It was here that Kipling first heard Indian folk tales and was inspired to recreate his versions of them for his own children. Interspersed with delightful poems, this is indeed the perfect choice for a read-aloud with your kids!įirst published in book form in 1894, the original edition contained beautiful illustrations by Rudyard's father, John Lockwood Kipling, an artist and art teacher who spent much of his career in India. The writer's brilliant skills with the English language are another feature that makes the book such a reading pleasure. What strikes the reader is the sense of wonder and magic that Kipling evokes in these stories about the mysterious jungle and its inhabitants.

Contrary to the film version again, only a few of the stories are about Mowgli. However, the book is quite different from the Disney film which tends to romanticize some of the characters and demonize others! The original Jungle Book includes the delightful Riki Tiki Tavi tales about a valiant and clever mongoose who protects his friends from the dangerous snakes of the jungle. The dreaded tiger Sher Khan is a diabolical villain, feared by all. As he grows, he is trained by denizens of the jungle like Bagheera the panther, Baloo the bear and Kaa the snake. Modern readers would be more familiar with the Disney animated version in which Mowgli the little “man-cub” is raised by wolves.

The stories are in the form of fables, where animals communicate and speak to each other as humans do and the purpose of each story was to convey a moral or message to the reader. Part Seven 2 weeks 4.3.Originally written for his young daughter Josephine, who died tragically aged six, The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling is a collection of short stories which were published separately in magazines before being compiled into a book.

Suggested Activities Duration Learning Standards 1.

For ipod instal The Jungle Book