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    Just So Stories
    Just So Stories
    Just So Stories
    Ebook146 pages1 hour

    Just So Stories

    By Rudyard Kipling

    4/5

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    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherArchive Classics
    Release dateFeb 1, 1894
    Author

    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.

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    Reviews for Just So Stories

    4/5

    864 ratings37 reviews

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    • 4/5
      I just love these stories. They remind me of my childhood, and in their whole style and structure they're just made to be read aloud. In a very childlike way I want to nod sagely and tell the world, "yes, that's how it must have been that the elephant got its trunk or the camel its humps!" after every story.
    • 5/5
      Every child should know these stories, although some of Kipling's attitudes may need to be discussed.
    • 5/5
      This is one of those books you'd wish you'd read as a child...so you could, in turn, read to your OWN child. I would LOVE to have read this to PJ as a baby. The stories are enchanting and written very much as if Kipling were speaking to his own daughter, and each is more fascinating than the last, presenting fanciful explanations for commonplace questions, like, how the Camel got his hump. Or how the first letter was written. Or my favorite, what happened when the butterfly stamped his foot. Brilliant stuff, this, and it should be a part of every library...and on your list of books to read to YOUR child!
    • 5/5
      This is an all time classic, featuring lovely animal stories written by Mr Kipling. A perfect read for parents to read out to children on a rainy day or just before bed. My favorite ones include "The Beginning of the Armadillos" and "How the Elephant got his Trunk". The original illustrations are also an amazing addition to the book. Highly recommended
    • 3/5
      Done in the style of fables, but about the length of traditional fairy tales (think Grimm or Perrault). The animals in the fables encompass creatures from all over the world (India, Africa, Amazon off the top of my head). I'd say about half the stories captures my attention (and maybe imagination). It feels a bit dated, even though nothing really sets it off (no outmoded language or horrible stereotypes). A decent collection.
    • 4/5
      The stories are still quite entertaining to read. I will definitely read it to my children should I have any
    • 5/5
      Written into my memory, with rhythm repeats and long words
    • 5/5
      I have always enjoyed Rudyard Kipling and Just So Stories was one of my childhood favourites.
    • 5/5
      Kipling's take on these stories, many of them ones he gleaned from the cultures around him, are lyrical and fun, and make for a great book. I wish I had had a copy of this one when I was a kid.
    • 4/5
      Okay, I know that there is a racist element to this book, which I agree is terrible and hard to understand. That being said, I did like the stories and I enjoyed sharing them with my daughter. They are a compilation of "how things came to be", like how the camel got it's hump, how the elephant got it's trunk, and how to make your wives fall into line (umm..., that last one might also be not so appropriate...). Kipling uses a lot of repetition which my daughter loved, and was really effective in the storytelling. And his use of addressing the reader as "my Best Beloved" equally was effective with her (and me too, if I'm being truthful!) Again, full acknowledging that some of this is not appropriate now, or then, I still think this is a good read to share with your children. Maybe just do some editing first!
    • 3/5
      These are great stories to read aloud (even to yourself!)They are full of wonderfully luscious alliterative phrases, like, in the Elephant's Child: "on the banks of the great grey-green greasy Limpopo river", and, in the story of Armadillo and the Painted Jaguar: "'Son, son!' said his mother ever so many times, graciously waving her tail..."This is an illustrated edition, but sadly the images haven't been saved large enough to enable you to zoom in, so some of the detail can't be seen.The layout is good, but the content shows a lack of careful proof-reading. I started with the Armadillo story and stumbled over a bit of poor OCR that was so confusing I had to go online to find another copy to discover what the word should have been (this ed reads "I don't rib Painted Jaguar", where it should read "I don't like Painted Jaguar"). Hence, only 3 stars
    • 3/5
      Cute stories of how the animals got to be who they are...
    • 4/5
      Rudyard Kipling's collection of fairy tales and fables formed the majority of my childhood literary diet. I can't tell you how much I was fascinated by his (maybe somewhat secondhand) myths of a primordial world, where men and animals competed and coexisted in more than one sense, where ancient untold wonders and unspoken secrets abound, and where a man helps his daughter design the English alphabet.Don't let my rose-colored glasses fool you - it's really an amazing work. Stop reading this review and pick up a copy.
    • 5/5
      This is one of the most imaginative, playful, writerly books I have ever read. And re-read. Twenty-nine year-old Kipling wrote this collection of twelve stories in collaboration with his young daughter, Josephine. It is a series of fantastical accounts of creation and re-creation within the animal kingdom. For instance, it explains: "in the "squoggy marshy country somewhere in Africa," and "on the great grey-green, greasy Limpopo River," the elephant got its long trunk when a crocodile got hold of his original "bulgy nose."

