As its title suggests, this book aims to plot the significance and influence of the horse in human history, from its first domestication through to the present day. It is an ambitious work, and Kelekna provides an introduction to a broad range of literature and topics across a vast temporal and geographical scope. Following a brief background to the evolution of equids and extant species, topics presented include the domestication of the horse and the early farming societies of the Eurasian steppe, including the debate on Indo-European origins. Particular attention is given to nomadic cultures of the steppe, largely focused on the rich Iron Age data but also extending its discussion to more recent history. From these steppe origins, the diffusion and impact of the horse is considered in its global perspective. Numerous concise summaries of horse–human relationships from across Asia, Europe, Africa and the Americas are given, covering some six millennia. The work is illustrated with forty-three black-and-white images and maps. In some chapters, especially in the latter half of the book, there are relatively few illustrations. This is a shame given the wealth of images that could have been employed to help illustrate the text.

The approach is not solely archaeological in focus. Kelekna is a cultural anthropologist by training, and she blends archaeological, historical, linguistic and ethnographic material in the book. The work synthesizes a considerable amount of knowledge from these disciplines; however, the text frequently cites too few references and Kelekna tends to be uncritical of the sources she uses. Where ideas are not fully referenced, it is hard for the reader to follow up or validate the interpretations presented. There is a general lack of analysis, and the highly descriptive approach does not appear to look far beyond the sources discussed. In taking a narrative approach, Kelekna often ends up presenting hypotheses as facts; a reliance on too few sources means that the nuances of ongoing academic debate are lost, and on occasion the narrative bears little resemblance to the accepted literature. For example, the spread and impact of the horse across Europe is treated extremely superficially, with almost no discussion of the social or economic changes occurring that might be associated with the beginnings of horse use, but rather there is an extended section on Stonehenge, in the context of ‘describing the ancient megalithic structures of prehistoric Europe … as solar centers of equestrian ritual’ (p 4) as a consequence of Indo-European invasions. Kelekna's sole argument for horse use at the site seems to be her acceptance that the nearby cursus monument was associated with horse racing (p 170). This appears to be based on William Stukeley's eighteenth-century interpretation of the monument as a chariot racetrack and completely skips over the extensive, more recent, literature on these monuments. Further, Kelekna's discussion does not refer to the broader debate on the first spread and use of domestic horses into north-western Europe. For the period when the cursus was in use, and the earlier phases at Stonehenge itself, it is uncertain whether horses were actually present in Britain. They may have become locally extinct for parts of the Mesolithic and the Neolithic, to be reintroduced later from the continent. There are numerous other examples throughout the book where the reading of evidence to experts in their field will be less than satisfactory. Equally concerning is the language used by the author, which appears to present myth as historical fact, for example, in the discussion of Arthurian legend.

The aims of the author are laudable: a single-authored account such as this, which synthesizes a vast array of literature on such a subject, is a major undertaking. There are some fascinating summaries of the various topics covered; the reader should be cautious, however, about accepting all the assertions presented. Uncritical interpretations and some erroneous statements of fact in topics I know well left this reviewer doubting the author's coverage of other topics. As such, although it is a work of great scope and clearly a labour of love, the book does not recommend itself as a wholly reliable academic account of its subject.