The Jungle Books

Written by Rudyard Kipling

Narrated by Madhav Sharma

Kipling’s tales of Mowgli and his exciting life in the Indian jungle have been loved by children and adults alike ever since their publication in 1895. Mowgli the "man-cub" must learn to fend for himself against terrible foes like Shere Khan the tiger, but he can always call upon his friends Baloo the Bear, Bagheera the Black Panther and Kaa the Rock Python from whom he learns the Law of the Jungle.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Naxos Audiobooks
• Release date: Mar 9, 1995
• ISBN: 9789629544096

Rudyard Kipling

Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936) was an English author and poet who began writing in India and shortly found his work celebrated in England. An extravagantly popular, but critically polarizing, figure even in his own lifetime, the author wrote several books for adults and children that have become classics, Kim, The Jungle Book, Just So Stories, Captains Courageous and others. Although taken to task by some critics for his frequently imperialistic stance, the author’s best work rises above his era’s politics. Kipling refused offers of both knighthood and the position of Poet Laureate, but was the first English author to receive the Nobel prize.

Reviews for The Jungle Books

[elkehannover · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Inhaltsangabe:Der Autor Rudyard Kipling erzählt hier vier interessante Tier-Geschichten, die überwiegend in Indien spielen.Da ist die berühmte Geschichte um Mogli, der im Dschungel bei den Wölfen aufwächst und im Alter von 12 Jahren dann zu den Menschen geschickt wird. Der Tiger Shir Khan hat allerdings noch eine Rechnung mit dem Menschenkind offen und so muss Mogli all seinen Mut beweisen.Eine Tier-Geschichte, die außerhalb Indiens spielt, handelt von einer kleinen weißen Robbe, die im Alter von einem Jahr mit ansehen muss, wie eine Gruppe vierjähriger Robben von den Menschen erschlagen und gehäutet wird. Er sucht viele Jahre in den weiten Meeren nach einer Insel, wo die Menschen nicht hinkommen.Und dann gibt es noch den Mungo namens Rikitiki und eine spannende Geschichte mit Elefanten-Treiber.Mein Fazit:Wer kennt die Geschichte um den kleinen Mogli nicht? Walt Disney hat Mogli, Balu und Baghira in einem bezaubernden Film auf die Leinwand gebracht. Doch wie war die Geschichte um Shir Khan wirklich? Warum wollte er unbedingt das Menschenkind haben?Mit einer ziemlich hohen Erwartung ging ich also an das Hörbuch. Ich kann nicht sagen, dass ich enttäuscht wurde, aber wirklich begeistert bin ich auch nicht. Ich glaubte, in diesem Buch würde es eben nur um diese eine Geschichte gehen. Nein, es sind insgesamt vier Geschichten, allesamt aus der Tierwelt, wo die Menschen eine untergeordnete Rolle spielen, trotzdem auf die eine oder andere Weise ihre Spuren hinterlassen.Der Vorleser Stefan Kaminski hat dabei sehr bildlich gesprochen und die Tier-Geräusche beeindruckend nachgemacht. Das ist wirklich positiv anzumerken, dadurch bekam ich ein sehr gutes Bild von der damaligen Zeit und der Begebenheit. Der Erzählstil ist schon etwas eigentümlich und bei den Versen und Gedichten habe ich das nicht immer genau verfolgen können. Da wäre die Print-Version der Geschichten wohl doch besser, zumal sich die Geschichten auch gut zum Vorlesen eignen. Es gibt auch einige brutale Szenen, aber in den Märchen geht es ja auch nicht immer zahm zu.Aufgrund der gut gewählten und ausdrucksstarken Erzähl-Stimme bekommt es vier Sterne!

[christineplouvier · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great short stories from the era when India was the jewel in the British Empire's crown. When I was a young child, this was the book that first gave me the notion of becoming a writer when I grew up.

