LEADER 00000cam  22005418i 4500 
001    ocn952567026 
003    OCoLC 
005    20160823041321.0 
008    160627s2016    nyuab    b    001 0deng   
010      2016010501 
019    956925160 
020    9780345544803|q(hardcover ;|qalk. paper) 
020    0345544803|q(hardcover ;|qalk. paper) 
035    (OCoLC)952567026|z(OCoLC)956925160 
040    DLC|beng|erda|cDLC|dOCLCO|dOCLCQ|dOCLCO|dEGM|dGO3|dFM0
       |dLF3|dON8|dBUR 
042    pcc 
043    n-us---|ae-cs---|ae-au---|ae-pl---|ae-gx--- 
049    CKEA 
050 00 D810.C8|bL46 2016 
082 00 940.54/213714|223 
092    355.4130 
100 1  Letts, Elizabeth,|eauthor. 
245 14 The perfect horse :|bthe daring U.S. mission to rescue the
       priceless stallions kidnapped by the Nazis /|cElizabeth 
       Letts. 
250    First edition. 
263    1608 
264  1 New York :|bBallantine Books,|c[2016] 
300    xix, 369 pages :|billustrations, map ;|c25 cm 
336    text|btxt|2rdacontent 
337    unmediated|bn|2rdamedia 
338    volume|bnc|2rdacarrier 
504    Includes bibliographical references (pages [315]-350) and 
       index. 
505 0  Part One: The Europeans. An unlikely Olympian ; The master
       of all horses ; The Polish prince ; Rau's dominion ; The 
       Spanish Riding School of Vienna ; The hidden stud farm ; 
       Podhajsky's choice ; Horses in peril ; The escape -- Part 
       Two: The Americans. Machine versus horse ; A horseless 
       commander ; America's fightin'est General ; Two hands and 
       a Purple Heart -- Part Three: The mission. Armies closing 
       in ; The photographs ; The plan ; Dressed up as a 
       plenipotentiary ; Change of heart ; Lessing takes charge ;
       The tanks are coming ; The fallen ; The Americans ; The 
       generals ; The craziest caravan in the world ; The 
       Lipizzaner farewell -- Part Four: Homecoming. The super 
       horses are ours ; Departure! ; The riderless horse ; The 
       victory parade ; Finding a home ; The war orphans ; The 
       auction ; The widow's rose ; The birthday party ; A mighty
       good American ; The veterans ; The Spanish Riding School 
       today -- Epilogue: What became of them? 
520    Traces the lesser-known efforts of Hitler to build a 
       master race of the finest purebred horses and the heroic 
       achievements of American soldiers to rescue imperiled 
       stolen equines from a hidden Czechoslovakian farm during a
       1945 battle between Third Reich and Allied forces. 
520    In the chaotic last days of World War II, a small troop of
       American soldiers captures a German spy and learns that on
       a secret farm behind enemy lines, Hitler has stockpiled 
       the world's finest purebred horses in order to breed the 
       perfect military machine--an equine master race. But with 
       the starving Russian army closing in, the animals are in 
       imminent danger of being slaughtered for food. With only 
       hours to spare, one of the U.S. Army's last great 
       cavalrymen, Colonel Hank Reed, makes a bold decision--with
       General George Patton's blessing--to mount a covert rescue
       operation. Racing against time, Reed's small but 
       determined force of soldiers, aided by several turncoat 
       Germans, steals across enemy lines in a last-ditch effort 
       to save the horses. Pulling together this multistranded 
       story, Elizabeth Letts introduces us to an unforgettable 
       cast of characters: Alois Podhajsky, director of the famed
       Spanish Riding School of Vienna, a former Olympic medalist
       forced to flee the bomb-ravaged Austrian capital with his 
       entire stable in tow; Gustav Rau, Hitler's imperious chief
       of horse breeding, a proponent of eugenics who dreams of 
       genetically engineering the perfect warhorse for Germany; 
       and Tom Stewart, a senator's son who makes a daring 
       moonlight ride on a white stallion to secure the farm's 
       surrender. Elizabeth Letts's exhilarating tale of behind-
       enemy-lines adventure, courage, and sacrifice brings to 
       life for the first time one of the most inspiring chapters
       in the annals of human valor.--Adapted from dust jacket. 
600 10 Podhajsky, Alois. 
600 10 Reed, Charles Hancock,|d1900-1980. 
610 10 United States.|bArmy.|bCavalry Regiment, Mechanized, 2nd
       |xHistory. 
610 20 Spanische Reitschule (Vienna, Austria)|xHistory|y20th 
       century. 
650  0 World War, 1939-1945|xConfiscations and contributions
       |zUnited States. 
650  0 World War, 1939-1945|xCommando operations|zCzech Republic
       |zHostouň. 
650  0 Lipizzaner horse|zAustria|xHistory|y20th century. 
650  0 Arabian horse|zPoland|xHistory|y20th century. 
650  0 World War, 1939-1945|xConfiscations and contributions
       |zGermany. 
650  0 World War, 1939-1945|zAustria. 
914    MID.b24890923 
914    FARM238465 
994    92|bCKE