Horace A. Laffaye

This book describes the history of Polo in Great Britain starting from its origins when it was brought over from India by British soldiers to today. It does go into detail about the different Polo clubs and how they were started plus going into how the game of polo did go abroad. The different competitions are explained in the book and how they did originate. The handicapping system in Polo is explained a little bit and even how there are different competitions for the different skill levels in Polo. It also talked about the royal family's involvement in the game of polo even today. There are times though that the book does read such as a dry history book even though I did learn something about the game of polo.… (plus d'informations)

"Polo in Britain" is part of the author’s larger series of polo, including texts on the development of polo in general and in other locations. This sweeping series covers, in much detail, the entire history of polo. "Polo in Britain" reviews players and games from the 1860s through 2011. There are special chapters on polo in art, current issues facing polo, women in polo, and appendixes listing winners of all major games. An eight-page color insert is included as well as a thorough index and bibliography.

That being said, this 364-page tome is more of a textbook than one made for light (or even in-depth) reading. Being an American, I had to keep a map of the UK handy at all times. Several of the paragraphs required rereading for comprehension. There are SO many names, titles, and locations that it seems like the book could have been a big list instead; it was a bit dry at times. Aside from the depth of the material, there is little to fault with this book – perhaps more photographs would be appreciated. The conversational language used by the author helps immensely, and he has wrangled together material from several sources and made it into one coherent account. Kudos, Mr Laffaye.… (plus d'informations)