[benedict8-2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I highly recommend theses stories

[maxernst11 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Verzameling verhalen waarvan alleen eerste 5 over Mowgli. Verhalen telkens gevolgd door bijhorend lied; zeer mooi geschreven.

[lynleys-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

My standard four teacher placed this collection into my hands knowing that I was a keen reader. I think he was trying to steer me towards the classics and away from Enid Blyton. I'm glad someone did. I read it, but I had no further guidance, so I was a bit perplexed. I asked my father to take a look. He's a non-reader really. He read a few paragraphs and said, 'What a load of rubbish.' (This didn't help.)

[smiler69 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I had come across references to The Jungle Book numerous times over the years, most recently in The Tiger's Wife, where it plays quite an important role, which convinced me it was time to acquaint myself with this classic of children's literature. I vaguely recall reading the abridged and illustrated Mowgli stories as a child, but was quite unprepared for what I found in this omnibus version containing both Jungle Books. The first thing that struck me was the level of sophistication of the stories, which seemed to be possibly too complex, in language at least, to be fully intelligible to children today. The second thing which surprised me was that other than the Mowgli stories—about a boy raised by wolves who becomes the king of the jungle, so to speak—none of the other short stories were set in the jungle, and in at least a couple of them, animals were secondary characters only. As is the case with most people, I enjoyed the Mowgli stories most, because of the jungle setting and the variety of wild animals who each in turn are given ample room to express themselves and display their anthropomorphized characters. I've always been fascinated by the notion that certain human beings have a gift for communicating with and understanding animals, and was well regaled here, albeit only in fantasy. It's impossible to read these stories and not be impressed by the unique mentalities and behaviour of the main characters; Akela the wolf, Baloo the bear, Bagheera the panther, Kaa the snake and of course the lame tiger Shere Khan, have all become legendary because each has important life lessons to teach Mowgli and the reader, but more importantly because they become familiar to us as the stories progress while also retaining their mythical status. Had I only rated the Mowgli stories as a whole, some favourites of which are Mowgli's Brothers, Kaa's Hunting, How Fear Came, Red Dog, along with another great favourite, Rikki-Tikki-Tavi—about the eponymous mongoose who outwits a pair of dangerous snakes—I would probably have given the books four stars at least. But some of the other stories, such as Her Majesty's Servants, The Undertakers and Quiquern did not at all appeal to me and diluted the experience. Because of this, it is very likely that I will read my favourite selection from the Jungle Book and The Second Jungle Book again sometime, and will likely appreciate those stories all the more as I revisit what will by then have become familiar and beloved characters.

[lisamaria_c · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I didn't expect to love this book as much as I did. Well, as much as I loved a good half of it. This isn't a novel, but a collection of 15 stories. Eight of them do involve Mowgli, a young Indian boy orphaned by the evil tiger Shere Khan, raised by wolves and who can count as friends and protectors Bagheera the black panther, Baloo the bear and Kaa the rock python. I've actually never seen the famous Disney film made from those stories, but that might have helped make the reading experience all the more fresh and delightful. What particularly struck me was the close observation of nature and animals evident right from the first sentence. If I were rating the Mowgli stories alone, I'd rank this book a five. But there are seven other stories, and these I felt more mixed about. I did love "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" about a brave mongoose versus cobras every bit as much as the Mowgli stories. I really liked two stories of the arctic, "The White Seal" about an Alaskan seal trying to find a sanctuary from men seeking to kill seals for fur and "Quiquern" about Canadian Inuits and their dogs searching for food. I liked "The Miracle of Purun Bhagat" and thought "Toomai of the Elephants" Okay. But I didn't like "The Undertakers" at all and hated "Her Majesty's Servants." One of the reasons I didn't expect to like Kipling much at all is his reputation as an imperialist and racist. He's notoriously the author of the poem "The White Man's Burden." (And just because you're the first doesn't mean you're the second. Arthur Conan Doyle struck me as uncritical of imperialism but it was clear from his stories he was no racist--even believed in racial intermarriage. Kipling's views are quite different judging from the introduction to the edition I read.) Despite Kipling's politics though I found reading this book there were good reasons why Indian authors such as Arundhati Roy, V.S. Naipaul and Salman Rushdie find Kipling impressive and even influential. Kipling can be a wonderful storyteller. Rushdie has said Kipling's writing has "the power simultaneously to infuriate and to entrance." Mostly I was entranced. But a few times, and especially in "Her Majesty's Servants," I thought the dark side of Kipling, and his unapologetic imperialism and certainty everyone had their place and should obediently stay in it, was at its worst.

