{"product_id":"the-perfect-horse-the-daring-us-mission-to-rescue-the-priceless-stallions-kidnapped-by-the-nazis-9780345544827","title":"The Perfect Horse: The Daring U.S. Mission to Rescue the Priceless Stallions Kidnapped by the Nazis","description":"\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNEW YORK TIMES\u003c\/i\u003e BESTSELLER - From the author of \u003ci\u003eThe Eighty-Dollar Champion, \u003c\/i\u003ethe remarkable story of the heroic rescue of priceless horses in the closing days of World War II\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eWINNER OF THE PEN AWARD FOR RESEARCH NONFICTION\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In the chaotic last days of the war, a small troop of battle-weary American soldiers captures a German spy and makes an astonishing find--his briefcase is empty but for photos of beautiful white horses that have been stolen and kept on a secret farm behind enemy lines. Hitler has stockpiled the world's finest purebreds in order to breed the perfect military machine--an equine master race. But with the starving Russian army closing in, the animals are in imminent danger of being slaughtered for food. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e With only hours to spare, one of the U.S. Army's last great cavalrymen, Colonel Hank Reed, makes a bold decision--with General George Patton's blessing--to mount a covert rescue operation. Racing against time, Reed's small but determined force of soldiers, aided by several turncoat Germans, steals across enemy lines in a last-ditch effort to save the horses. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Pulling together this multistranded story, Elizabeth Letts introduces us to an unforgettable cast of characters: Alois Podhajsky, director of the famed Spanish Riding School of Vienna, a former Olympic medalist who is forced to flee the bomb-ravaged Austrian capital with his entire stable in tow; Gustav Rau, Hitler's imperious chief of horse breeding, a proponent of eugenics who dreams of genetically engineering the perfect warhorse for Germany; and Tom Stewart, a senator's son who makes a daring moonlight ride on a white stallion to secure the farm's surrender. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e A compelling account for animal lovers and World War II buffs alike, \u003ci\u003eThe Perfect Horse\u003c\/i\u003e tells for the first time the full story of these events. Elizabeth Letts's exhilarating tale of behind-enemy-lines adventure, courage, and sacrifice brings to life one of the most inspiring chapters in the annals of human valor. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003ePraise for \u003ci\u003eThe Perfect Horse\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Winningly readable . . . Letts captures both the personalities and the stakes of this daring mission with such a sharp ear for drama that the whole second half of the book reads like a WWII thriller dreamed up by Alan Furst or Len Deighton. . . . The right director could make a Hollywood classic out of this fairy tale.\"\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eThe\u003c\/i\u003e \u003ci\u003eChristian Science Monitor\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \"Letts, a lifelong equestrienne, eloquently brings together the many facets of this unlikely, poignant story underscoring the love and respect of man for horses.\"\u003cb\u003e--\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Ballantine Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 05\/23\/2017\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780345544827\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 400\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.70lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.90h x 5.30w x 1.10d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAccelerated Reader Quiz #\/Name: \u003c\/b\u003e501338 \/ Perfect Horse: The Daring Rescue of Horses Kidnapped During World War II\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReading Level:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.2 \/ \u003cb\u003eInterest Level:\u003c\/b\u003e Middle Grade \/ \u003cb\u003ePoint Value:\u003c\/b\u003e 9\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Elizabeth Letts","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":36636458385564,"sku":"9780345544827","price":17.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_7fab584d-20a6-4cf8-abee-610d1aa5940d.jpg?v=1603842019","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/the-perfect-horse-the-daring-us-mission-to-rescue-the-priceless-stallions-kidnapped-by-the-nazis-9780345544827","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}