A Fine Place to Daydream Racehorses, Romance, and the Irish

Twenty-five years afterLaughing in the Hills,his racetrack classic, Bill Barich tells the story of how he fell in love and found a new life in Dublin, where he was soon caught up in the Irish obsession with horses and luck. Barich travels his adopted country and meets the leading trainers and jockeys; the beleaguered bookies who work rain or shine; and a host of passionate, like-minded fansfrom Father Sean Breen, the "Racing Priest," to T. P. Reilly, whose peculiar betting system turns on a horse's looks. Witty, philosophical, and vividly written,A Fine Place to Daydreamis a paean to the real Ireland, a moving tale of a surprise romance, and a thrilling account of a hugely exciting season at the track.

Bill Barich is the author of six previous books of fiction and nonfiction. Amazon lists Laughing in the Hills among its ten best sports books of the twentieth century, while Sports Illustrated calls it one of the 100 best of all time. He has been a Guggenheim Fellow, a frequent contributor to The New Yorker, and a literary laureate of the San Francisco Public Library, having lived in the Bay Area for many years before moving to Dublin.


From the Hardcover edition.