Overview

The extraordinary story of Lara Prior-Palmer's unlikely victory in the world's toughest horse race, the Mongol Derby, retracing the footsteps of Genghis Khan's route across Mongolia as she undertakes a remarkable journey of self-discovery. A RICHARD AND JUDY BOOK CLUB PICK 'Such an addictive and likeable book...One of this year's best memoirs' The Telegraph 'Rough Magic is transporting, beguiling and terrifically entertaining' Daily Mail The Mongol Derby is the world's toughest horse race. A feat of endurance across the vast Mongolian plains once traversed by the people of Genghis Khan, competitors ride 25 horses across a distance of 1000km. Many riders don't make it to the finish line. In 2013, Lara Prior-Palmer - nineteen, underprepared but seeking the great unknown - decided to enter the race. Driven by her own restlessness, stubbornness, and a lifelong love of horses, she raced for seven days through extreme heat and terrifying storms, catching a few hours of sleep where she could at the homes of nomadic families. Battling bouts of illness and dehydration, exhaustion and bruising falls, she found she had nothing to lose, and tore through the field with her motley crew of horses. In one of the Derby's most unexpected results, she became the youngest-ever champion and the first woman to win the race. A tale of adventure, fortitude and poetry, Rough Magic is the extraordinary story of one young woman's encounter with oblivion, and herself. WINNER STANFORD TRAVEL WRITING AWARDS 2020 SHORTLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL PRIZE 2019 'It's the resistance to the obvious narratives that makes Rough Magic so appealing- the book undermines lazy women-in-the-wilderness tropes at every turn.' Sarah Moss, Guardian 'Think Educated meets Wild' Entertainment Weekly Richard and Judy Book Club Pick, Autumn 2020

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9781785038860

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Reviews

Absolutely riveting. * Buzzfeed * In this sensual, spiritual memoir, Prior-Palmer recounts her grueling journey through immense physical hardship, and her surprising transformation from underdog to champion * Esquire * [Prior-Palmer's] gorgeous, sensual depiction of this race is a literary marvel; it feels like you are riding alongside her across the desolate steppes; her verbal acuity makes vivid the most elusive of landscapes; her triumph becomes ours. * NYLON * Prior-Palmer's style is a fascinating mix of pep and poignancy. A really terrific story by a spirited new voice. * Sara Baume * Think the next Educated or Wild. Palmer's memoir of beating the odds to become a horse champion is an inspiring saga of perseverance - and a classic underdog tale. * Entertainment Weekly *

Author Information

Lara Prior-Palmer made headlines in 2013 when she became the first woman, and the youngest-ever competitor, to win the Mongol Derby. Lara is a graduate of Stanford University. She specialises in fleeing. Rough Magic is her first book.

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