Rudyard Kipling

Part of Penguin's beautiful hardback Clothbound Classics series, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith, these delectable and collectible editions are bound in high-quality colourful and tactile cloth. The story of Mowgli, the man-cub who is brought up by wolves in the jungles of Central India, is one of the greatest literary myths ever created. As he embarks on a series of thrilling escapades, Mowgli encounters such unforgettable creatures as the bear Baloo, the graceful black panther Bagheera and Shere Khan, the tiger with the blazing eyes. Other animal stories in The Jungle Books range from the dramatic battle between good and evil in 'Rikki-tikki-tavi' to the macabre comedy 'The Undertakers'. With The Jungle Books Rudyard Kipling drew on ancient beast fables, Buddhist philosophy and memories of his Anglo-Indian childhood to create a rich, symbolic portrait of man and nature, and an eternal classic of childhood.

The Jungle Books

Presents the adventures of Mowgli, a boy reared by a pack of wolves, and the wild animals of the jungle. Also includes other short stories set in India.

The jungle book

Iris van der zanden

My heart is heavy with the things that i do not understand.

Presents the adventures of Mowgli, a boy reared by a pack of wolves and the wild animals of the jungle. Also includes other short stories set in India.

Taryn

The Jungle is full of words that sound like one thing but mean another. 

Now Sedna is the Mistress of the Underworld, and the Inuit believe that everyone who dies must spend a year in her horrible country before going to Quadliparmiut, the Happy Place, where it never freezes and fat reindeer trot up when you call. 

‘A cub wil drown himself to bite the moon’s light on the water’ - Mowgli 

When they were back in their own Jungle and Mowgli made the ankus glitter in the morning light, he was almost as pleased as though he had found a bunch of new flowers to stick in his hair. 

‘Trees and men do not grow together,’ Kaa insisted. 

‘This thing was not living, but seeking to live’ - Kaa

‘What more can I wish? I have the Jungle, and the Favour of the Jungle! Is there more between sunrise and sunset?’ ~ Mowgli 

‘A liar only lies when he hopes to be believed.’ ~ Adjutant

‘We must live before we can learn,’ said the Mugger 

‘And remember, child, hè who rebukes the world is rebuked by the world’ ~ Mugger 

Now the Jackal had spoken just to be listened to, for he knew flattery was the best way of getting things to eat, and the Mugger knew that the Jackal had spoken for this end, and the Jackal knew that the Mugger knew, and the Mugger knew that the Jackal knew that the Mugger knew; and so they were all very contented together.

‘A liar, a flatterer, and a Jackal were all hatched out of one egg,’ said the Adjutant

‘To hear is one thing; to know is another,’ said the Jackal, who had a very fair knowledge of proverbs, picked up by listening to men round the village fires of an evening. 

‘Men must always be making traps for men, or they are not content,’ said Mowgli. 

‘Now, don’t be angry after you’ve been afraid. That’s the worst kind of cowardice’ ~ troop-horse in Servants of the Queen 

I got one which has great page quality and the visuals were just amazing. Also the story's great too!

Tanishq Khandelwal

The Jungle Books (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) (Barnes & Noble Classics)

Laura Mauler

Shape Mismatch

Realized that I should have read this book 5 years earlier. The way it could influence someone would have come in handy while forming a world view. Kipling has a unique perspective of looking at things. Through varied forms of narration and the disjoint plot, but connecting theme of short stories, he builds a framework which dissolves the apathies towards animals, prevalent about us.

Such a compelling read, I struggled to get all the way through it as a kid.  I remember bringing it to a book exchange and not being able to hand it over.

I don't think I ever did finish it, and nobody explained the colonial implications of it until much later in life.

Lily Elizabeth Labella

Such a compelling read, I struggled to get all the way through it as a kid.  I remember bringing it to a book exchange and not being able to hand it over.

I don't think I ever did finish it, and nobody explained the colonial implications of it until much later in life.

Brianna

Celeste Richardson

Full review posted below.

This was my first book completed on the Serial Reader app, an awesome way to read classic works of literature in less than fifteen minutes a day. I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in reading some classics, but who doesn’t want to get bogged down in them. And no, I haven’t been asked to advertise the app; I just really think it was a fantastic idea, and the execution of that idea was incredibly well done.

End advertisement. ;) Onto the story at hand.