[whiskey3pa · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Really good reading. Like Dickens, it is better read out loud, just sounds so good. Every kid should here these stories.

[bookwoman247 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The edition that I read contains both the first and the second Jungle Books.I had never read this as a child, and was only familiar with the Disney version. Therefore, this book was full of surprises! Some of my favorite stories, like Rikki Tikki Tavi and many others didn't even make it into the film at all. There were even stories about the Arctic! As far as the Mowgli stories, which were wonderful, Kaa was far wiser and was not an antagonist.I'm so glad that I finally read this. I enjoyed it.

[missboyer3 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Rudyard Kipling pours fuel on childhood fantasies with his tales of Mowgli, lost in the jungles of India as a child and adopted into a family of wolves. Mowgli is brought up on a diet of Jungle Law, loyalty, and fresh meat from the kill. Regular adventures with his friends and enemies among the Jungle-People--cobras, panthers, bears, and tigers--hone this man-cub's strength and cleverness and whet every reader's imagination. Mowgli's story is interspersed with other tales of the jungle, such as "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi," lending depth and diversity to our understanding of Kipling's India. In much the same way Mowgli is carried away by the Bandar-log monkeys, young readers will be caught up by the stories, swinging from page to page, breathless, thrilled, and terrified.

[susanbevans · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I read this book when I was in high school for and English class. I got more out of it by picking it up again as an adult. The stories are so rich and involved. When you're reading Kipling you hear the song of the jungle - and you want to be there.

[amyelizabeth_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I hadn't realized The Jungle Book was actually a collection of stories Kipling wrote, including the one I know and love in the form of a Disney movie. I was quite surprised (and happy!) to see Rikki-Tikki-Tavi (a personal favorite of mine) and a few others that I hadn't heard of. Each story was entertaining, short, and descriptive. It made me want to go back and watch the movie versions of The Jungle Book (in which I don't recall Bagheera being quite so endearing) and Rikki-Tikki-Tavi. This is a classic that many can enjoy for generations to come.

[tadad_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

If you've only experienced Disney's version of the Mowgli stories, the books will show you a whole new world. The jungle is a dark and often violent place. Kipling's adventure tales are also commentaries on what he saw in the world of his time, and adults will find them as enthralling as their children.Many editions of these tales are heavily abridged...always to their detriment, in my opinion. My parents gave me this edition when I was 11 and it's remained my favorite. Whichever version you read, make sure it's a complete one as the stories of Rikki-Tikki-Tavi, Toomai and the others are just as good a read as the more famous Mowgli adventures.

[clurb · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I expected to love this one but really wasn't that taken with it.

[benuathanasia · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I read Rikki Tikki Tavi a few years ago with my seventh graders and loved it. When I started this collection, I began with the first two Mowgli stories and loved them.Then I read the afterword. The editor of the books wrote "Kipling [was] a fascinating failure - a writer of considerable yet uncertain and ruined talent." I scoffed at this assessment. Surely this could not be a portrayal of the same author whose brilliance I have just read? Then I continued reading. Ugh...how much more tedious and painful the stories became; each worse than the last. I do not regret reading the first few stories of Mowgli, or the story of my most beloved mongoose. But, other than that, I want my time back. These were bad.

