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3.54 AVERAGE
3.54 AVERAGE
This is one of the first books I read as a child. The "real" Jungle Book not the Disney version. I'm talking about the one where Baloo gives Mowgli beatings regularly for not learning his lessons. I had not remembered the child abuse parts of the story but we all know how bears can be. The story of Mowgli is an easy 5 stars but the other stories although good, aren't as memorable.
adventurous
reflective
tense
slow-paced
adventurous
slow-paced
adventurous
inspiring
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
lighthearted
slow-paced
I really enjoyed the first few chapters of the book because they told the story with which I was familiar, from the many adaptations throughout my life. However, once it got into the chapters about other animals, I lost track of any connection and kept hoping that Mowgli and the others would appear in each story. I didn't really enjoy them because I had no connection to them.
Beautiful writing, but not exactly a page turner. This is a s.l.o.w. read for long winter nights.
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Dismissing my low rating of this classic with "I don't like short stories" is unfair and not entirely true. I just don't like it when the short stories aren't linked more, when I can't find a strong binding component that keeps it all together. Separately I kind of enjoyed the stories about Mowgli, the mongoose, the elephant herders, and a few more but they felt so disconnected. Disconnected from each other and without much meaning.
I realise as I'm writing this that I might have been a little generous with three stars, as my feelings are leaning closer to a two star rating.
The only theme, that I could discern and that was consistent, was the relationship between man and beast, though at more than one occasion man was the one behaving in the more inhumane way.
Certain points struck me as not being right. I never read this as a kid and I'm pretty sure I'd never read it to any child I know, for the simple reason that there are scenes of violence that I can't see any justification for. If I was asked by the child about the chastisement of Mowgli by Baghera or about the great fighting melee of the white seal, I wouldn't be able to explain it.
To summarise: I guess Kipling wanted to show how different the world works not just between human and animal but also between animal and animal. That we have a great responsibility over the world we live in. I just didn't feel it despite really wanting to like the book.
I realise as I'm writing this that I might have been a little generous with three stars, as my feelings are leaning closer to a two star rating.
The only theme, that I could discern and that was consistent, was the relationship between man and beast, though at more than one occasion man was the one behaving in the more inhumane way.
Certain points struck me as not being right. I never read this as a kid and I'm pretty sure I'd never read it to any child I know, for the simple reason that there are scenes of violence that I can't see any justification for. If I was asked by the child about the chastisement of Mowgli by Baghera or about the great fighting melee of the white seal, I wouldn't be able to explain it.
To summarise: I guess Kipling wanted to show how different the world works not just between human and animal but also between animal and animal. That we have a great responsibility over the world we live in. I just didn't feel it despite really wanting to like the book.
Did not realize that The Jungle Book goes well beyond the Mowgli stories (and the jungle, and India). "The White Seal" story in particular was a favorite.