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Feeling Dressage, a book for riders beginning or moving on in dressage, joins the host of instructional books on dressage riding. It stands out from the crowd in its detailed, practical explanations that allow you to visualize yourself on the horse as you read.

Two chapters in particular deserve special mention. "The Rider's Seat" and "Movements" are worth the price of the book on their own. These are chapters I can see myself going back to when I need to solidify or clarify what's happening in my own riding sessions.

In "The Rider's Seat" Schaeffer has distilled years of practical experience into very clear directions to get the rider sitting correctly and effectively in the saddle. She gives specific explanations of what we should be doing with thighs and pelvis, the faults to watch for and how to correct or prevent them.

In the chapter on movements, Schaeffer takes each dressage movement from bending lines through canter pirouettes and gives step-by-step instructions, common mistakes, and training tips.

A useful chapter for riders new to dressage is the one on arena figures. It contains diagrams of all the common figures and an outline of typical rules for riding in an arena. I found it strange that she referred to the direction of travel as lead. In my experience, lead only refers to canter leads. When you change direction in an arena, you change rein, and you travel on the right rein or the left rein. And in the trot, you post on the outside diagonal and change posting diagonals when you change direction . . . .

Which brings me to editing. While the book has excellent content and some of the best explanations I've found, the overall writing quality and tone are inconsistent. I kept thinking "This book needs a good edit," and by someone with dressage knowledge. It's as if the chapters were written separately and then thrown together with little thought as to their flow or intended audience. Chapters 7 and 8 belong at the end of the book, if at all. Chapter 5 should follow Chapter 6. The book would also benefit from an index.

That aside, Feeling Dressage would be an excellent addition to the training library of any rider who wants to learn how to ride well. This is Schaeffer's first book and I look forward to hearing more from her.