Tessa has an impossible dream: to ride her great-hearted horse, Buffoon, in the Grand National. But who will support her plan to become a jockey? She's been repeatedly kicked out of boarding school, and her rich stepfather hates her. And could the sometimes clumsy, nearly blind Buffoon ever be expected to survive such a difficult racecourse?

Tessa pursues her dream across troubled teenage years while growing in responsibility, self-respect, and understanding. A magnificent steeplechase, thrillingly evoked, caps this vivid, romantic, fast-paced novel by a writer who is the undisputed master of exploring the bonds between horses and people.