HBRW 2026 - Wild Horses

We know her as an award-winning poet, but Marty Smith has also had a life-long interest in horses – as a rider, owner and breeder. Her book, It Gets in Your Blood explores the world of horse racing.
She joins a panel with Abby Letteri, whose memoir Perfectly Themselves: Horses in the Human World focuses on the history of horses in connection with people and her research into wild horses.
Catherine Robertson leads the discussion, unmissable for anyone who appreciates these magnificent animals.

About the Authors

Marty Smith (Taranaki Tūturu, Te Āti Awa) has been involved in racing for many years, as a rider, owner and breeder, plus putting a fiver on here and there. Marty taught for many years at Taradale High School. Her debut poetry collection Horse with Hat won the NZSA Jessie Mackay Award for Best First Book of Poetry in 2014. Her 2026 book It Gets in Your Blood is a work of nonfiction about the world of horse racing, ten years in the making.

Abby Letteri is the author of down they forgot: a memoir (2021) and her poetry, stories and essays have appeared widely in Aotearoa and the United States, including Turbine | Kapohau and the Aotearoa New Zealand Review of Books. Her 2026 book Perfectly Themselves began as a PhD at the International Institute of Modern Letters.

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