黑美人出身高贵，与母亲一起在农场自由、快乐地度过了一生中最初的四年时光。农场主亲自调教后，黑美人来到附近的农场，进入了马的社会：小矮马会调教调皮的男孩，母马桀骜不驯……幸好主人懂马，对马充满爱心，马夫也精心照料每一匹马。在一丝丝不安中，黑美人会怎样迎接命运的一个个安排呢？

安娜·塞维尔，英国著名作家。出于对人类虐待动物的强烈不满，她花了六年时间创作了本书。她最大的愿望就是引发人们的善心、同情心，使人们懂得该怎样对待动物。这本书自出版之后，并多次被搬上荧屏。

Part I
CHAPTER 1 My Early Home
CHAPTER 2 The Hunt
CHAPTER 3 My Breaking In
CHAPTER 4 Birtwick Park
CHAPTER 5 A Fair Start
CHAPTER 6 Liberty
CHAPTER 7 Ginger
CHAPTER 8 Ginger's Story Continued
CHAPTER 9 Merrylegs
CHAPTER 10 A Talk in the Orchard
CHAPTER 11 Plain Speaking
CHAPTER 12 A Stormy Day
CHAPTER 13 The Devil's Trade Mark
CHAPTER 14 James Howard
CHAPTER 15 The Old Hostler
CHAPTER 16 The Fire
CHAPTER 17 John Manly's Talk
CHAPTER 18 Going for the Doctor
CHAPTER 19 Only Ignorance
CHAPTER 20 Joe Green
CHAPTER 21 The Parting
Part Ⅱ
CHAPTER 22 Earlshall
CHAPTER 23 A Strike for Liberty
CHAPTER 24 The Lady Anne, or a Runaway Horse
CHAPTER 25 Reuben Smith
CHAPTER 26 How It Ended
CHAPTER 27 Ruined and Going Downhill
CHAPTER 28 A Job Horse and His Drivers
CHAPTER 29 Cockneys
CHAPTER 30 A Thief
CHAPTER 31 A Humbug
Part III
CHAPTER 32 A Horse Fair
CHAPTER 33 A London Cab Horse
CHAPTER 34 An Old War Horse
CHAPTER 35 Jerry Barker
CHAPTER 36 The Sunday Cab
CHAPTER 37 The Golden Rule
CHAPTER 38 Dolly and a Real Gentleman
CHAPTER 39 Seedy Sam
CHAPTER 40 Poor Ginger
CHAPTER 41 The Butcher
CHAPTER 42 The Election
CHAPTER 43 A Friend in Need
CHAPTER 44 Old Captain and His Successor
CHAPTER 45 Jerry's New Year
Part IV
CHAPTER 46 Jakes and the Lady
CHAPTER 47 Hard Times
CHAPTER 48 Farmer Thoroughgood and His Grandson Willie
CHAPTER 49 My Last Home

该书为公版书，首次出版于1877年，讲述了一匹马从出生到找到最终归宿的一生。黑美人在出生的农场与母亲度过了人生最初四年的快乐时光，调教后被卖到附近农场作为贵族家的骑乘马、马车马，也得到主人和马夫很好的照料。然而，其后的境遇则每况愈下：作为骑乘马，被勒脖子，被偷饲料，被忽视；作为出租车马，在繁重的劳下日复一日……在命运的一个个安排下，黑美人由天真、善良、活泼、不知世事，到尝尽苦难，饱经风霜，阅尽各色人等，其悲惨的命运和不改温顺、善良的本性让多少孩子掬尽同情的眼泪，也学会与动物、他人相处，不愧为动物小说的经典。