This is the story of a race horse that refused to run and what happened next. Like Ferdinand the bull, who only wanted to smell the flowers and ended up affecting far more lives than he knew, a grey gelding dubbed Bonefish changes the course of events for the residents of one whole island and several more people on two different continents.

The premise is absurd, the action is flatly unbelievable... and yet there's a ring to the events surrounding Bonefish particularly that shines 24 carat. (My own family has tales of the backstretch that at first hearing are as oddly unlikely, so who am I to cast doubt.) In spite of the somewhat rough and ready delivery and a choppy narration peppered with far too many details and off plot meanderings, it's oddly charming and pleasantly memorable. ( )