Black Beauty (dodo Press)

Anna Sewell (1820-1878) was a British author. At the age of 14, she fell while walking home from school in the rain, injuring both her ankles. Possibly through mistreatment of her injury, she became lame for the rest of her life and was unable to stand or walk for any length of time. For greater mobility, she frequently used horsedrawn carriages, which contributed to her love of horses and concern for the humane treatment of animals. She never married or had children, but lived at home, and remained very close to her mother, Mary Wright Sewell. Mary was an author of evangelical children's books, which Anna helped to edit. Her only publication was Black Beauty, which she wrote between 1871 and 1877. During this time her health was declining. She was often so weak that she couldn't get out of bed and writing at all was a challenge. She dictated the text to her mother and from 1876 began to write on slips of paper which her mother then transcribed. She died in 1878, just five months after her publication, living long enough to see the book's initial early success.