[kcshankd · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Picked up as premium on Folio Society order instead of 'Autumn' offering. Later saw a preview for new CGI Jungle Book Disney movie, so a refresher read seemed timely. I enjoyed all the stories, most especially 'Toomai of the Elephants' that I had never before encountered.

[judithproctor · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed this as an adult far more than I did as a child. When young, I expected the whole book to be about Mowgli. As an adult, I remembered that it was a collection of many things and thus wasn't disappointed. In fact, some of my favourites were not Mowgli stories. I particularly liked the story of the white seal.Kipling has a real gift with words (reminds me a little of Ursula le Guin) and some of his tales read like myth.I also appreciate the poems a lot more now. Kipling has a wonderful sense of rhythm, which I totally failed to appreciate when younger, but now really love.A small bonus for me was realising that the poem with 'Her Majesty's Servants' was set to the rhythm of several songs that I knew. When he talks of the cavalry cantering to 'Bonnie Dundee', the metre is that of 'Bonnie Dundee'. He also works 'British Grenadiers' and 'Lincolnshire Poacher' into the same poem.

[jawalter · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

eBook

Once again, I'm struck by the savagery that resonates throughout Kipling's writing. It would be so easy to think of The Jungle Book in a more Disney-fied light: talking animals, singing, the rhythmic cadences of a fairy tale or lullaby. But overarching all that is the ever-present reminder that the world of the jungle is a world of nature, red in tooth and claw. Mowgli is raised by wolves and instructed by Baloo for the explicit purpose of survival in a harsh world that actively seeks his death. Kotick is born and raised amidst bloodshed from two distinct sources: other seals and man. "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" subverts the traditional story of a pet protecting his master by making the masters little more than incidental characters; Rikki-Tikki wants to protect them, but his actions are driven by instinct rather than any familial bond with the humans. Even in the less-obviously blood-drenched stories, violence is a powerful force. Toomai's journey to witness the dance of the elephants puts him at great risk of death.

The story I found most interesting, however, was the one which closes the book, "Her Majesty's Servants." The characters of this particular story are the camp animals for an army, but paradoxically, these might be the most innocent characters in the whole book. All their conversation is about war and its methods, but without any real recognition of what it means. These animals have been tamed by man, stripped of their natural instincts, and so, with the exception of the elephant, they don't realize what war means, content merely to follow orders and limit their perspective to the specifics of their duties.

And maybe that's the true lesson of The Jungle Book. Yes, it's violent, endlessly circling and returning to the themes of death and danger, but in the world of the animals, death and danger exists because they are necessary parts of life. Animals must eat, so animals must hunt and kill. But for people, violence is stripped of that which makes it necessary. Wars don't happen for food and survival; they happen for sport and profit.

Or maybe I'm just a filthy hippie.

[readafew · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Jungle Books are a bit different than I was expecting. The biggest thing I didn't know was that they are anthologies, not a novel. 2nd not all the stories are about Mowgli and crew. Most of the stories took place somewhere in India but there was one it each book that was very different. The first book had a story about seals and the second about Eskimos. It was a little weird. One of the biggest surprises was that several of the stories were much more gory than I had expected from the 'hype', not bad but a few of them I would be have to consider before reading to a 7 year old. Overall I enjoyed this book, it's worthwhile reading.

[mbmackay · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The famous and popular children's book of Kipling. I had long heard of the stories and been aware of this book, but never before read it. While it is, of course, quite different from and much better than the Hollywood movie of the same name, I was still a little disappointed. Kipling is such a talented word-smith that I expected more. It is definitely a book of its era - some of its accepted wisdom is no longer accepted. And the lazy shiftless monkey tribe may or may not have been Kipling's dig at the Indian population? Read as eBook August 2013.

