“Secretariat’s story has been told many times in the 50 years since he became a Triple Crown winner and American icon in 1973. Patricia McQueen, however, has taken a different approach and brings a fresh perspective on Big Red’s legacy with this wonderful accounting of his impact on the Thoroughbred breed. The descendants of Secretariat have incredible stories in their own right and McQueen has eloquently brought these vibrant tales to life in Secretariat’s Legacy. The storytelling is expertly done, the imagery is beautiful and impactful, and the book is simply a winner! Highly recommended.”

- Brien Bouyea, Hall of Fame Director at the National Museum of Racing and author of The Travers: 150 Years of Saratoga’s Greatest Race

“Secretariat’s Legacy is the most beautiful book with so much underlying research. What all these horses have done is unbelievable, and I’ve really learned about horses I never knew about. This is a great work that documents Secretariat’s descendants. It’s a must-read!”

- Ron Turcotte, Hall of Fame jockey and Secretariat’s regular rider

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“Patricia McQueen has produced in Secretariat’s Legacy a book for all racing fans who want to know anything and everything about the great Secretariat’s influence on the breed. In a beautifully-produced book of prose and pictures, Patricia has successfully taken on the roles of author, photographer, editor, and researcher to give readers an understanding of Secretariat’s influence and place in history, concentrating her focus on his stud career and the many great descendants that made Big Red a lasting influence on the Thoroughbred breed. Patricia’s book was an ambitious undertaking, and she delivered not just a pictorial history of Secretariat’s many descendants, but a written history as well.

- Mark Simon, former editor of Thoroughbred Times and past Executive Editor of Daily Racing Form

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“I was a mainstream book publishing executive for over 20 years, before serving various roles in the Thoroughbred racing industry. With two colleagues, I founded the Thoroughbred Racing Commentary (TRC) website in 2014. My publishing background is important, because I know without a doubt that Patricia McQueen’s new book, Secretariat’s Legacy, is spectacular. The book is beautifully designed and printed, with paper and binding materials that rival the quality of any art book from my book publishing experience. The substance is there too, and her personal commentaries in each chapter add even more credibility to the work. I note that Patricia’s periodic column (“Children of Secretariat”) has been TRC’s most popular ongoing column since we launched the site nine years ago, and we recently published her 50th in the series.”

- Charles Hayward, President and Publisher, Thoroughbred Racing Commentary

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“Secretariat’s Legacy is a remarkable book. The oversize format, the images, the design, and the state-of-the-art production values mark the volume as an impressive coffee table book, but it is much more. Author Patricia McQueen’s accompanying text begs to be read and savored. The book’s genesis came in 1973 when a young girl watched enthralled as a strapping chestnut colt won the Triple Crown and reenergized horse racing. McQueen started filling her scrapbooks with clippings about Secretariat that year. This obsession grew and matured over the next 50 years as she set out on a seemingly impossible journey to document the runners sired by Secretariat and the descendants of those horses. Now, a half-century removed from Secretariat’s Triple Crown and McQueen’s scrapbooks, comes Secretariat’s Legacy: The Sons, Daughters, and Descendants Who Keep His Legend Alive. There is no better record of the horses sired by Secretariat, his prowess as a broodmare sire, and his lasting impact on racing and breeding. There is no better person to tell those stories than Patricia McQueen.”

- Milton C. Toby, award-winning author of numerous horseracing books, including the upcoming Unnatural Ability: The History of Performance-Enhancing Drugs in Thoroughbred Racing

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"As a card-carrying Secretariat fan for 50 years, I can say without hesitation that photojournalist Patricia McQueen’s Secretariat’s Legacy is indeed a book befitting the legendary Big Red. McQueen’s stunning photographs and eloquent prose add whole new chapters to the 1973 Triple Crown winner’s legacy. Of particular significance, McQueen’s book rectifies the misjudgments about Secretariat’s success as a sire and showcases the influence of his bloodlines to this day.

Having written about the Florida Thoroughbred industry for three decades and counting, I was personally delighted with McQueen’s well-researched and documented Ocala connections to Secretariat. Group 1 winner Dactylographer was the first son of Secretariat to go to stud in 1979 and he did so at Ocala-based Comfort Acres. McQueen even includes a rare letter by then Florida Governor Bob Graham welcoming Dactylographer to the Sunshine State. Also noted in the book are Tweak, If This Be So and Image of Greatness, a trio of Florida-bred stakes winners by Secretariat. If This Be So and Image of Greatness also stood their entire stud careers at Hooper Farm and Kinsman Farm, respectively.

And as of this writing, Maritime Traveler, who is the only known living horse from Secretariat’s last crop, has called Ocala-based Bridlewood Farm home since 1993.

Beyond the major chapters on Secretariat’s most successful offspring, readers to their delight will find all kinds of little-known facts, trivia and treasures sprinkled throughout the book. I could go on and on, but suffice to say, McQueen’s book is simply a magnificent achievement about a horse whose like we will not see again.

- JoAnn Guidry, past editor of and present contributing writer to The Florida Horse magazine, and author of Winner’s Circle: The Legacy of the Florida Thoroughbred Industry