Why am I passionate about this?

In 1998 I launched the rapidly growing field of clicker training for horses with the publication of Clicker Training for Your Horse, the first reference for clicker training in the horse world. When you come across a training method that is as kind, safe, effective, and fun as clicker training, it’s not something you want to keep to yourself. Clicker training needs to be shared and that’s what I have been doing for almost thirty years. Through my books, DVDs, clinics, online courses, conference presentations, blogs, and podcasts, I have been teaching people how to clicker train their horses. Together we are changing the way horses are trained.


I wrote

The Click That Teaches: A Step-By-Step Guide in Pictures

By Alexandra Kurland,

Book cover of The Click That Teaches: A Step-By-Step Guide in Pictures

What is my book about?

There’s more to training than simply getting a job done. How you teach matters. Kind, effective, and horse-friendly, this comprehensive…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of Don't Shoot the Dog: The Art of Teaching and Training

Alexandra Kurland Why did I love this book?

One of the best books for training horses isn’t even a book about horses - at least not directly. Karen Pryor’s classic text translates the complexities of learning theory into clear, understandable language. Don’t Shoot the Dog introduced us to clicker training and started a revolution in animal training. It’s a fun read that will transform your training. It certainly transformed mine.  

I read Don’t Shoot the Dog for the first time in 1993. This is the book that sent me out to the barn with treats in my pockets to ask my horse what he thought about clicker training.  His answer - he loved it! Don’t Shoot The Dog set me on my clicker training journey.  It was and still is a must-read book.

By Karen Pryor,

Why should I read it?

5 authors picked Don't Shoot the Dog as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Karen Pryor’s clear and entertaining explanation of behavioral training methods made Don’t Shoot the Dog a bestselling classic with revolutionary insights into animal—and human—behavior.

In her groundbreaking approach to improving behavior, behavioral biologist Karen Pryor says, “Whatever the task, whether keeping a four-year-old quiet in public, housebreaking a puppy, coaching a team, or memorizing a poem, it will go fast, and better, and be more fun, if you know how to use reinforcement.”

Now Pryor clearly explains the underlying principles of behavioral training and reveals how this art can be applied to virtually any common situation. And best of all,…


Book cover of Classical Dressage

Alexandra Kurland Why did I love this book?

Clicker training shows you how to train. Now, what are you going to train? Let the beautiful photos in Anja Beran’s book on Classical Dressage inspire you. Anja Beran loves horses and that’s reflected in her desire to share her deep understanding of Classical Dressage.

We need images of beautiful horses being correctly ridden in good balance. Classical Dressage sits at the core of all good riding programs. Balance matters because it helps keep your horse sound no matter your riding goals. We are indeed lucky to have someone as gifted as Anja Beran sharing this work with us.

By Anja Beran,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Classical Dressage as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Every rider would like to ride their horse as well as possible, but how do we go about it the right way? This book explains why and, above all, how to classically train a horse, for example, we have to look at each horse as an individual - what problems does he have? How is his natural crookedness expressed? What is his personality like? In classical dressage, there is a strategy for bringing each and every horse into balance. Anja Beran wants to preserve this knowledge, which has now almost been lost, and make it available to every interested rider,…


Book cover of Black Beauty

Alexandra Kurland Why did I love this book?

There are many how-to books on training horses out there. Before you fill your bookshelf with them, it’s good to remember how much you love horses. That’s different from how much you love what horses can do for you - the jumps they can carry you over, the ribbons they can win for you. Remember how much you love horses, and remember how much they depend upon us to be kind. It’s all too easy to reach for “get tougher” solutions. Anna Sewell’s childhood classic reminds us to question how horses are handled and to look at what we do from the horse’s point of view. When choosing a training method, she reminds us to listen to our hearts and to our horses.  

By Anna Sewell, Kristen Guest (editor),

Why should I read it?

11 authors picked Black Beauty as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Continuously in print and translated into multiple languages since it was first published, Anna Sewell's Black Beauty is a classic work of children's literature and an important text in the fields of Victorian studies and animal studies. Writing to ""induce kindness, sympathy and an understanding treatment"", Sewell realistically documents the working conditions of Black Beauty, who moves down the social scale from a rural carriage horse to a delivery horse in London. Sewell makes visible and tangible the experience of animals who were often treated as if they were machines. Though she died shortly after it was published, Sewell's book…


Book cover of Centered Riding

Alexandra Kurland Why did I love this book?

Prior to Centered Riding much of how riding was taught came from the cavalry. It was get tough or get out. Sally Swift changed that with her gentle approach to riding instruction. She introduced the horse world to the Alexander technique and the use of visualization. Instead of pushing riders through their fear, she helped them connect with their horses. She is a revolutionary thinker who transformed riding instruction.   

By Sally Swift, Jean Macfarland (illustrator), Mike Noble (photographer)

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Centered Riding as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Centered Riding is for those with little experience all the way up to world class. Precise illustrations and photographs never before used in riding books explain anatomy and image work to give mind and body new and relaxed approaches to the inner process of riding.

Widely known for her innovative teaching philosophy stressing body awareness, the value of "soft eyes," proper breathing, centering, and balance, Sally Swift has been a pioneering riding instructor for half a century. In book form for the first time, her methods enable horse and rider to achieve harmony, working together naturally, without pain.

Unlike traditional…


Book cover of The Dressage Seat: Achieving a Beautiful, Effective Position in Every Gait and Movement

Alexandra Kurland Why did I love this book?

Anja Beran again shares her love of horses by helping us ride better.  

Thoughtless riding damages horses. It breaks their bodies and their spirits. But we can ride horses into soundness. We can bring back the sparkle in their eyes even as we help heal their bodies. The Dressage Seat will help you ride effectively and support the well-being of your horse.

By Anja Beran,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Dressage Seat as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

With stunningly beautiful photographs and clear descriptions, classical dressage authority Anja Beran breaks down the physical requirements of the rider's seat on the horse, as well as its responsibilities during various movements-from the gaits and paces to lateral work, lead changes, piaffe, passage, and pirouettes.

Beran provides a unique perspective on the use of breath when riding, citing the recommendations of a classically-trained opera singer who regularly works with Beran and her riding students to develop their deep breathing skills. 'A relaxed seat', Beran says, 'is never possible with restricted breathing'.

In addition, she explores the need for an improved…


Explore my book 😀

The Click That Teaches: A Step-By-Step Guide in Pictures

By Alexandra Kurland,

Book cover of The Click That Teaches: A Step-By-Step Guide in Pictures

What is my book about?

There’s more to training than simply getting a job done. How you teach matters. Kind, effective, and horse-friendly, this comprehensive training guide will take you from basic handling to advanced training. The step-by-step lessons are easy to follow. They create a road map for developing a superstar performer and a great equine friend. This is the resource you are looking for to help you train well.  

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Book cover of The Bloomsbury Photographs

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Why am I passionate about this?

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The Bloomsbury Photographs

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What is this book about?

An enthralling portrait of the Bloomsbury Group's key figures told through a rich collection of intimate photographs

Photography framed the world of the Bloomsbury Group. The thousands of photographs surviving in albums kept by Virginia Woolf, Vanessa Bell, Dora Carrington, and Lytton Strachey, among others, today offer us a private insight into their lives.

Maggie Humm brings together a curated selection of these photographs to offer us a fresh portrait of the Bloomsbury Group, showing them in a new, domestic intimacy. She brings to life the texture of Bloomsbury: their pastimes, children, clothes, houses, servants, pets, holidays. Several photographs are…


5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in equestrianism, horses, and dressage?

Equestrianism 35 books
Horses 125 books
Dressage 12 books