Here Comes Exterminator!

The Longshot Horse, the Great War, and the Making of an American Hero

By: Eliza McGraw

Narrated by: Nicol Zanzarella

Length: 8 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

The father of the Kentucky Derby called him "the greatest all-around Thoroughbred in American racing history". Sportswriter Grantland Rice simply called him "the greatest racehorse". Now Eliza McGraw tells the story of how a gangling, long-shot Kentucky Derby winner named Exterminator became one of the most beloved racehorses of all time.

Here Comes Exterminator! draws listeners into the golden age of racing, with all its ups and downs, the ever-involving interplay of horses and people, and the beauty, grace, fear, and hope that are a daily part of life at the track. Caught between his hotheaded millionaire owner and his knowledgeable trainer, Exterminator captured fans' affection with his personality, consistency, athleticism, and heart.

Exterminator's staggering success would dramatically change the world of horse racing. He challenged the notion that American horses would never live up to Europe's meticulously charted bloodlines and became a patriotic icon of the country after World War I. And his longevity established him as one of the public's most beloved athletes, paving the way for equine celebrities like Seabiscuit and showing Americans they could claim - and love - a famous racehorse as their own.

©2016 Eliza McGraw (P)2016 Audible, Inc.

Bacon Double Cheese Burger

I love this book. interesting story. If you like Seabuscuit story you will like this one. yeah

Lacked Passion

Lots of horse racing facts but lacked the emotion of the story. I think the author was invested in the story but it didn't show in the writing.

Wonderful Story

A great follow up to "Old Bones the Wonder Horse" a childhood favorite of mine, and apparently the authors. She gave this amazing animal a fair shake.
Next time I am in Binghamton, NY, I intend to pay my respects to the two great horse interred at Whispering Pines!

The Long Shot

I am a huge fan of horses. I was excited to discover a new book (2016) published about a horse. Eliza McGrew’s biography of the 1918 Kentucky Derby winner Exterminator is a great read. Exterminator stood at 17 hands, a gelding and was a skinny ungainly looking horse with a white heart in the middle of his forehead. He was a 30 to one long shot in the Derby and he caught the eye of the working man. Exterminator ran 99 times and won 50 races and 20 of them carrying a weight of 130 or more pounds; this is unheard of in today’s world of racing. During the first part of his career, after the Derby, he was sent into a race as the second horse to Sun Briar to run interference and set up Sun Briar to win. It was felt by the trainer he could have won most of those races. That is no longer allowed in today’s racing. Most racehorses have a companion; this can range from a hen, goat, small pony, another horse or more commonly a cat. Exterminator’s companion was a pony named Peanut.

At this time people were tired of war and Exterminator provided them a brief escape. McGrew provides a review of this history and a look into the culture of the time. It was the time when Vanderbilt, Hancock, Belmont and Travis were the big names in horse racing and breeding. The big name horses were Man O’War and Sir Barton and then there was this skinny, ugly horse that could win and win. Exterminator never raced against Man O’War but I sure wished they could have faced each other. McGrew provides the history of racing and horses during World War One. I was interested in the section about Elias J. “Lucky” Baldwin who was the founder of Santa Anita Racetrack on his estate lands. Baldwin came to San Francisco for the gold rush but became a merchant, hotel owner and early member of the San Francisco Stock Exchange. He then bought several successful mines in the Comstock Lode. He later moved to Southern California where he became a land baron.

The book is well written and researched. McGrew successfully transports the reader into the gilded age of horse racing. If you like horses you will enjoy the story of “old bones the wonder horse”. Nicol Zanzarella does a good job narrating the book. Zanzarella is an actress, author and award winning audiobook narrator.