El Corcel Negro/the Black Stallion

Walter Farley's love for horses began when he was a small boy living in Syracuse, New York, and continued as he grew up in New York City, where his family moved. Young Walter never owned a horse. But unlike most city children, he had little trouble gaining firsthand experience with horses-his uncle was a professional horseman, and Walter spent much of his time at the stables with him."He wasn't the most successful trainer of race horses," Mr. Farley recalled, "and in a way I profited by it.