Narrated by Black Beauty himself, he experiences happy youthful days as young horse on an English farm with his mother. He recounts his memoirs and story in life and goes on to grow up and become quite a handsome and capable horse. He experiences both tragedy and happiness and eventually finds himself in difficult days pulling cabs in London under harsh conditions. Each chapter of the story covers a moral lesson typically relating to kindness, sympathy and understanding. He eventually gets out of hardship to experience joy and relief in retirement.