Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book: The Mowgli Stories

by Richard Kurti (Adapter), Bill Bailey (Narrator), Richard E. Grant (Narrator)

The magical storytelling and unforgettable characters in Ben Doyle and Richard Kurti's audio adaptation of this children's classic have been brought to life by many well known voices from British film, TV, radio and comedy.

Winner of the 2016 Audie Award for Best Audio Drama

Winner of the 2016 Audie Award for Excellence in Production

Genres: Audiobook, Classics, Fiction, Fantasy, Childrens, Animals, Short Stories

3 pages, Audible Audio

First published August 25, 2015

About the author

In another life, I’d love to have been a clockmaker.
It’s not enough that a clock is a beautiful object, it also has to work – it needs to keep accurate time, month after month.

This is what attracted me to screenwriting, which is where I started as a professional writer. Screenplays have to tell moving, exciting, engaging stories, but they are also incredibly complex and very technical machines that are blueprints for the entire production.

When I ventured into the world of novel writing, I tried to bring some of the lessons I’d learnt in screenwriting with me…

High Concept
I always try to find a big idea to put at the heart of a novel.
It needs to be complex enough to resonate with different characters and situations, but it also needs to be clear enough to immediately take hold of your imagination.

Plot-Character-Plot-Character
To me, they’re very similar things.
Plots only happen because characters are striving for something; at the same time, characters are defined by what they actually do in different circumstances.

Mechanics
This is all about using different techniques to create the most dramatic and gripping story. Often it’s about knowing where to end a scene, or when to reveal information, or the ordering of different events. It’s a bit like playing a massive game of hide and seek with the reader!

Did I succeed?
Let me know what you think through Goodreads, or with a Tweet to @Richard_Kurti
Instagram: RichardKurtiWriter

Reviews

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an excellent dramatisation of a classic tale. I'm not going to review the actual book other than to say that if you only know 'The Jungle Book' from the Disney movie, you owe it to yourself to read the original book. It's more than a little different.

This dramatisation is really good. The cast is superb and they all do a fantastic job of bringing the characters they are voicing to life. The sound effects are also amazing as is the general production value. I'm not usually a fan of music in audiobooks but the music in this production is fantastic. There is no singing in this version; Shrek would approve.

If you have any love of the Jungle Book at all, you really should listen to this dramatisation. Audible are also donating money to charity for every copy downloaded, so that's nice too.

Buddy read with Sunshine Seaspray.

[B · Rating 4 out of 5]

~4.5 stars~

This audiobook was incredible! If you are a beginner to audiobooks this is a great place to start.

The story was entertaining and I don’t really have much to say so I’m not going to ‘review’ this. This was my 100th read of 2021. :)

DISCLAIMER-All opinions on books I’ve read and reviewed are my own, and are with no intention to offend anyone. If you feel offended by my reviews, let me know how I can fix it.

How I Rate-
1 star- Hardly liked anything/ was disappointed
2 star- Had potential but did not deliver/ was disappointed
3 stars- Was ok but could have been better/ was average / Enjoyed a lot but something was missing
4 stars- Loved a lot but something was missing
5 stars- Loved it/ new favourite

[Becs · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was a fantastic full cast rendition of stories from Mowgli's life with amazing nature sounds and believable voice acting; I really felt as though I was listening to a west-end production.

The stories are engaging, in chronological order and present the complete cast of characters from the original story. They mostly detail Mowgli, his adjustment to the wolf-pack and later into human territory, but they also show the gradual aging of beloved characters and the family dynamic and friendship between them. In all honesty, it's equal parts heart-warming and sad.

I had my doubts about Audiobooks, but the full cast (and a cast of big names, really) makes this collection of 20 minute stories really worth listening to - I can imagine children would adore it.

[Amy Burrows · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short 20 min or so episodes, which make great listening for a younger audience.
Well told with a full cast of characters. The Jungle Book used to be my favorite film growing up and brought back some great memories!

[Debalina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this audio rendition. Some of the characters were really well done. My favourite was Bagheera. Uff! The drama and the command in that voice! Kudos.

