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The Call of the Wild, White Fang and Other Stories
Of all Jack London's fictions none has been as popular as his dog stories. In addition to The Call of the Wild, the epic tale of a Californian dog's adventures during the Klondike gold rush, this edition includes White Fang, and five famous short stories - B tard, Moon-Face, Brown Wolf, That Spot, and To Build a Fire.
400 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1903
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5453 people want to read
About the author
Jack London
7,624 books7,683 followersJohn Griffith Chaney, better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors to become an international celebrity and earn a large fortune from writing. He was also an innovator in the genre that would later become known as science fiction.
London was part of the radical literary group "The Crowd" in San Francisco and a passionate advocate of animal rights, workers’ rights and socialism. London wrote several works dealing with these topics, such as his dystopian novel The Iron Heel, his non-fiction exposé The People of the Abyss, War of the Classes, and Before Adam.
His most famous works include The Call of the Wild and White Fang, both set in Alaska and the Yukon during the Klondike Gold Rush, as well as the short stories "To Build a Fire", "An Odyssey of the North", and "Love of Life". He also wrote about the South Pacific in stories such as "The Pearls of Parlay" and "The Heathen".
London was part of the radical literary group "The Crowd" in San Francisco and a passionate advocate of animal rights, workers’ rights and socialism. London wrote several works dealing with these topics, such as his dystopian novel The Iron Heel, his non-fiction exposé The People of the Abyss, War of the Classes, and Before Adam.
His most famous works include The Call of the Wild and White Fang, both set in Alaska and the Yukon during the Klondike Gold Rush, as well as the short stories "To Build a Fire", "An Odyssey of the North", and "Love of Life". He also wrote about the South Pacific in stories such as "The Pearls of Parlay" and "The Heathen".
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 269 reviews
May 7, 2021
THE CALL OF THE WILD and WHITE FANG are two remarkable novellas included in this book, along with some entertaining short stories, all of them based on Jack London's adventures in the Yukon area.
London's writing was heavily influenced by his participation in the Klondike gold rush from 1897 to 1899. He recorded in his journal his adventures in Alaska, including the countless stories he heard from fellow travelers while stranded in an abandoned trappers’ cabin during one winter. He traveled north during the next two years but he found little gold. However, he returned home with a wealth of stories and memories which became the series of short stories about the so called "Northland" that earned him his early literary success.
These adventure stories are excellent escape literature, ideal for young people (and for dog lovers too, especially for those who are fond of arctic breeds). They are action packed, accessible, easy reads and a great vehicle for exploring ideas like environmental determinism and London’s belief in Social Darwinism. There are violent and distressing scenes in some parts, though.
London's prose is simple, yet evocative, powerful and so vivid that readers feel involved in the action. He is a consummate story teller of dramatic fast paced stories. However, his stories are not just simple tales about dogs: they are narratives about hardship, survival, loyalty and the struggles of existence set in one of the harshest landscapes in this planet. Unfortunately, there is some ugly racism and some of his ideas seem quite dated, hence 3.5⭐
London's writing was heavily influenced by his participation in the Klondike gold rush from 1897 to 1899. He recorded in his journal his adventures in Alaska, including the countless stories he heard from fellow travelers while stranded in an abandoned trappers’ cabin during one winter. He traveled north during the next two years but he found little gold. However, he returned home with a wealth of stories and memories which became the series of short stories about the so called "Northland" that earned him his early literary success.
These adventure stories are excellent escape literature, ideal for young people (and for dog lovers too, especially for those who are fond of arctic breeds). They are action packed, accessible, easy reads and a great vehicle for exploring ideas like environmental determinism and London’s belief in Social Darwinism. There are violent and distressing scenes in some parts, though.
London's prose is simple, yet evocative, powerful and so vivid that readers feel involved in the action. He is a consummate story teller of dramatic fast paced stories. However, his stories are not just simple tales about dogs: they are narratives about hardship, survival, loyalty and the struggles of existence set in one of the harshest landscapes in this planet. Unfortunately, there is some ugly racism and some of his ideas seem quite dated, hence 3.5⭐
September 15, 2019
Growing up in California almost equidistant from their hometowns, John Steinbeck resonated with me more than Jack London. Other than reading “To Build a Fire” (thank you, Mr. Libolt!), I knew almost nothing about London. I didn’t even know that we attended the same school (U.C. Berkeley), much less that he led such a fascinating life. I like to think that I can appreciate him more now that I also have time to enjoy animals and the outdoors.
This Oxford collection is the best place to start. It is edited and introduced by London’s leading biographer, Earle Labor. The Notes, Chronology and selected bibliography are most helpful,
but beware, the “Introduction” contains far too many spoilers.
