The Happy Bottom Riding Club

The Life and Times of Pancho Barnes

by Lauren Kessler

Random House, 305 pp., $24.95

A writer prays to be graced with a subject like Florence “Pancho” Barnes. Born into privilege and wealth, Florence Mae Dobbins managed at an early age to set herself apart from other girls with her boisterous spirit, love of horses, and a tendency to pull outrageous stunts. The unlikely heiress lived her whole life in this manner, earning fame as an aviator, but it was her ebullient charm, filthy mouth, love of adventure, and boundless generosity that served to guide her socially, sexually, and financially. Although widely considered less than ravishing, Florence never lacked for male companionship; her appetite for sex was as voracious as her love of raucous good times — which she made sure there were plenty of. Lauren Kessler, the lucky author who hit on this dreamy biography matter, warrants praise for her exuberant telling of Pancho’s bigger-than-life story. Kessler’s affectionate portrait of the self-proclaimed “greatest conversation piece that ever existed” is as authoritative as it is lively.

This article appears in October 6 • 2000.

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