Have two major qualms though-
1. Why couldn't they hire a person who actually knows basic Hindi? The grammar was wrong sometimes in very elemental ways. Anyone would have known. Also, the Hindi pronunciations were awful. That's not unexpected as the actors were not Hindi speakers, but a little bit more training could have easily stopped miss-pronunciation of many-many very common words being spoken again and again.
2. Kipling wrote very well. But the more I grow, the more his racist bits are prominent and slap me in the face. The first Indian villiage was painted too dark and the "white man" as someone who "ensures justice"!! Justice!!!Colonialism destroyed countries, killed millions, made the world even more unequal, nurtured divides in communities whose burn we still feel and so much more. How could he have been so blind!? Well, this isn't the first time someone said that for Kipling although he wrote so well. But it makes me so sad. Not that anyone cares! The world is still devising new ways to fight and kill and hate! Hopefully it will all be better one day.

Anyway, enough of my rant. Listen to it. It is fun. And sit or walk with your nephews and nieces or kids or grandkids for this audiobook.

Happy reading! 🙃

[Vivek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hooter: An audio dramatization of Mowgli and the Jungle Book

A lot of us have grown up with "Jungle jungle baat chali hai pata chala hai ki chaddi pehen ke phool khila hai" or the Doodarshan TV mornings with Jungle book in hindi. That obviously has created a certain image of Jungle book. The recent Disney movie adaptation added a visual dimension to it but this audio series was a good refresher with some great vocal variety.

This is also a pretty quick one - about 140 minutes of good drama and energy, The story no doubt is well etched in everyone's mind about a man cub growing up with the pack of wolves taught by a panther Bagheera and a bear Baloo with a strong friend in a python called Kaa as he deals with his nemesis Sher Khan and the irritating Bander log.

I rated this higher primarily for the nostalgia component along with some great audio production which doesn't try to go over the top or stereotype accents and voices.

[Joah Pearson]

Good stuff! Full review here: https://www.audiotheatrecentral.com/2.... 

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to this book via Audible.

There have been many adaptations of The Jungle Book, and while I can't say I've read or watched a lot of them, I'm somewhat familiar with many of the stories, as I'm sure a lot of people are. This adaptation seems to represent them very well with a fantastic full cast production.

I definitely enjoyed listening to the actors taking on the roles of the animals in the jungle. Combined with the music and sound design, it really immerses you in the world. I would definitely recommend this if you're looking to experience the classic in a new light.

[Diana Long · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an Audio full cast recording based on the book by Kipling. This was a delightfully entertaining story and all the performers narrating the story were just brilliant. I could listen to this over and over again. Since this is based on the book, and as I haven't read the text as yet I am not aware of the main differences if there are any but unless my memory is faulty this version is a bit darker and a much fuller story than the Disney Studios animated visual of the work. Highly recommend not just for children but adults as well. Kipling was a wonderful story teller.

[ClaireGenevieve · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very well produced audiobook. I've never read the original stories and my only previous experience comes from watching the Disney film as a kid! Obviously this is quite different and I really enjoyed it. I've downloaded the books to add to my tbr.

[Sunshine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good voices,
Heart rejoices!

[Kelly]

Audible Daily Deal for $0.99 on 3-25-17

[Lucia Bradley · Rating 2 out of 5]

The audio production of this is very good. I lately have been complaining about productions but not this time.

In addition I have never read the stories themselves. I have only seen the Disney movies and I was pleasantly surprised by the richness of the story. I had assumed they would be somehow less. Even so though there was a thread in the writing that bothered me when comparing the animals to Mowgli and then it dawned on me.

My problem being is how Rudyard Kipling himself and his writings are inexorably interconnected with racism and the superiority of the white man. Reading just the Mowgli stories reduces my exposure to the other portions of the Jungle Book, but I have read parts of the other stories such as "White Man's Burden".

I realize some people say to separate the artist from the art, or that some of the art can be salvageable and I don't think I can do that with this story. I will give it 2 stars, but that is because of my connection with Disney.

[Mikayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so much more beautiful than I was expecting. Definitely looking forward to completing the rest of the Jungle Book anthology!

[Aneesh · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5

[Tim Reisner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really excellent, down to the jungle sounds and Hindi chatter of the villagers. A great way to bring alive Kipling's masterpiece.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautifully told story, full of life and color and beloved characters.

