Horse-Minded
Cover Designer: I chose the photo for the cover myself.
Comments about cover design
The memoir of Dorothy Herbert, Riding Sensation of the Age! A Memoir by Hilda Nelson inspired my poems about horseback riding. The title poem of my book, “Horse-Minded,” includes descriptions and quotes about Dorothy Herbert’s astonishing accomplishments as a circus bareback rider based on the memoir. Her struggles and successes are metaphorically compared with my own and others’ experiences with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, and “horse-minded,” a term used in her memoir, struck me as not only describing being in sync with horses but also as a mindset that connoted toughness and horse-sense. The photo I used for my book cover is included in the memoir and in the collection of The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art Tibbals Digital Collection. The museum is where I found Herbert’s memoir, and it kindly gave me permission to use this image.