      I include this collection in the grand storytelling tradition of Fables Choisies and Aesop's Fables. And this particular edition is a gem because it includes the original illustrations, with which none other compare.

      As a writer, if ever I run short on words or inspiration, I need only re-visit one of these stories and the ideas start gushing.

      As a mother, I think this is one of the best books I ever read to my son. It shows children the value of words and artful play, and gives license to the unlimited scope of imagination.
    • 3/5
      You are first introduced to what I believe are the "Just So" stories actually in the Jungle Books, especially Jungle Book II, when they are at the drying up waterhole with the predators on one side and the prey on the other. From there other bits of "jungle lore" are woven in while this is where my interest with this particular book came to life. Kipling's "Just So Stories" are written more in fashion with Carroll's Alice stories. They are fantastical, have lessons hidden in them and at the same time are too frivolous to be taken at face value. Their age is given away by the subjects and how they are portrayed as well as the idea of the British Empire. Those who seem to be stuck on that mustn't forget in that timeframe how they thought or wrote those beliefs out wasn't looked down upon but rather commonplace. What I didn't like was the fact that the pictures were in black and white. Although I know that it was in keeping with the original the pictures were too dark to be able to see anything. The introduction of where he often added jokes and other trivia couldn't be seen nor the details. I would love for someone to eventually make some colored pictures, which could be tucked towards the back for those who are curious. Otherwise I did enjoy the additions that Puffin added in the back - an Author File, a Who's Who, a Some Things To Think About, a Some Things To Do, a Did You Know and a Glossary. These extras give an opportunity to get to know more about the book and author while not being so heavy that it bores you out or makes you want to toss the book while reading it. Most definitely loved this formatting.... So what is my favorite story? "The Cat That Walked By Himself" although I don't like the idea of the idea perfect men would throw things at a cat they meet and be considered for coming up with that. Otherwise the attitude hits the cat right between the ears.
    • 4/5
      I will always love this book for the story The Elephant's Child. My father read this to me as a bedtime story and I will never forget him reading the portion of the story where the elephant's nose has been caught by the crocodile (oops, spoiler), and how my father would pinch his nose in order to change his voice to read that. Still makes me smile.
    • 3/5
      A lovely gift from a lovelier friend.
    • 5/5
      I never actually read these as a kid. I remember having them read to me, but I never read them for myself. Which, as Phillip Pullman says in the introduction, is a shame, because they're wonderfully playful and easy to read, and even if there are words you don't understand (there weren't, for me now, but when I was little...) they're bright and lively and I can bet I'd have had more fun imagining what they might mean than actually finding out. These stories were definitely the kind I couldn't help but whisper to myself. I think they'd make even a non-synesthetic taste the words. I enjoyed the illustrations and the notes that went with them, too. In general they were just playful and fun to read, even now I'm all growed up. I especially liked the armadillo one, but perhaps that's because it included a character called Stickly-Prickly Hedgehog, and I do adore hedgehogs. The next one we rescue in our garden will have to be called Stickly-Prickly, I think.
    • 5/5
      This is truly magnificent. I can;t wait to finish listening to this. Geoffrey Palmer is FANTASTIC reading these stories. And the music that goes along with them are so sweet. I would recommend this to anyone who loves Palmer, or who has children. I could see listening to this with kids on a family vacation long drive. It is about 3.5 hrs long.
    • 5/5
      I enjoyed these so much that I was crushed when I realized I had listened to the last story. The narrator was Geoffrey Palmer - I now have another reason to think he is marvelous, he was such a storyteller.
    • 5/5
      eBook

      I've never read Kipling, but I thought I had a pretty good idea of what to expect.

