Now, most people will flip through the book just to “ooh” and “aah” at the pretty pictures. Actually, I did a lot of that, too. But then I got to thinking about the book, photos and text, as a writer’s tool.

In stories where horses appear, a writer can deepen an audience’s experience by putting some thought into a character’s horse’s color and markings as a part of the world-building for the story. I see it working on screen.

In the first “Lord of the Rings” movie, the Ringwraith rode all black horses (with glowing red eyes.) They were Grim Reapers who could run you down, no matter how fast you ran.

In “Hidalgo,” the plucky mustang was a splashy orange-and-white paint horse competing against solid-colored pure-bred Arabians. The whole story was about a “loud” (visually, that is) outsider vs conservative establishment.

Anyway, by using both the photos and the text for inspiration, I think the book in question works as a good introduction to the varieties of colors and markings that horses can have. I think we writers can use these details in our world-building – just like Hollywood does.

If that wasn’t the kind of answer you were hoping for, let me know.