear. Pages may include limited notes and highlighting. May NOT include discs, access code or other supplemental materials.