      I'm not sure where I got that idea, because it was wrongwrongwrong. He is so ... flippant? Insouciant? Sassy?

      This book was a delight to read, and as charming as it is, I was also surprised by its brutality. It's very subtle, but almost all these stories revolve around moments of terrible physical peril. This was most notable and most threatening in "How the First Letter Was Written" as we watch the little girl put the stranger in great jeopardy simply by drawing a few ambiguous pictures. In most of the other stories, the threat seems a little more innocent (possibly because it involves animals rather than people), but it's always there, looming.
    • 2/5
      I didn't bother to finish this book - had really expected more of it but actually the stories are not the kind of golden childhood story that you get with many other classic children's authors. This particular copy of the book has illustrations in it and large paragraphs that are placed as subtext in the middle or bottom of the page so they are somewhat interrupting. I just found much of the book nonsensical, but not in a good way. I think the concept had more potential than the stories actually were able to unfold into.
    • 5/5
      The famous, funny, and inspiring stories of creation as readers have never heard them before. From the tale of how the leopard got his spots to the crab who played with the sea, from the ingenious invention of the alphabet to how the rhinoceros got his wrinkled skin, these stories of strange happenings in the High and Far-Off Times brim with life, humor, and magic.
    • 5/5
      The best illustrated version for reading to children.
    • 2/5
      Just So Stories was just so disappointing. Like Aesop's Fables with less fun to them and mostly lacking morals to the stories. The language was repetitive and very dated and boring. I've been told Kim is a very good book, so I'll give it a shot, but I don't have high hopes.
    • 4/5
      A nice little collection of short stories that tell why this or that animal is the way it is. Amusing tales written with a very engaging style. Check it out, O Best Beloved. Read it to your kids or something.--J.
    • 3/5
      Quirky and whimsical stories that give explanations for such things as an elephant's trunk, a camel's hump, or the tides. The tales themselves have a distinct non-Western feel, and could easily be mistaken for older, traditional tales despite being written by a Brit in the early 1900s. The tales are unique but written in an odd almost oral style that takes some getting used to. They might be better read aloud than read internally. Having enjoyed the tales as a child I am uncertain if they would still be appealing to modern children or if they're still appreciated even in the modern age.
    • 4/5
      I only read two stories from Just So Stories, "How the First Letter was Written" and "How the Alphabet was Made." Both were incredibly fun to read, especially aloud. Kipling pokes fun at the stereotypes of parents and children with names like, "Lady-who-asks-a-very-many-questions" for the mother and "Small-person-with-out-any-manners-who-ought-to-be-spanked" for the child. In both stories the theme is the need for better communication skills and are meant to be read together. The first letter makes up the alphabet later on and one story is a continuation of the other. Rumor has it that both "How the First Letter was Written" and "How the Alphabet was Made" started out as oral stories, told to Kipling's daughter Josephine in 1900.
    • 2/5
      Children's stories, published in 1902, that provide fantasy explanations for the origin of things - animal features, writing etc. Famous as children's stories, they also provide the epithet for tendentious evolutionary reasoning. Interesting. Also my first book read on the lap-top from a Project Gutenburg text. On-screen reading is not as easy as it should seem! Read March 2009
    • 4/5
      Beautiful and wonderful. Works of genius by a man who freed himself enough that he could give himself up to that genius instead of trying to make sure that it came out perfectly. As pleasing as his other works are, none I've read can match the joy, humor, simplicity, and odd truth of these.Like children's literature should be, these stories never lose their humor or punch. Despite some redundancy with actual myths and some cases of artificially lowering complexity for children and hence growing transparent, eminently enjoyable.

    Book preview

    Just So Stories - Rudyard Kipling

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