Amazingly fast, incredibly strong, and fantastically gentle, Black Beauty is a horse that touches the hearts of all who meet him. Born on a grand estate in the English countryside, he spends his days galloping across open meadows and carrying adoring children on his back. But when a tragic accident forces Black Beauty’s owner to sell him, this joyful life quickly comes to an end. Outside the estate is a world where horses are treated with bitter cruelty and thoughtless violence. Nothing, however, can break Black Beauty’s spirit-or his great love. For he knows that someday, he will find happiness again. Black Beauty was written in an age when people took horses for granted just as we take cars for granted today. Many times, people misused horses. In her book, Anna Sewell spoke to the world on behalf of horses, reminding people that animals are living, feeling creatures who deserve to be treated with kindness. Today, Black Beauty is a beloved classic of children’s literature that has captured the hearts of generations.

From its first publication in 1877, Black Beauty has been one of the best-loved animal stories ever written. The dramatic and heartwarming tale is told by the magnificent black horse himself, from his idyllic days on a country squire’s estate to his harsh fate as a London cab horse and his merciful rescue by two kindly old ladies.

Filled with vivid anecdotes about animal intelligence, the novel derives a special magic from the love of all creatures, great and small, apparent on every page. But the book’s lasting impact comes from its descriptions of a human society struggling to find the goodness within itself and its plea for kindness to all creatures–a message so powerful that this favorite classic began a crusade for animal welfare that continues to this day.

Black Beauty is a novel by English author Anna Sewell published in 1877. The story is told in the first person and is a fictional autobiographical memoir told from the perspective of a horse named Black Beauty. The story follow this horses life, from his young days on an English farm with his mother, to the more dreadful years of pulling cabs in London, and ending with his happy retirement in the country. The book at the time of its publication, somewhat inadvertently helped gain justice for mistreated animals (specifically horses) in the London cab industry, as well as to help those cab drivers combat unfair government regulations. It has sold over 50 million copies making one of the best-selling books of all time.

Written nearly a century and a half ago, this book was the first major animal story in children’s literature, although the author had intended it for adults.

Anna Sewell had been crippled at a young age but could still drive a horse-drawn carriage. She often drove her father to the station to go to work and later picked him up to bring him home. During those times, she saw there was often inhumane treatment of horses and was inspired to write about it in order, as she said, “To induce kindness, sympathy, and an understanding treatment of horses.” She spent the last seven years of her life writing her only novel, Black Beauty, told in first-person narration by Black Beauty himself.

As we all know, horses can’t write or tell their life story. Therefore, as narrator, John Rayburn says he speaks as the horse, telling the story of the horse as you are invited to listen to the tale of a courageous animal.

And don’t miss Rayburn’s historic reenactment of four World Series Classics … 1945 Cubs-Tigers, 1946 Cardinals-Red Sox, and 1956 Yankees-Brooklyn Dodgers.

The story of noble Black Beauty is one of the most popular children’s books of all time.

In this sensitive children’s adaptation, Beauty movingly describes the friends, people and places – good and bad – that he encounters in the course of his dramatic life as he is passed from master to master.

Anna Sewell wrote her book in the late 19th century as an attempt to improve the conditions of the working horse. It remains a unique document of a time when horses were the main means of transport and a heartfelt message against cruelty to animals. While primarily teaching about animal rights, it also looks at how to treat people with kindness, sympathy, and respect.

In this audiobook, a beautiful soundscape transports readers to the heart of each scene. Beauty’s narrative is complemented by hundreds of facts about cab horses and carriage horses in town and country and the practicalities of their treatment and ill-treatment.

This powerful audiobook and its fascinating context can be enjoyed and understood by a new generation of animal lovers.

Narrated by the formidable Juliet Stevenson, who has over read 140 audiobooks, she brings the characters of Black Beauty to life.

© 1887; 1997 Anna Sewell; Caryn Jenner © 2000 DK Audio

Every child loves a story about a horse, and Black Beauty remains one of the finest, most touching ever written. Set in Victorian London, the novel follows the shifting fortunes of a horse as he moves from owner to owner. Narrated by the noble Black Beauty himself, the tale offers an animal’s perspective of the world and highlights the thoughtless, even cruel treatment animals endured during that period.

Black Beauty is a fictional autobiographical memoir told by a horse, who recounts many tales, both of cruelty and kindness. The title page of the first edition states that it was “Translated from the Original Equine by Anna Sewell.” It was composed in the last years of her life, during which she was confined to her house as an invalid. After its publication in 1877, Sewell lived just long enough to see her first and only novel become an immediate bestseller, as well as it encouraging the better treatment of many cruelly-treated animals.
Although initially intended for people who work with horses, it soon became a children’s classic. While outwardly teaching animal welfare, it also contains allegorical lessons about how to treat people with kindness, sympathy and respect. The story is narrated in the first person and each short chapter relates an incident in Black Beauty’s life, with Sewell’s detailed observations and extensive descriptions of horse behaviour lending the novel a good deal of verisimilitude.
Produced by Macc Kay
Production executive Avalon Giuliano
ICON Intern Eden Garret Giuliano
©2021 Eden Garret Giuliano (P) 2021 Eden Garret Giuliano
Eden Giuliano is a well-known actor, model, narrator, and champion gymnast. He makes his home in Bangkok

This well known classic, an autobiography of the horse Black Beauty, beginning with his carefree days as a colt on an English farm with his mother, to his difficult life pulling cabs in London, to his happy retirement in the country. Along the way, he meets with many hardships and recounts many tales of cruelty and kindness. It has been cited as “the most influential anticruelty novel of all time” by Bernard Unti. The novel was an immediate best seller, and is one of best selling books of all time.
Narrated by Michael Ward

Experiencing a story read out loud is one of the oldest forms of entertainment there is. Fireside Reading is a way to slow down, reconnect with the timeless wisdom of great books and rediscover the simple pleasure of being read to. Join Gildart Jackson in front of a cozy fire as he reads Black Beauty by Anna Sewell to you and your family from beginning to end.