All seven stories feature man’s best friend, a wolf or hybrid of the two. “The Call of the Wild” and “White Fang” really should be read together and not just because the former begins and the latter ends in my birthplace, Santa Clara (AKA Silicon) Valley! Both feature descents into Hell and the capacity for growth and redemption.
Two stories included, “Brown Wolf” and “That Spot” rarely appear in other collections and are quite good. I would save “That Spot” for last, especially if you have not read “To Build a Fire” before. I would skip “Batard” and “Moon-Face.” I found no redeeming qualities in either dark tale.
The thing I found most fascinating about this collection is London’s efforts to get inside the heads of his canine protagonists. The human characters are constantly amazed at how smart a dog/wolf can be. London puts it best in “That Spot” when he observes, “I can’t express myself about that intelligence. It is beyond mere words. I saw it, that’s all. At times it was like gazing into a human soul, to look into his eyes, and what I saw there frightened me and started all sorts of ideas in my mind about reincarnation and all the rest” (p. 332). Even though this is a work of fiction, I didn’t find myself suspending disbelief, except when London describes White Fang as getting angry when people laugh at him. Implausible, right?
Unfortunately, London’s intermittent racism seeps through at times. He refers to his most prominent Native American character as a “savage” and his spouse a “squaw” and baby as a “papoose”--making it all the easier to justify killing or corralling members of the “First Nation.” In London’s defense, the vast majority of leaders, even in my beloved California, were like the Trumpster a century ago. Also, almost no one residing in the Klondike comes across well.
Bottom line: I will definitely be reading more Jack London. “Sea Wolf” is at the top of my list.
This Oxford collection is the best place to start. It is edited and introduced by London’s leading biographer, Earle Labor. The Notes, Chronology and selected bibliography are most helpful,
but beware, the “Introduction” contains far too many spoilers.
All seven stories feature man’s best friend, a wolf or hybrid of the two. “The Call of the Wild” and “White Fang” really should be read together and not just because the former begins and the latter ends in my birthplace, Santa Clara (AKA Silicon) Valley! Both feature descents into Hell and the capacity for growth and redemption.
Two stories included, “Brown Wolf” and “That Spot” rarely appear in other collections and are quite good. I would save “That Spot” for last, especially if you have not read “To Build a Fire” before. I would skip “Batard” and “Moon-Face.” I found no redeeming qualities in either dark tale.
The thing I found most fascinating about this collection is London’s efforts to get inside the heads of his canine protagonists. The human characters are constantly amazed at how smart a dog/wolf can be. London puts it best in “That Spot” when he observes, “I can’t express myself about that intelligence. It is beyond mere words. I saw it, that’s all. At times it was like gazing into a human soul, to look into his eyes, and what I saw there frightened me and started all sorts of ideas in my mind about reincarnation and all the rest” (p. 332). Even though this is a work of fiction, I didn’t find myself suspending disbelief, except when London describes White Fang as getting angry when people laugh at him. Implausible, right?
Unfortunately, London’s intermittent racism seeps through at times. He refers to his most prominent Native American character as a “savage” and his spouse a “squaw” and baby as a “papoose”--making it all the easier to justify killing or corralling members of the “First Nation.” In London’s defense, the vast majority of leaders, even in my beloved California, were like the Trumpster a century ago. Also, almost no one residing in the Klondike comes across well.
Bottom line: I will definitely be reading more Jack London. “Sea Wolf” is at the top of my list.
December 16, 2015
What a wonderful book. I haven't read this since I was in 7th grade and didn't finish it before my book report was due - my teacher caught on and really got after me for trying to turn in a book report on a book i didn't finish. I read this to my 8 year old and we both loved it. The story of Buck, a mild "southland" dog that is stolen and sold to work in the Yukon pulling dog sleds for gold seekers. He finds his wild roots and becomes one of the hardest working and most loved dogs of the north. We both enjoyed getting inside the mind of Buck and the experiences Jack London brings to life. Its fun, descriptive, a bit violent at times and a story that will stay with you for years.
August 16, 2024
The Call of the Wild -
This story chimed true with the vibrations of my soul. There was the nostalgia of it being one of the books I remember my dad reading me. But also the tough, gritty nature of Buck's life which, despite the suffering he experiences, always held within it some deep beauty. The call of the wild and the return to a forgotten state of being is a theme I've often pondered, and it is a classic story which humans have always told.
I'd recommend that everyone reads this.