[rockhopper_penguin · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Don't let Disney put you off this -- it's neither sentimental nor soppy. This is an imaginative and sensitive collection of short stories, which do nothing less than imagine the animal kingdom as not the polar opposite to human society but as a parallel society with their own laws and customs. Anyone with an interest in mythology or cultural traditions will find a lot to like in this book. Neither do you have to be a fan of British colonialism: Kipling does not seem to take some of the simplistic attitudes towards India or the British empire that some (but not all) members of the British Raj seemed to take.In short -- if, like me, you had somewhat negative preconceptions of Kipling's work, it's well worth putting them aside and trying reading it. You will probably find it quite different to what you were expecting.

[momma2_2 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I am glad we read 'Just So Stories' first because I don't know if we would have gone out of our way to read another story by Rudyard Kipling after reading 'The Jungle Books.' The stories about Mowgli were by far the favorites and Rikki Tikki was exciting but we were less than enchanted with this book.

[johnthefireman · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Beautiful, brilliant, nostalgic...

[kassilem · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I had no idea this book had more than the story of Mowgli. I've never even heard of the other stories although my mother says they are classic stories that she grew up with. And the story of Mowgli is much less than what I expected. I didn’t care too much for most of the other stories, though I now know what Rikki-tikki-tavi and Tomai references mean now. It was more of a book of short stories than anything else, which I usually don’t get into very often. It’s checked off the list though. Don’t regret the read since it was so short.

[leslie398 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

3.5* rounded up due to the marvelous illustrations.

I thought I had read this before but only the parts about Mowgli and Rikki-Tikki-Tavi were familiar so I am glad that I decided to reread this book.

[john257hopper · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Growing up in the 1970s, Disney's animated film version of this late 19th century children's classic was a seminal film. I had never read the book before now though. It's a collection of stories, not a novel, and Mowgli's growing up and adventures in the jungle with Baloo the bear and Bagheera the black panther, the wolves led by Akela, and fighting off Shere Khan the tiger occupy only the first third of so of the book, with notably Shakespearean sounding dialogue from all characters and lots of illustrations. The rest of consists of unrelated tales about the White Seal, the mongoose Rikki-Tikki-Tavi and his battles with cobras, and elephants and some other lesser stories and songs. I thought the Mowgli sections were the best, or perhaps that's just because they are the ones I am most familiar with. I also liked the White Seal leading his fellow seals to an island where they could be free from being culled by humans, the Rikki-Tikki-Tavi story which was quite memorable and bloody, and the elephants' "dance" sequence, but some of the rest made rather less of an impression on me. As a consequence, very good in parts, but felt a little disjointed.

[auntieg0412 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It's is a very entertaining read, at any age! I thoroughly enjoyed it.

[wanderlustlover_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Spring 2019, audiobook:

Guuuhhh. This was multicast and it made the experience SO Magical. I loved every bit of it, and it was glorious to watch myself transition from moments of "Ah ha! I remember that section from reading it in my early twenties" to just wistful sighing, and falling in love with the character as himself, and all those around him. I love the poetry pieces that begin to appear in the later third of the book, and the music put throughout it, and the ending quote from our beloved panther still gets me right in the heart of myself.

[aliceanna-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This particular book included more tales than just the Jungle Book tales. My favorite by far was Rikki-Tikki-Tavi which I have not read since I was a child.

[bdgamer-669415 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Having grown up with the animation, and enjoying the recently released live-action film, I went into the book with my arms wide open. Sadly, I didn’t enjoy it as much as most others did.

The problem isn’t the book or the stories themselves. Kipling’s writing is solid—practical and concise. The stories are great metaphors for growing in life and can act as coming-of-age stories for younger readers. Characters were built well and developed throughout.

No, the problem lies in the exoticization and the ‘other’-ing of the natives, aka Indians, in the stories. Yes, these are colonial stories and it shows such attitudes through and through. We are shown as “exotic” people who are technologically and culturally challenged. The “white sahibs” are far more refined and framed as ‘good’ against their darker counterparts.

A lot has been said about colonialism and post-colonialism. While I enjoyed Mowgli’s stories in the jungle greatly—in fact, they were the best in the collection—the others I didn’t quite enjoy.