One night, a few very talented illustrators represented by my agency, Gallt and Zacker, had dinner after the Original Art show at the Society of Illustrators. All of them were among the best at what they do in the picture book field. I happened to sit across from Sean Rubin, who is one of the best at drawing dinosaurs. We talked about my painting on display at the Original Art show, which portrayed a daddy and daughter riding a large black stallion in front of a big graffiti piece called a burner.

He complimented me on my horses in the book, to which I replied naively, “Thanks! It was my first time painting a horse!”

This comment took him by surprise. “So how were you chosen to paint a book about horses, one of the most difficult figures to paint, if you had no horses in your portfolio?”

This is a question I had never thought about before, thankfully. Had I thought about this before taking the job, I probably would’ve been too intimidated to take it. My only answer to this question was, “They had faith in me?”

Now that I have been awarded the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award as well as a Caldecott Honor for my first horse drawings, I have drawn many horses, and I have learned some interesting facts about horses that I’d like to share. And since I am an afterschool art teacher who knows the importance of class ­participation to encourage students not to doze off, I will make this into a little game show!

C. G. poses with his self-portrait. Photo: Danielle Amy.

Welcome to C. G. Esperanza’s Black Cowboy Trivia!

A Black jockey named Oliver Lewis was the first winner of what famous horse racing competition founded in 1875?

The Kentucky Derby

One of the most famous Black cowboys introduced bulldogging, a modern rodeo event that involves wrestling a running steer to the ground. What was this cowboy’s name?

Bill Pickett

Mayisha Akbar is the founder of this famous Black cowboy group that was originally founded to introduce kids in inner-city, predominantly Black communities to horseback riding. What is the name of this group?

The Compton Cowboys

Originating from North Africa, the Barb horses were used by which group during their conquering of Spain in 711 CE?

The Berbers or the Moors

I also learned a bunch about ­Panamanian culture, as the author of My Daddy Is a Cowboy, Stephanie Seales, is of ­Afro-Panamanian descent, and the family in the book is the first ­Afro-Panamanian family in a traditionally published picture book. What is the name of the art form originating from the Guna people of Panama, which refers to brightly colored, intricately designed fabric panels used on traditional blouses?

Mola

* * *

I want to give a huge NEIGH to Stephanie Seales!!!, the author of My Daddy Is a Cowboy, who knocked it out the park on her debut book.

I also want to give a huge NEIGH to my incredible agent, Marietta Zacker, our wonderful, thoughtful, and patient editor, Courtney Code, our very skilled art directors, Heather Kelly and Melissa Greenberg, and all of the members of the Abrams union and all unions in ­publishing, who help create an atmosphere where creators like myself can truly express themselves.

I want to give another huge NEIGH to the girl who inspired and modeled for the main character of this book: Aaliyah, a student of mine from my afterschool art classes at Concourse House in the Bronx. Concourse House is a transitional home for women and children. Many of the children there have to live far away from their fathers for years. This definitely inspired me to create a book that could remind them of the special bond they have with their fathers or father figures, while also giving them something to read together once they reunite.

My last NEIGH goes out to the Coretta Scott King jury for recognizing our book, to the librarians, all of you! And my college picture-book professor, Eric Velasquez, who showed me how much Black male educators matter. Can I get a NEIGH, Y’ALL?!!!

C. G. Esperanza is the winner of the 2025 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award for My Daddy Is a Cowboy, written by Stephanie Seales and published by Abrams Books for Young Readers. His acceptance speech was delivered at the annual conference of the American Library Association in Philadelphia on June 29, 2025. From the July/August 2025 issue of The Horn Book Magazine: Special Issue: ALA Awards. For more speeches, profiles, and articles, click the tag ALA 2025.

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