Audiobook · read by volunteers
Jungle Book
Rudyard Kipling (1865–1936)
Read by Meredith Hughes · 11 chapters · 5 h 02
About the book
Deep in the Indian jungle, a baby boy is found by a family of wolves and raised as one of their own. His name is Mowgli, and his teachers include Baloo the bear, who teaches him the Law of the Jungle, and Bagheera the black panther, who watches over him. But the tiger Shere Khan wants him dead, and as he grows, Mowgli must decide where he belongs. Rudyard Kipling's stories are full of vivid animals, jungle songs and daring escapes, and they are followed by tales of a brave white seal and a fearless mongoose. Eleven chapters and five hours bring a world that is wild, wise and unforgettable, to be enjoyed by children and adults alike.
Introduction
Rudyard Kipling was born in 1865 in Bombay and died in 1936. He spent his early childhood in India, was sent to England for school, and returned to India as a young journalist, and these experiences shaped much of his writing. In 1907 he became the first English-language writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The Jungle Book was published in 1894 and was followed by a second volume the next year. It collects a series of stories, some about the boy Mowgli, raised by wolves, and some about other animals. Among the best known of the latter are The White Seal, the tale of Kotick, who searches for a safe home for his kind, and Rikki-Tikki-Tavi, the story of a courageous mongoose. Each tale is accompanied by a verse, and several of the songs, such as the Hunting-Song of the Seeonee Pack, are included in this recording. The stories are often read as animal fables, and they have an ethical dimension, concerned with law, loyalty and courage. Readers today should be aware that Kipling was a figure of his time and an advocate of empire, and that some of his attitudes have been strongly criticised.
This recording was made by LibriVox volunteers. It has eleven chapters, with the longer tales divided into parts, and lasts about five hours. Why listen? Because the stories are well made, exciting and memorable, and because they have inspired many films, books and songs. Hearing them aloud returns them to the oral tradition from which they draw.
Public domain
Rudyard Kipling died in 1936: the work is in the public domain in Switzerland, more than 70 years after the author’s death.
The LibriVox volunteers dedicated this recording to the public domain.
Sources : LibriVox page · Files at the Internet Archive · Original text