White Fang -
Despite the out of date tropes and splashes of social Darwinism (as was popular at the time), this is a nice story. It follows the life of a wolf called White Fang and the many trials he goes through, some of them being really quite horrible.
Quite conversely to The Call of the Wild, and probably why they're often paired together, this tells a tale of the wild learning the beauty of love and of life by the fire, so to speak. Though, importantly, the wild never leaves White Fang.
I'm not particularly bothered by the problematic parts of these stories, I can accept them as part of its context for the time and for the author.
As I have to rate The Call of the Wild and White Fang together, I'll go with 4/5. Neither of them are a 5, but I can't justify going as low as a 3.
But I'd highly recommend these stories to everyone!
I'm now reading the other short stories in this collection...
This story chimed true with the vibrations of my soul. There was the nostalgia of it being one of the books I remember my dad reading me. But also the tough, gritty nature of Buck's life which, despite the suffering he experiences, always held within it some deep beauty. The call of the wild and the return to a forgotten state of being is a theme I've often pondered, and it is a classic story which humans have always told.
I'd recommend that everyone reads this.
White Fang -
Despite the out of date tropes and splashes of social Darwinism (as was popular at the time), this is a nice story. It follows the life of a wolf called White Fang and the many trials he goes through, some of them being really quite horrible.
Quite conversely to The Call of the Wild, and probably why they're often paired together, this tells a tale of the wild learning the beauty of love and of life by the fire, so to speak. Though, importantly, the wild never leaves White Fang.
I'm not particularly bothered by the problematic parts of these stories, I can accept them as part of its context for the time and for the author.
As I have to rate The Call of the Wild and White Fang together, I'll go with 4/5. Neither of them are a 5, but I can't justify going as low as a 3.
But I'd highly recommend these stories to everyone!
I'm now reading the other short stories in this collection...
November 7, 2017
Enjoyed these stories much more than I thought I would. Really enjoyed both "The Call of the Wild" and "White Fang". The most obvious reason being that they were, despite everything else, riveting adventures set during the harsh/romantic Klondike Gold Rush. "White Fang" started off slower, and was more depressing, but also rewards the reader with the sweetest ending imaginable...it was good.
Not sure if London's portrayal of dogs and their intelligence is in any way accurate but when London gives more life to these fictional dogs than other writers give to their fictional humans, it's hard not to root for their triumphs or feel their pain when they are mistreated.
The short stories disappointed me with their lack of substance and one-dimensional themes, with the exception of "To Build a Fire", which was well-written and chilling.
Not sure if London's portrayal of dogs and their intelligence is in any way accurate but when London gives more life to these fictional dogs than other writers give to their fictional humans, it's hard not to root for their triumphs or feel their pain when they are mistreated.
The short stories disappointed me with their lack of substance and one-dimensional themes, with the exception of "To Build a Fire", which was well-written and chilling.
March 27, 2022
This review focuses only on The Call of the Wild.
“Nay, the tale grows worse. Hunters there are who fail to return to the camp, and hunters there have been whom their tribesmen found with throats slashed cruelly open and with wolf prints about them in the snow greater than the prints of any wolf.”
Read that quote, and tell me The Call of the Wild isn’t a werewolf novel.
I’m kidding, but only somewhat. There’s certainly the journey from innocent to beast within the pages of this book. There’s also a coming-of-age story, an adventure tale, a brutal survival drama, a sardonic revenge sketch, and, of course, a boy-and-his-dog story once our hero Buck falls in with the kindly John Thornton. That final section of the book, beautiful and heartbreaking, is also a sort of parent-and-child story, and a deeply felt love story (“he was a thing of the wild, come in from the wild to sit by John Thornton’s fire”). This little book, ostensibly for kids, has a helluva lot going on.
It’s a magnificent novel, one of the Great American Novels, and as much a perfect meld of author and story as The Old Man and the Sea. It’s pretty much impossible to think of Jack London without thinking of this book.
I think the thing that struck me most, this umpteenth time through, was how poetic and beautiful so much of the writing is:
“It was an old song, old as the breed itself — one of the first songs of the younger world in a day when songs were sad.”
Or: “He did not steal for the joy of it, but because of the clamor of his stomach. He did not rob openly, but stole secretly and cunningly, out of respect for club and fang. In short, the things he did were done because it was easier to do them than not to do them.” (That’s some Grapes of Wrath-worthy prose, right there.)
Or: “When he pointed his nose at a star and howled long and wolflike, it was his ancestors, dead and dust, pointing nose at star and howling down through the centuries and through him. And his cadences were their cadences, the cadences which voiced their woe and what to them was the meaning of the stillness, and the cold, and dark.”
