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thearomaofbooks 's review for:
Black Beauty
by Anna Sewell
This is a definite childhood classic for me. I was very much into horses as a girl, and still own multiple copies of Black Beauty, each with its own style of illustrations and binding. My favorite for reading is still the small Scholastic Book Club paperback. It's illustrated with line drawings, but doesn't say who drew them! I've had this particular copy since I was about ten, and have read it many times. However, it had been several years since I had pulled it out. I enjoyed the trip down memory lane, although as a more pessimistic adult, I find the ending not as confidently positive as I did as a youngster - after multiple times a sudden change in the life of Beauty's owners leading to his being reluctantly sold, I was necessarily confident that the same wouldn't happen again in his retirement. What a grump I've turned out to be!
Of course, the story is quite polemic in nature - Sewell's entire goal was to expose many of the everyday cruelties endured by horses and other animals (and people) with no one to speak for them. But everything is presented in such a gentle and loving way that it's hard to take offense. It's just many little stories that collectively remind readers that the power to make the world a better place is within everyone's grasp, if they are willing to step forward and do their small part.
Despite the fact that much of the tale is a bit out of date as far as societal issues go (I don't really remember the last time I saw someone forcing a horse to draw a heavy load uphill while using the bearing rein), the overall lessons of kindness, generosity, and always looking out for those who are weaker than you are timeless.
Of course, the story is quite polemic in nature - Sewell's entire goal was to expose many of the everyday cruelties endured by horses and other animals (and people) with no one to speak for them. But everything is presented in such a gentle and loving way that it's hard to take offense. It's just many little stories that collectively remind readers that the power to make the world a better place is within everyone's grasp, if they are willing to step forward and do their small part.
Despite the fact that much of the tale is a bit out of date as far as societal issues go (I don't really remember the last time I saw someone forcing a horse to draw a heavy load uphill while using the bearing rein), the overall lessons of kindness, generosity, and always looking out for those who are weaker than you are timeless.