Excerpt

"I want a horse," I said. "A real horse. Please, Dad, please."
"Sorry," Dad said. "We can't have a horse in our apartment.
The apartment manager wouldn't allow it."

The telephone rang. Dad ran to the other room.
"This call is important, so don't bother me." He shut his door.

I still wanted a horse.
Maybe I'd ask Mom when she came home. She was at work.
Dad doesn't work. He's a writer.

Thump. Thump.
Someone was at the front door. I peeked out the window.
A horse was at our door! A real horse!

Thump. Thump.
The horse stomped his foot. I didn't know what to do.
Dad always said, "Don't open the door for strangers--people you don't know."
And Dad said not to bother him now.

Thump. Thump.
The horse really wanted to come in.
Hey! It isn't a strange person. It isn't a person at all. It's a horse.
Mom and Dad didn't say I couldn't open the door for a horse.

I looked out the window again. What a great horse!
Maybe the horse knew I wanted a horse. Maybe he wanted a kid.

I opened the door...