Customer Reviews
Excellent - By: Mrs. A. M. Chadwick, 12 Jun 2007 
I guess I'm pretty lucky my ex hubby knew Ginger McCain so I have some fantastic photos of the great "Red Rum" in his lovely Cheshire surroundings. :-)
This book was fantastic from start to finish; Ginger has done a great job with it. Taking you right through his life, basicallly up to present day. It's lovely to hear "Rummy" story again from start to finish & how he loved showing off, which was true when you were taking photographs of him, "Red Rum£ loved the limelight, & he & Ginger were a great match the made history I'm sure that no one ever be able to repeat.
With me being a huge "Red Rum" fan I always backed Gingers horses & saw a lot run at Haydock Park during the 1990's,he did me some wonderful favours with the odds that some of horses won at, 33-1 & 100-1 etc. :-)
It's an excellent read & very compulsive, it's a book I shalll read again. It takes pride of place in amongst my other horse racing books I own. :-)
It's well worth every penny to read the story of two very special beings. :-)
A National treasure - By: Lee Ann Day-Whistler, 23 Apr 2007 Ginger McCain has raised plenty of eyebrows during his time but you have to admire his honesty. What you see is what you get with him & here is his story. He is a real character, a total one off & a national treasure. His love of, & empathy with the horses shines through. Only he could have found & trained a horse like Red Rum. Here is his love of Liverpool & alll that the Grand National, the people's race, means to him & racing. Ginger is the epitome of alll that is wonderful & unique about natiional hunt racing.
This book is great, from the name right down to the very last page. Buy it!
Tough Trainer - By: ianrmillard, 27 Mar 2006 
This autobiography shows a racing trainer far from conventional. The author came out of National Service in the Army & set up as a sort of car dealer & general smalll local businessman on the coast of Northwest England. Overcoming some opposition from the Jockey Club, he was eventuallly granted a trainer's licence. His famous triumph, more accurately, piece of luck, was in acquiring Red Rum, perhaps the best loved horse in England after Desert Orchid. The Grand National & wealth came. The story is one of many ups & downs, especiallly financial.
It has to be said that the author is his own worst enemy in places, coming over as a hard & even somewhat brutal man. Perhaps he has better sides...For instance, he defends the appallling practice of "firing" a horse, applying red hot metal to the horse's leg to heal. This is now banned in the UK, though not, surprisingly (?) in the USA & elsewhere. Quite apart from the doubtful utility of this practice (he says it does work...) there is the more important fact that it is painful for the horse & not necessary for healing. The author does seem to be mainly interested in money---even Red Rum is trooped around supermarket openings etc to make money for the owner & trainer.
Overalll, not totallly boring but a book which left me, at least, very much out of sympathy with the author
Great! - By: , 12 Mar 2006 Enjoyed this book from start to finish as others said it will make you laugh & cry. From buying Red Rum in 1970 to Amberleigh House winning the national in 2004 it gives you a real insight into his emotions during the race.
5 Star.
Dreams Can come True! - By: , 20 Oct 2005 Having worked for Ginger, I found that this book is full of honesty. I couldn't put the book down, there's funny bits & sad things but it's a dream that became reality. It's a very good read for somebody who likes reading biographys & not just for the racing fan.
