Black Beauty
Anna Sewell · 1877
This book is rated Ages 10+. It isn't available on your library card.
Black Beauty tells his own story. He is a handsome black horse who grows up in a peaceful English meadow and is sold from master to master: from a kind squire's stable to a lord's fashionable carriage, and then to the hard, busy streets of Victorian London. Along the way he learns how much a horse's life depends on the hands that hold the reins.
A gentle but honest story about how horses were treated. It includes a hunting accident, a stable fire, a drunken groom's fatal fall, and the deaths of a cab horse and a cabman. These are shown at a distance or just before or after, never in distressing detail.
Characters
Black Beauty
A handsome, good-tempered black horse who tells his own life story, always trying to do his best wherever he goes.
Ginger
A proud, high-spirited chestnut mare whose hard early life made her snappish, until kindness at Birtwick begins to soften her.
Merrylegs
A fat, cheerful little grey pony who loves the children he carries and believes that good places make good horses.
Duchess
Beauty's wise and gentle mother, whose advice to be good, never bite or kick, and keep his good name guides him always.
John Manly
Squire Gordon's steady, kind-hearted coachman, whose patience and common sense win the trust of every horse in his care.
Squire Gordon
The thoughtful master of Birtwick Park, a fair gentleman who won't tolerate cruelty to any creature.
Jerry Barker
A cheerful, honest London cab driver who treats his horses as friends and his family with warm good humour.
Farmer Grey
Beauty's first master, a kindly farmer who raises him in a pleasant meadow and patiently breaks him in himself.
Joe Green
An eager young stable boy at Birtwick, small for his age, who is keen to learn and grows up big-hearted.
James Howard
A cheerful, freckled stable lad at Birtwick who helps John care for the horses and proves brave when it counts.
Mrs Gordon
The Squire's gentle, delicate wife, who admires Beauty's sweet face and gives him his name.
Captain
A proud old white horse who once served as a war horse and has many stories of the battlefield to tell.
About the story
Black Beauty is the life story of a handsome black horse, told in his own words. It begins in a quiet English meadow, where the young colt runs beside his mother and learns her advice: be gentle, do your best, and keep up your good name. From there he is broken to saddle and harness and goes to work. He meets other horses, including cheerful little Merrylegs and the proud, wary chestnut mare Ginger, and comes to know the many people who ride, drive and care for him, some kind, some careless and some cruel.
The story is set in Victorian England, among country estates, farm lanes and busy towns, at a time when horses did most of the hauling, carrying and travel. Anna Sewell wrote it to show how horses felt about the way they were treated. She takes on tight check-reins, docked tails, harsh bits and thoughtless driving, and keeps returning to patience, kindness and responsibility.
First published in 1877, Black Beauty became one of the best-selling books in English and changed how many readers thought about animals. Its plain, honest narration and its sympathy for creatures that cannot speak for themselves still make it moving and worth reading today.
This Knownstep Stories edition is a condensed picture-book retelling in 73 pages, with about 23 minutes of synthetic-voice narration and AI illustrations drawn for this edition. Anna Sewell's full original text is in the public domain, free to read, and well worth reading too.
Adapted from Black Beauty by Anna Sewell (1877), public domain.
Questions
What is Black Beauty about?
It is the autobiography of a horse, who tells his own life from his early days in a country meadow through his years of work for different owners. Through his eyes the book shows how kindness and cruelty affect animals.
Who is the main character in Black Beauty?
The narrator is Black Beauty himself, a black horse with one white foot and a white star. His mother first calls him Darkie, and his new mistress later names him Black Beauty. Other important characters include Ginger, Merrylegs and the groom John Manly.
Is Black Beauty suitable for children?
This edition is rated 10+. The story is gentle in tone, but it shows animals being mistreated and includes a hunting accident with a death, which may upset younger children.
How long does this edition take to read or listen to?
It has 73 illustrated pages and about 23 minutes of narration, so most readers can finish it in one sitting.
Is this the full book?
No. This is a condensed picture-book retelling. Anna Sewell's complete 1877 novel is in the public domain and can be read for free.
Read the text version: every page's caption, with its picture, on one page.
