Black Beauty was born in a peaceful meadow. Her master was kind and gentle with her, and the first years of her life passed happily and carefree. When the time came for her to be sold, she went through many homes and masters. There, she made friends who had gone through difficult times. Thus, she learned their stories and realized that not all people out there were kind and gentle. On the contrary, some were harsh and violent with animals. Unfortunately, she also met such people… Black Beauty was written by the English author Anna Sewell and published in 1877. It was her only novel: the autobiography of a horse. After its great success, it was translated into many languages and sold millions of copies worldwide. It ranks among the best-selling books of all time.