A horse is a horse of course unless of course the horse is Black Beauty. Animal-loving children have been devoted to?ÿBlack Beauty?ÿthroughout this century, and no doubt will continue through the next. Although Anna Sewells classic paints a clear picture of turn-of-the-century London, its message is universal and timeless: animals will serve humans well if they are treated with consideration and kindness.
Black Beauty?ÿtells the story of the horses own long and varied life, from a well-born colt in a pleasant meadow to an elegant carriage horse for a gentleman to a painfully overworked cab horse. Throughout, Sewell rails??in a gentle, 19th-century way??against animal maltreatment. Young readers will follow Black Beautys fortunes, good and bad, with gentle masters as well as cruel. Children can easily make the leap from horse-human relationships to human-human relationships, and begin to understand how their own consideration of others may be a benefit to all.?ÿ