And, finally, my favorite line of the entire book, and one of my favorite lines in any book ever:
“It was heartbreaking, only Buck’s heart was unbreakable.”
Gorgeous novel.
“Nay, the tale grows worse. Hunters there are who fail to return to the camp, and hunters there have been whom their tribesmen found with throats slashed cruelly open and with wolf prints about them in the snow greater than the prints of any wolf.”
Read that quote, and tell me The Call of the Wild isn’t a werewolf novel.
I’m kidding, but only somewhat. There’s certainly the journey from innocent to beast within the pages of this book. There’s also a coming-of-age story, an adventure tale, a brutal survival drama, a sardonic revenge sketch, and, of course, a boy-and-his-dog story once our hero Buck falls in with the kindly John Thornton. That final section of the book, beautiful and heartbreaking, is also a sort of parent-and-child story, and a deeply felt love story (“he was a thing of the wild, come in from the wild to sit by John Thornton’s fire”). This little book, ostensibly for kids, has a helluva lot going on.
It’s a magnificent novel, one of the Great American Novels, and as much a perfect meld of author and story as The Old Man and the Sea. It’s pretty much impossible to think of Jack London without thinking of this book.
I think the thing that struck me most, this umpteenth time through, was how poetic and beautiful so much of the writing is:
“It was an old song, old as the breed itself — one of the first songs of the younger world in a day when songs were sad.”
Or: “He did not steal for the joy of it, but because of the clamor of his stomach. He did not rob openly, but stole secretly and cunningly, out of respect for club and fang. In short, the things he did were done because it was easier to do them than not to do them.” (That’s some Grapes of Wrath-worthy prose, right there.)
Or: “When he pointed his nose at a star and howled long and wolflike, it was his ancestors, dead and dust, pointing nose at star and howling down through the centuries and through him. And his cadences were their cadences, the cadences which voiced their woe and what to them was the meaning of the stillness, and the cold, and dark.”
And, finally, my favorite line of the entire book, and one of my favorite lines in any book ever:
“It was heartbreaking, only Buck’s heart was unbreakable.”
Gorgeous novel.
May 17, 2020
These two classics took me longer to read than I expected, mostly because I got to a point in "White Fang" where I knew there was going to be some violence and intense cruelty toward animals. I wasn't wrong, but I'm glad I pushed past it and finally finished yesterday. It's been hard to read since my workplace sent us all home after March 12. Other than these two novellas, I've finished only one other book while staying at home. My library job has been intense, and when I'm not working, mental escape has been tough. Physical escape in the form of exercise has been easier. When I was able to return to reading, it was appropriate to return to Jack London, especially these two stories told from the point-of-view of animals who don't worry about what comes next, even when what comes next is unimaginable suffering. I reveled in the descriptions of the Alaskan landscape. I was also impressed with London's ability to make his two main dog characters, Buck and White Fang, easy for a human being to sympathize with while taking nothing away from their essential canine natures. There is the racism of the time toward Native Americans, which rings painfully in the ear of the modern reader, and my teenage daughter would point out that there are no women characters to speak of (other than White Fang's formidable mother, Kiche; does a she-wolf count? she was well-drawn enough that I think she should). But again, I'm glad I pushed past all that. Both Buck's surrender to the Wild and White Fang's final shelter from it satisfied me. May we all find our Wild, and our final shelter, too.
October 29, 2022
How might we reconcile nature and civilization? Primordialism and industrialism? Socialism and capitalism? Where Leopold deconstructs the wilderness/civilization paradox, London suggests we must embrace our wild, primordial past, and thus acquire the ruthless hammer of social Darwinism, and ascend over the industrial confines of bourgeois civilization.
There is something simple in feeding the over-civilized, restless soul with wilderness but London gives us the wrong medicine, a ruthless, nightmarish portrait of existence where humanism and hope are nowhere to be found.
I’ve heard Buck compared to Nietzsche but even the German thought nihilism a temporary state, a dark cavern from which humanity must rise and assert their own productive and proper morals.
There is something simple in feeding the over-civilized, restless soul with wilderness but London gives us the wrong medicine, a ruthless, nightmarish portrait of existence where humanism and hope are nowhere to be found.
I’ve heard Buck compared to Nietzsche but even the German thought nihilism a temporary state, a dark cavern from which humanity must rise and assert their own productive and proper morals.
March 5, 2021
This is the first book I've read with such anthropomorphizing of dogs and it made for an interesting take in Call of the Wild (though a bit far fetched?). I ended up skipping White Fang - I read it as a kid and had enough of London's wolf/dog as a link to the most primal nature take in the other stories. I'm a sucker for dogs and survival stories, so he had me there, and the writing was good enough, but I guess I couldn't really get over the human-level decision making that went on in the minds of his animals to give it more than three stars.
