Kůň – Brooksová Geraldine (2026)

A discarded painting in a pile of junk, a skeleton in an attic and the most successful racehorse in American history provide the threads for this moving story about fame, strength, racism and the way we reshape our memories of the past. Kentucky, 1850. Jarret, a young enslaved Black man, forms a powerful bond with the red stallion Lexington, laying the foundations of a sporting legend. Together they win races across the American South until the approaching Civil War catches up with them. The itinerant painter Thomas Scott, who becomes famous for his paintings of this exceptional horse, puts down his brushes, takes up arms and finds himself caught in the war as well as in a personal confrontation with the meaning of freedom. New York, 1954. Gallery owner Martha Jackson comes across a painting of a mysterious horse and becomes obsessed with tracing its origins. Washington, 2019. Australian scientist Jess examines Lexington’s skeleton, while Nigerian-American art historian Theo uncovers long-forgotten stories of racehorses and the Black people who stood in their shadow. Together they begin to unravel the tangled knots of a past whose consequences reach into the present. Inspired by the true story of the thoroughbred Lexington, this highly readable novel explores how the stories of animals and people become intertwined in history, the power of memory, scientific research and the invisibility of those whose contributions went unrecorded simply because of the color of their skin. The contents are in Czech.