The Horse

A Novel

By: Willy Vlautin

Narrated by: Willy Vlautin

Winner of the Joyce Carol Oates Prize

Finalist for the 2025 Oregon Book Award

“Willy Vlautin writes about people overlooked by society and overlooked by literature. In The Horse, he tells the story of a tenderhearted man who has a steady talent and a crushing addiction. It is both a work of extraordinary compassion and a really great novel."" — Ann Patchett, New York Times bestselling author of Tom Lake

“A moving tale of suffering and redemption, The Horse portrays the immense gravity of what it takes to be human in tough times, and the elusive grace that might just be grasped from music, animals, and memory.” — Geraldine Brooks, New York Times bestselling author of Horse

Award-winning author Willy Vlautin explores loneliness, art, regret, and hard-won empathy in this poignant novel—his most personal to date—that captures the life of a journeyman musician unable to escape the tragedies of his past.

Al Ward lives on an isolated mining claim in the high desert of central Nevada fifty miles from the nearest town. A grizzled man in his sixties, he survives on canned soup, instant coffee, and memories of his ex-wife, friends and family he’s lost, and his life as a touring musician. Hampered by insomnia, bouts of anxiety, and a chronic lethargy that keeps him from moving back to town, Al finds himself teetering on the edge of madness and running out of reasons to go on—until a horse arrives on his doorstep: nameless, blind, and utterly helpless.

Al hopes the horse will vanish as mysteriously as he appeared. Yet the animal remains, leaving him in a conundrum. Is the animal real, or a phantom conjured from imagination? As Al contemplates the horse’s existence—and what, if anything, he can do—his thoughts are interspersed with memories, from the moment his mother’s part-time boyfriend gifts him a 1959 butterscotch blonde Telecaster, to the day his travels begin. He joins various bands—all who perform his songs once they discover his talent–playing casinos, truck stops, clubs, and bars. He falls in love, and finds pockets of companionship and minor success along the way. Never close to stardom or financial success, he continues as a journeyman for decades until alcoholism and a heartbreaking tragedy lead him to the solitude of the barren Nevada desert.

A poignant meditation on addiction, heartbreak, and the reality of life on the road in smalltime bands, The Horse is a beautiful, haunting tale from an author working at the height of his powers.

Lovely Harsh Sweet

This is the first book I have heard read by the author that was hands-down, the most beautiful pairing of sound and story. It’s strange, but i felt like I was inhabiting the protagonist’s skin. I walked a lifetime of rough miles in this person‘s shoes and found deep empathy for a kind of person I’m unlikely to ever encounter in my “real” life. The author clearly understood his subject with rich, poetic, yet plain spoken language. The attention to detail, in a matter of fact way, framed this fictional portrait of an unknown artist’s life story with truth. To top off the extraordinary story telling “The Horse” secured one of my personal basic tenets: everything is better with an animal in it.

Deeply moving piece of Americana

Superbly written and performed by the author, The Horse recounts the slow unraveling of a down-on-his-luck musical savant in the golden era of country music.

Al’s Song titles

You could listen to this just for Al’s song titles. Real story about the lives of a musician.

The details of his life

I like the routine of his story but was a little disoriented by the way the story was told. That happens when I begin a novel without knowing what it is about.
I thought the narrator/author did a good job with the energy portrayed in this novel.

Couldn't go on...

The book was too depressing. The humans were depressing. The poor horse. I just couldn't finish.