Author: Linda L Lauby
Kindle e-book is available through Amazon.com
Paperback, 204 pages
 
Swimming with Horses is a compilation of humorous — sometimes poignant, sometimes unbelievable — stories about a quirky Midwestern childhood in the 1960s and ’70s that was probably a little more unconventional than anyone else's. It’s about such people as the author’s mother and one of her friends, who sing and play their accordions while dressed in matching Elvis costumes. Their back-up singers are called The Sequins. The author’s father, who briefly worked undercover in law enforcement, made sure that his daughter learned marksmanship, hand-to-hand combat and surveillance techniques before she was old enough to drive.
 
Through Lauby’s eyes, the reader learns about tanning a deer hide, bringing guns to school for hunter safety class, going on shopping excursions with a manic-depressive grandmother who drove like Mario Andretti, wanting a pet monkey, dealing with unpredictable family members, and yes, swimming with horses.
 
Even though each chapter is usually interwoven with at least one side story, every tale is in itself a singular event. Together, these experiences add up to what actually shapes us. Our lives are defined by our immersion in these full-circle events, with their supporting actors of life and death, friendships, heroes and aspirations, and by our families — both human and animals. This book transports the reader back to the unaffected simplicity of our formative years, where anything is possible.