Richard Askwith has been a journalist for over 40 years. He has written six previous books, including his modern classic on fell running, Feet in the Clouds, which won the Best New Writer category at the British Sports Book Awards and was shortlisted for the William Hill and Boardman Tasker prizes, and he is now one of the UK's most celebrated writers on running. Running Free was shortlisted for the Thwaites-Wainwright Prize, and his evocative biography of Emil Zatopek, Today We Die A Little, was shortlisted in the Cross Sports Book Awards. His most recent book, Unbreakable- the Countess, the Nazis and the World's Most Dangerous Horse Race, won Biography of the Year at the Telegraph Sports Book Awards in 2020.
[An] astonishing story... beautifully pieced together by journalist Richard Askwith... Unbreakable is...much more than simply the story of a horse race. It is also a compelling insight into the fading days of the Habsburg empire and the rise of the women's liberation movement between the two wars... exceptional...[and] heart-stopping reading which left me in tears -- Clover Stroud * Daily Telegraph * [An] extraordinary story... Askwith's compelling book, as much about 20th-century history and women's equality as it is about racing, is a fitting tribute to a truly remarkable and courageous woman -- Camilla Swift * Mail on Sunday * Askwith... writes beautifully... One of the most remarkable racing stories I have ever had the pleasure of reading * Thoroughbred Owner & Breeder * [This] thoroughly researched, deeply moving account does justice to a remarkable life -- John Cobb * Racing Post * An inspiring tale of an indomitable spirit * Sunday Times (Best Books of 2019) *