Most everyone probably knows at least a little about this book, due in large part to Disney’s animated movie and their more recent live-action film. I enjoyed reading about Mowgli and his adventures growing up as the lone man-cub in the jungle. Bagheera the Panther, Baloo the Bear, and Kaa the Python all had different personalities than their film counterparts, but were just as much fun to read as they are to watch. Mowgli was headstrong and clever and never backed down from a challenge. Raised by a Wolfpack against the wishes of Shere Khan, the man-eating Tiger, Mowgli lived an interesting life to say the least. He learned every language present in the jungle, and then spent some time in a human village and learned to speak as they speak. But the village could not hold him. He conquered his foes and returned to the jungle, triumphant.

Besides the main story of Mowgli, Kipling also included the stories of Kotick, the White Seal; Rikki-Tikki-Tavi, the Mongoose; Toomai, the Elephant boy; and different animals in the military, who argue about whose method of fighting is right. Of these, Rikki-Tikki-Tavi’s story was by far the best. I completely understand why his is the segment included in so many literature books, because it was the most engaging story in the entirety of the Jungle Book, in my opinion. I enjoyed the adventures of the little mongoose even more than I did the tales of Mowgli the man-cub. Second-best out of these secondary tales was the story of Kotick, the White Seal. I was thrown by his story at first, because it was the first after Mowlgi’s story, but once I adjusted to the change I enjoyed the little white seal, out to save his people from being butchered. He swam to the beat of his own drum, and I can always respect that. 

The last two stories weren’t enjoyable to me. They’re where I bogged down and just had to make myself power through to the end. I found Toomai annoying, and I could care less about which animal thought they were the most important in a battle. If the book had ended after the tale of Rikki-Tikki-Tavi, I would’ve easily given it 4 stars. But, because of the drudgery of the last two stories, I’m settling at a 3 here. It was a short, mostly fun classic to mark off of my “to-read” list, and I enjoyed marking it off in the 24 episodes that Serial Reader provided. The novelty of the app added to my enjoyment, and I will most definitely be reading more classics this way!

For more of reviews, as well as my own fiction and thoughts on life, check out my blog, Celestial Musings

The Jungle Books (Signet Classics)

Barbara Williford

Absolutely loved this audible! Ralph Cosham made the characters come alive. Love all the little short stories and poems about life in the jungles of India. The little side stories thrown in outside of Mowgli’s life. Rikitikkitovi was my favorite. A bit graphic for young readers but great book for adolescents and above.

Jungle Books (Penguin Popular Classics)

Flavia Louise

I liked book 1 considerably more than book 2 in general.
My favorite stories were the ones involving Mowgli.

Reads from right to left in the traditional manga format.

The Jungle Book

Nadine 

Manga version of the classic tales. A nice antidote to the Disney version as it is true to the original story. Reads from right to left which takes a bit of adjustment. 
Illustrations generally good, true to Japanese manga style which can be a little disconcerting given the Indian jungle context.

"With a beautiful cover and chapter-heading illustrations throughout from queen of colouring Johanna Basford. The Jungle Book tells the story of the irrepressible Mowgli, who is rescued as a baby from the jaws of the evil tiger, Shere Khan. Raised by wolves and guided by Baloo the bear, Mowgli and his animal friends embark on a series of hair-raising adventures through the jungles of India."

A Special Edition from Johanna Basford

Eleanor Luhar

I'm not going to say too much about the plot - you're probably already pretty familiar with the story. I am, however, going to comment on the soundtrack provided by Booktrack. If you haven't heard of it, it's basically a site where you can buy, write and read books with coinciding music and sound effects. (I've always used sites like MyNoise to create soundscapes and things to help immerse me in the fictional worlds I'm reading, so the discovery of Booktrack was heaven-sent.)

So yeah, obviously this is the story of Mowgli, the man-cub, raised by wolves and Baloo and Bagheera. He lives in the jungle, until finding a human village to take him in. But he does not belong - he may be man by blood, but he is of the Jungle People now.

The soundtrack with this book really helps you feel as though you are in the forest, hearing the life all around you. There's music to accompany the little songs and poems included throughout, and dramatic music to portray the intensity of the plot and action. The only problem I really have with the track is how it sometimes jumped or cut off when I turned a page, but that may just be due to me reading faster than it is expecting.

Altogether, the story and Booktrack has earned 3.5 stars from me. It's a nice read, and the soundtrack is a great accompaniment to the story.

The Jungle Book isn't my favourite book ever, but I like this Manga Classics collection and thought I'd give this one a try, too. This one was quite different from the others I've read, containing seven different "books" - three of which made up The Jungle Book story itself. The other tales were of a white seal trying to save his friends from the murderous men, a mongoose protecting his new family from snakes, a young boy who witnessed the dance of the elephants that no man has ever seen before, and finally a man and the parade of animals serving.

Four of these books I had never heard of before, so they were interesting to read. They all contained little poems like those in The Jungle Book, meaning they all fit together well as a collection. 

