Wild Horse Annie and the Last of the Mustangs

March 15, 2010
Velma Johnston (1912-1977), the daughter of a Nevada horse wrangler, was stricken by polio as a child, but she fulfilled her youthful aspirations of owning a ranch and marrying the man of her dreams; her tenacity is the emotional core of this moving-and first-biography of the animal advocate. Cruise and Griffiths (coauthors of Fleecing the Lamb) weave a story of western grit and guts, showing how Velma's indignation and early efforts-rescuing wild mustangs from pet food poachers and angry ranchers-blossomed into the passage of landmark legislation that prevented the capture or killing of herds of horses and burros. Velma's intelligence, candor, and charm are eloquently conveyed by the authors, and their rich and detailed portrait of Velma and her beloved "wild ones" becomes a paean to the American West-of cherished wildness and spirited individualism. Photos.