Thank you so much for this honor. I wrote My Daddy Is a Cowboy in 2020, which was a difficult year for all of us. In the midst of such suffering, I felt the need for joy more keenly than I ever had before. Out of that need came this story.

Photo: Cynthia K. Ritter.

Little did I know that 2025 would be as difficult as 2020 — if not more so. With multiple, ongoing genocides and rights being stripped left and right, we’re as much in need of joy now as in 2020. This year has also been one of profound personal sorrow, as I had to say goodbye to my heart’s companion and the soul of my soul, my greatest source of joy, my precious dog, Pan.

Pan was the sweetest and kindest boy. Every morning he woke up smiling, like he couldn’t imagine anything better than spending another day together. Everywhere we went he was universally admired. Unbeknownst to me, talking with his many simps helped prepare me for the author life and talking with so many people about Cowboy. Since Pan was so wee and well-behaved, he went with me to nearly all my book events. He particularly enjoyed interacting with children. No matter how many kids attended an event, he graciously accepted their pets with a smile. He loved to sit at my feet while I wrote and starred in some of my most popular Instagram posts. Pan was as integral to my author experience as he was to my daily life. So I would like to dedicate this award to him, my beloved Marzipan Pantalaimon Peter Bread Seales (better known as Pan). Thank you, Pan, for your companionship and your kindness, for your love and for the joy you brought me, which will be with me always.

[Read Horn Book reviews of the 2025 BGHB Picture Book winners.]

I’d like to thank Emma Sector, my friend and former agent, for being the first person to believe in this story and for getting it to the right editor. Thank you to my editor, Courtney Code, for seeing the value in this project from the start and for being a great support and collaborator. Thank you to the talented C. G. Esperanza for saying yes to this book and for creating such incredible art — you deserve all the awards you’ve received for it. Thank you to all the booksellers, librarians and library staff, reviewers, fellow children’s book creators, and everyone who loves this book and has shared that love with others. Your support has made Cowboy a success. Thank you to my family. And last but not least, thank you, thank you, thank you to the Boston Globe–Horn Book Awards Committee for choosing to honor this special story. It means so much that you see the value in it. Deep gratitude and many thanks.

From the January/February 2026 issue of The Horn Book Magazine. For more on the 2025 Boston Globe–Horn Book Awards, click on the tag BGHB25.

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