The art was different to what I expected; it often took a comedic, exaggerated look. It wasn't the best art I've seen in a novel like this, but it expressed the story well enough. I did, however, notice a few typos throughout the novel.

Not a bad novel, but I can't say I'm overly amazed by it. I'd give 2.5 or maybe 3 stars at a push.

Emma Tickner

3.5 (Just put the 4 in because it was definitely closer to a 4 star then a 3)

I thought this was a cute little read. It's alot different then the movies make it seem, but it's very good even with the dark aspects of it.

It was a nice quick and easy read and one which I definitely don't regret reading. And it will be seen as a children's classic one that I would probably let future generations read.

Rudyard Kipling’s classic collection of fables gets reimagined in this deluxe four-color collectible volume, featuring stunning new artwork and nine interactive elements crafted by MinaLima Design, the award-winning design studio behind the graphics for the Harry Potter film franchise and the illustrated classic Peter Pan. Since its publication in 1894, Rudyard Kipling’s beloved masterpiece The Jungle Book has been celebrated by generations of readers. Composed of seven tales, each one accompanied by a poem, The Jungle Book introduces a lush, colorful world full of adventure and danger. The first three tales include some of the most charming and unforgettable characters in literature—the man-cub Mowgli, the black panther Bagheera, the wise brown bear Baloo, and the ruthless tiger Shere Khan. The other four tales each tell the story of a different animal, such as the travels of the white seal Kotick; the battle between the courageous mongoose Rikki-Tikki-Tavi and the deadly cobra Nag; Toomai and the elephant dance; and the camp animals of the queen’s guard. The second volume in Harper Design’s newest series of deluxe reimagined children’s classics, this beautiful unabridged edition takes readers deep into the heart of the Indian jungle with specially commissioned four-color illustrations and nine exclusive interactive features that will delight readers, including a map of the lost Indian city where Mowgli is taken by the monkeys; a trifold detailing the Laws of the Jungle; a spinning dial of the elephant dance; and a map of Kotick’s route to find a new home. Beautifully designed, this keepsake illustrated edition will be treasured by readers of all ages.

Carla Aquino

I especially liked the other short stories like Rikki-tiki-tavi..lol. Very cute indeed. I need to read the other stories that Disney turned into movies because they obviously changed things around and I know not all the original works of literature have the Disney endings.

Erin 

I will be honest, I only seriously read the stories about Mowgli. The rest were interesting, but I didn't realise they were entire separate stories...and when I did, I kind of gave up, because I wasn't overall intrigued.

The Jungle Books (Oxford World's Classics)

Monica

I was expecting the story I saw in the Disney movies... but no! I think this contains no spoilers, as what I will comment is only what the movie shows. This is a book that certainly tells the story of Mowgli, the boy who was saved by some wolfs and then admitted into the pack with the help of Bagheera, who was taught the law of the jungle by Baloo, and who had load of adventures with Shere Khan, the monkey people, the man people and Kaa (there is a big difference between the Python in the movies and in the book!). However, between these episodes in Mowgli's life there are other jungle adventures which depict elephants, mongooses, seals and some other animals which I do not know.

This is a book containing several short stories and poems. I found it boring some times, I think that because I got lost with the names of the animals and I didn't fully get some of the dialogues. It deals with many important topics, such as the law in the jungle, conveying the importance of respecting one another. It has been classified, I think, as children's literature... however, it is quite intense! Mowgli is certainly not a little thin jungle boy!

“For the strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack,” —Rudyard Kipling, The Jungle Book Penned by English Nobel laureate Rudyard Kipling in 1894, The Jungle Book is a collection of allegorical stories that take place deep in the Indian jungle. The most famous stories of The Jungle Book are those featuring a young feral boy named Mowgli who was raised by wolves, is friends with a panther, and was educated by the animals of the jungle. Also popular in this collection is “Rikki-Tikki-Tavi,” about a mongoose who protects his human family against cobras. A treasure trove of children’s literature The Jungle Book from Word Cloud Classics is a chic and affordable addition to any library.

Liv Gliese Johnsen

It’s rare that I get so bored while reading that I fall asleep. However, that occurred quite a lot while reading this... to the point were I gave up. And I don’t like giving up on books! 
I am still set to finish The Jungle Book, but not today. Maybe not even before I am at least 60

Gordon McLean

Joyous tale of wonderful beasts

Far more than just Mowgli, these stories explore many worlds rich in colour and wild in adventure. Read to explore the story Disney took, and read on for many more tales from the vivid jungle. Glorious.

The Jungle Books

Reviews

Highlights