6 h 46 minAudiobook9 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 6 h 46 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if your strength makes you useful, but leaves you powerless to choose who holds the reins?
In Anna Sewell’s Black Beauty, a horse tells his own life story, from an English meadow to the busy streets of London. Gentle care marks his early years. But each change of owner puts his health and happiness in new hands, and he cannot explain his pain in human words.
At Birtwick Park, Beauty meets Ginger, whose harsh treatment leaves her fearful, and Merrylegs, a pony trusted by children. Later, cab work brings long hours, traffic, and pressure to keep earning. Through patient groom John Manly and caring driver Jerry Barker, the story asks what kindness means when an animal depends on you.
What you’ll discover
- A horse’s daily life Feel what a saddle, bridle, and harness ask of an animal learning to trust.
- The hurt behind fear Meet Ginger, whose experience reveals how pain can be mistaken for stubbornness.
- Kindness put to work See how John Manly joins patient handling with the knowledge good care requires.
- London through Beauty’s eyes Follow cab work through crowded streets, difficult customers, bad weather, and exhausting hours.
- The cost of appearance Discover how the bearing rein puts fashion before a working horse’s comfort.
Who will love it
This book suits readers who love animals, warm family stories and tales told by one honest voice. It also rewards anyone drawn to Victorian England and to stories about kindness and fairness.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A gentle colt learns what kindness feels like
- Training teaches trust through patience and small rewards
- Birtwick Park shows what a good home can mend
- Courage, a storm and an illness test a horse
- The happy years end and tight reins begin
- A job horse meets every kind of bad driver
- Jerry Barker gives a London cab horse real dignity
- Cruelty and kindness are shown side by side
- Ignorance, drink and hard bargains do their own damage
- A horse tells the tale in plain, vivid words
Who’s who
- Black BeautyA gentle, willing black horse who tells his own story and wants a home where he is treated with care.
- GingerA proud chestnut mare hurt by rough handling, who snaps at men until kindness begins to heal her.
- MerrylegsA wise, cheerful little gray pony who looks after the children and believes good homes make good horses.
- John ManlyThe coachman at Birtwick Park, who understands horses deeply and wants every young horse to get a fair start.
- James HowardA gentle, brave stable boy who rescues the horses from a fire and moves on to a better post.
- Jerry BarkerA cheerful London cabman who treats his horses as friends and protects his family's Sundays.
- DuchessBeauty's wise mother, who teaches him to be gentle and to do his best wherever he goes.
- Joe GreenA small, willing stable boy who makes a painful mistake, learns from it, and grows into a brave young man.
Formats and delivery
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- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 9 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
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- Large print paperback
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- Large print hardcover
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Black Beauty
by Anna Sewell · 1877
A black colt in an English meadow grows up to tell what horses feel in the hands of kind and cruel people.
Easy read5–10 hours to readDeutsch
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In short
What would a horse say about the people who drive him, feed him, whip him and pat him? Black Beauty answers in his own voice.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A gentle colt learns what kindness feels like
The story opens in a wide meadow with a pond, fir trees and a brook. The narrator is a dull black colt who runs beside his mother, Duchess, all day. The first pages are full of grass, shade and safety.
When the older colts play roughly, Duchess calls her son aside. She tells him he comes from good stock. She asks him to work willingly, lift his feet when he trots, and never bite or kick, even in play. He keeps her words for life.
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- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 9 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1877
- Language
- Deutsch
- Reading time
- 4 h 25 min
- Level
- Easy read
Cite this edition
Sewell, Anna. Black Beauty. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/black-beauty.
Sewell, A. (2026). Black Beauty. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/black-beauty (Original work published 1877)
Sewell, Anna. Black Beauty. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/black-beauty.
@book{sewell2026black,
author = {Sewell, Anna},
title = {Black Beauty},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/black-beauty},
note = {First published 1877}
}
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What is Black Beauty about?
It is the life story of a horse, told in his own words. He moves from a happy meadow to many owners, meeting kind and cruel people and learning how treatment shapes a horse's character.
Why is the horse called Black Beauty?
His first master calls him Darkie because he is a dull black. At Birtwick Park the squire and his wife name him Black Beauty because he is as black as ebony, with a sweet, good-tempered face.
Is Black Beauty a true story?
No, it is a novel, though it is based on real practices of its day such as the check rein, docked tails and overworked cab horses. Anna Sewell published it in 1877.
The author
Anna Sewell
1820–1878 · English novelist
Anna Sewell was an English novelist born in Great Yarmouth in 1820. She lived in England and wrote one novel, Black Beauty, which was published in 1877. She wrote it while living in Old Catton, near Norwich. She died there in 1878, a few months after its publication.
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