Edited with an Introduction by Thomas Ruys Smith.
 
Mary Sewell is best remembered as the mother of Anna Sewell, the author of Black Beauty. But before she played a pivotal role in the creation of one of the most famous novels of all time, Mary had already enjoyed a career as a bestselling poet. Her verses about ordinary people and their lives sold by the million. Until now, however, they have been lost to readers.
 
This volume, edited with an introduction by Thomas Ruys Smith (UEA), reproduces some of her most popular and powerful ballads and stories in verse and gives us a new understanding of the extraordinary woman who wrote them. As a committed philanthropist who was deeply concerned with the suffering of humans and animals alike, Mary would be pleased to know that this edition has been produced in collaboration with Redwings Horse Sanctuary, the proud custodians of Anna Sewell House in Great Yarmouth where Mary lived just after her marriage in 1819. Every copy of this edition sold will contribute directly to Redwings’ mission to value every horse and try to see the world from an equine point of view.
 
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Thomas Ruys Smith specialises in the study of nineteenth-century literature and culture. He is the author and editor of a wide range of books including, most recently, The Last Gift: The Christmas Stories of Mary E. Wilkins Freeman (Louisiana State University Press, 2023).