Oh, I'm going to be. Welcome to Snuscast, the podcast designed to help you fall asleep.

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Tonight, we'll be reading the opening to the 1877 novel Black Beauty by English author Anna Sewell by

listener request. Due to a severe injury early in life, Sewell needed to use crutches to walk and developed a love for horses as horseback riding gave her a sense of freedom.

This novel became an immediate bestseller at the end of her life,

with Sewell dying just five months after its publication, but having lived long enough

to see her only novel become a success.

With 50 million copies sold, Black Beauty is one of the best-selling books of all time.

Let's get cozy.

Let's get cozy. Close your eyes.

Relax your body into the softness of your bed.

Now, take a few deep breaths.

Black Beauty, Part 1, Chapter 1, My Early Home

The first place that I can well remember

was a large pleasant meadow with a pond of clear water in it. Some shady trees

leaned over it and rushes and water lilies grew at the deep end.

Over the hedge on one side we looked into a plowed field and on the other we looked over a gate at our

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