[Stasia · Rating 4 out of 5]

SOOOO GOOD!
Amazing story, fantastic performance.
I just love dramatisations.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this audiobook.

The voice acting and sound effects are spot on.

Having had no experience of the original 'Jungle Book' I found this really refreshing. Definitely one to listen to with the kids in the car.

There are some darker overtones which should go over the head of youngsters. It's just a great story of a boy living among the characterful animals. If there is an intentional deeper sinister subtext concerning colonialism then i've managed to evade it in my listening.

Highly recommended but would mention that it is quite short.

Would have rated it higher if it had contained all of the stories in it.

[Lis Carey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a childhood favorite, and for me at least, it stands up quite well. Included here are only the Mowgli stories from The Jungle Book, taking him from his first arrival in the jungle as a toddler nearly killed by the tiger, Shere Khan, through to manhood. Along the way, he has fantastic adventures and learns many life lessons.

Kipling was born in India, and later spent years there as a journalist, and he knew the land, its people, and its animals. He was imperialistic and jingoistic, but that mainly affected his poetry, not his fiction, and he was also a close observer and an excellent storyteller. Mowgli has depth and dimension, and grows believably from early childhood to early manhood over the course of these stories.

And they are just plain fun to read or listen to. This audiobook presentation is excellent, with the multiple voices adding to the depth and variety of the characters. Well worth listening to, especially if you have children in the right age range.

I think this was a free download from Audible, or it may have been a Daily Deal.

[A.M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Man, look at that cast.
I had forgotten how much the Disney version messed with the original tales. [and where the Lion King got the wilder-beast stampede from, eh?]
Here, Kaa the snake is a friend and mentor. And Hathi, the leader of the elephants is terrifyingly intelligent.
An excellent production with awesome sound effects and brilliant acting.
9 chapters of 15 minutes or so.
5 stars

[Sheila Beaumont · Rating 5 out of 5]

This wonderfully entertaining audiobook, presenting the Mowgli stories from The Jungle Book, was great fun, with Rudyard Kipling's original narrative, a full-cast dramatization, appropriate music, and amazing sound effects. Loved it!

[Ashley Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really good audiobook. Manages to dramatize the narration without coming off as cheezy. It is a an abridged version but for the sake of making a cohesive story around mowgli, I think it makes sense. Seems like it would be really good to listen to with kids.

[Becky Black · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loads of amazing voice performances in this dramatised audio. I'll definitely listen again.

[Jess the Shelf-Declared Bibliophile · Rating 5 out of 5]

Check out my review on the main version of the book!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Vicki Gibson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, dear. I'm torn. While there is no overt racism in this particular audiobook, there is no doubt Rudyard Kipling was overtly racist and many of his writings reflect that. (If you have any doubt, read "The White Man's Burden" by Kipling.)

The good-
I'm not a huge fan of dramatizations but this is really well done. It's a rare audiobook that children age 7+ and adults can both enjoy. Each character is brilliantly narrated by a different person. There are sound effects (jungle birds calling, elephants trumpeting, snakes hissing, etc) and music - all of which adds a lot to Kipling's compelling story.

The bad-
If you accept the notion that Mowgli represents the British Empire and the jungle is India, this leads to some disturbing and uncomfortable conclusions. For instance, Mowgli exerts his power over the jungle animals just as the British Empire did India. Mowgli is superior to the animals by sheer virtue of his being human. No animal can hold Mowgli's gaze and Mowgli uses this as a weapon, as a way to exert his superiority over them. He learns what each animal is capable of and he exploits that knowledge to his advantage. The British are represented by Mowgli's wolf pack (who raised him). One of their rules is to "wash daily from tip to toe." They did not tolerate dissension and had to stick together in the hostile environment of the jungle. Important wolf pack rule: "The strength of the pack is the wolf. The strength of the wolf is the pack."

Kipling is a great writer and storyteller. Maybe parents could take advantage of this great adventure story to spark a discussion about history, colonialism, imperialism, racism, ecology, environmentalism, or other topics.

I purchased this as an Audible Deal of the Day for $0.99 in 2017. It won two Audie Awards in 2016, one for Best Audio Drama and one for Excellence in Production. I can certainly see why.

