Black Beauty
Anna Sewell's famous 'Autobiography of a Horse' is a Victorian and children's classic. Written to expose and prevent cruelty to horses in Victorian England, the novel's appeal as animal story, horse-care manual, protest work, feminist text and slave narrative is fully explored in this new edition.
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'I have heard men say, that seeing is believing; but I should say that feeling is believing.'Anna Sewell's famous 'Autobiography of a Horse, published in 1877, is one of the bestselling novels in English. It was written not for children, but to expose and prevent cruelty to horses, and is a classic of Victorian literature that continues to captivate readers young and old. Black Beauty's moving story recounts his idyllic colthood and his experiences at the hands of a variety of owners, good and bad. Describing his life as a horse in Victorian England, he tells of his equine companions and human carers, and of the unthinking brutality to which horses were often subjected. A sympathetic hero who faces danger and excitement, Black Beauty never wavers in his principles, and the powerful lessons he teaches influenced animal welfare in England and America. This edition restores the original 1877 text and explores the multiple ways in which the novel has been read: as accessible horse-care manual, protest novel, feminist text, autobiography, slave narrative, and classic animal story.