[Catherine Puma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not only was this my first time reading Rudyard Kipling's "The Jungle Book", this was my first time listening to the audio production put together by Audible. I loved both core story and audio performance; I'll start with Kipling's story since that will be what most everyone else will be familiar with/have access to.

These stories are action packed enough for children to love reading them over and over, and mature in nuanced messages enough to allow older audiences to discuss them again and again. The various animals of the jungle are anthropomorphized enough for Mowgli and readers to have substantive interactions with their motives and thought processes, but not so much so that they lose their animalness. Mowgli is very much a product of his surroundings, from being raised in a wolf pack to being tutored by Baloo and Bagheera, but the growing-up narrative thread (in which Mowgli outgrows his childhood attachments and must ultimately leave his family) is extremely powerful. I grew up enjoying Disney's "The Jungle Book" movie, but I am so glad I finally got around to reading the source material, because it is so much deeper and more complex and well written!

Audible's audio performance edition is plain fantastic. All humans and animals were extremely well-cast, and all jungle/ambiance/action sounds were perfect. I felt like I was really there! An absolute joy to listen to, the narrative seamlessly flows from story to story. No production errors detected.

Overall, this was really great and I recommend to anyone who has read Kipling's "The Jungle Book" stories, seen the Disney movie adaptation, or are remotely interested in experiencing either. These short stories would make a valuable addition to any children's literature-focused college curriculum. I know someone who really liked the book, so maybe I'll give this to him as a present. The section about the lost city and the poisoned jeweled sword (?) was a little confusing, but that was a minor part and maybe I just wasn't listening close enough.

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasn't sure what to expect but I thoroughly enjoyed this. Part of me wishes that I had had the time to read the actual books but at the moment, I have more time for listening and have discovered free Audible series. The production is very good quality. The voices are well cast. The story is easy enough to follow but with a lot of interest to keep one hooked. The series was broken down into 9 parts, vignettes that more or less make a whole. There were a lot of choice scenes including some villagers expecting to find a prisoner and finding Bagheera instead. And Kaa and the White Python in the ruined city was good as well. And how Mowgli had to try to fit in but never really did, fighting between his humanity and his wildness. I mean it is pure fancy that there is a "Law of the Jungle", a noble law that rises above animal instincts. However, it does make a good story, and shows up the conflict between nature and settled man. Anyway, this is a good series, perfect for children of all ages.

[Dr Mona · Rating 5 out of 5]

IF you like anthropomorphic (human-like) animals who can speak, then you'll love this book. If you agree that this Kipling's fiction/fable represents both dystopia and utopia in the cultures of the several animals (Kipling portrays) then human, as seen by Mowgli, may represent dystopia....🐯. :It was seven o’clock of a very warm evening in the Seeonee hills when Father 🐺 woke up from his day’s rest, scratched himself, yawned, and spread out his 🐾 one after the other to get rid of the sleepy feeling in their tips. Mother 🐺 lay with her big gray nose dropped across her four tumbling, squealing cubs, and the moon shone into the mouth of the cave where they all lived. "Augrh!” said Father Wolf. “It is time to hunt again.” He was going to spring down hill when a little shadow with a bushy tail crossed the threshold and whined: “Good luck go with you, O Chief of the Wolves. And good luck and strong white teeth go with noble children that they may never forget the hungry in this world. ~ Rudyard Kipling: The Jungle Book: The Mowgli Stories. Excellent for children!

[Bookworm Blogger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having only seen the Disney animation and live action versions of this story I was very keen to listen to this audible version. I enjoyed the dramatised production and found all the characters were portrayed well. It was a relatively easy story to follow and the short episodes allowed me to listen with ease whilst I was doing a job. For me there is nothing worse than having to stop an audio story mid chapter! 

Whilst I would recommend this story to families and children I did find aspects of it quite dark so if you were expecting it to be similar to the Disney cartoon animation then you will be disappointed. If you are going to let children listen to it then I would say it's suitable for 8 years+. 

I did enjoy this story but I found my mind wondering every now and again and I didn't get the same level of excitement that I was expecting. It has made me more inclined to read the actual book itself, which has been sitting on my shelf for a while. Just to see how it compares.