December 23, 2025
I’m an absolute moron because I didn’t realize that call of the wild and white fang were about dogs and no amount of socialist themes and parallels will make me interested in having a dog as the main character. To build a fire is still a great short story though.
File this away as a DNF
File this away as a DNF
August 24, 2021
A re-read of a classic. London's description of the natural world is incomparable as is his portrayal of the nature of man. In spite of us, Buck perseveres.
November 30, 2024
What a gorgeous two short stories. Jack London wrote Call of the Wild to begin with, tapping into the idea of a return to nature and the brutality of both The Wild and Man, then wrote White Fang as a less "magical", almost opposite version of the former. White Fang tells the story of a young, wolf-dog cub who finds solace, anguish, pain, suffering, and eventual kindness in the hands of "gods" - humanity.
The rage I felt while reading White Fang especially - the cowardly, disgusting character of Beauty Smith who changed the nature of White Fang to fearfully violent and a pit dog; the betrayal of Grey Beaver due to his addiction and brutality; White Fang himself refusing to escape into the Wild where he would have thrived, but instead returned endlessly to his human masters.
But, the outcome of Scott's presence, the kindness of the southland, and the domestic warmth that emanates from the home made all of that suffering worth it.
The prose itself is gorgeously romantic, almost to the level of THE QUEEN Mary Shelley, and painted the Alaskan snowscapes and forests so vividly.
I would recommend this to anyone looking for a natureesque novel with a heartwarming but rage inducing story. Adored it.
The rage I felt while reading White Fang especially - the cowardly, disgusting character of Beauty Smith who changed the nature of White Fang to fearfully violent and a pit dog; the betrayal of Grey Beaver due to his addiction and brutality; White Fang himself refusing to escape into the Wild where he would have thrived, but instead returned endlessly to his human masters.
But, the outcome of Scott's presence, the kindness of the southland, and the domestic warmth that emanates from the home made all of that suffering worth it.
The prose itself is gorgeously romantic, almost to the level of THE QUEEN Mary Shelley, and painted the Alaskan snowscapes and forests so vividly.
I would recommend this to anyone looking for a natureesque novel with a heartwarming but rage inducing story. Adored it.
June 9, 2017
This is the first time I've ever read White Fang, and what struck me was that White Fang and Buck (from Call of the Wild), while different stories, show a reverse progression in two dogs' lives. White Fang is born wild, Buck born in captivity. I don't want to say too much to give away spoilers, but these and the short stories really show that Jack London wrote what he knew. He also vividly illustrated the horrors of breaking dogs and dog abuse in these adventurous tales. Of course, To Build a Fire is the one of the first Jack London stories I ever read in my life, and who could ever forget it? It was startling, at times, to see places in these books important to my family story (my parents' first date was rowing on Great Slave Lake, and I lived in San Francisco for a while when I was growing up, for two examples).
Sure, these are 3 stars for me as they are not my cup of tea, but they deserve to be classics.
May 14, 2012
jack london, insieme a salgari e verne, era l'autore che non si poteva non leggere, secondo mio padre. me li regalo' tutti ben prima che io compissi i 10 anni :-)
sarei curiosa di rileggerli con 25 anni in piu'.
sarei curiosa di rileggerli con 25 anni in piu'.
July 30, 2017
London's best work, only a smidge better than White Fang (and I enjoyed The Sea Wolf quite a bit, too). In part because of all the available books out there, I rarely pick up a book a 2nd time (or more) to read it, but London is possibly my favorite author and I hope to re-read it again in the near future. It's one of those books I'd buy for my wife and my children to have and enjoy.
October 31, 2021
An enjoyable collection of short to standard length stories: heart-warming, and at times quite humorous, but mostly nostalgic in a sentimental way.
Perhaps this is a personal thing, it is unsurprising to find myself impressionable by a collection of stories about dogs and their ancestors from the Wild, given my fascination and love for the species - and I would give Call of the Wild, White Fang, That Spot 5 stars.
Batard however was a horrible story and I find it hard to find the point in reading a story so…. malignant. So so pointless - in fact I wish I skipped the story entirely.
The rest of the collection was enjoyable no doubt, but they didn’t evoke the feelings of romanticised wanderlust as say Call of the Wild and White Fang. Again, a personal thing, but with this in mind I cannot give this specific edition more than 4 stars.
Nonetheless, reading this wistful collection of novels was a refreshing change of pace, and I would strongly recommend to readers who also find comfort reading about nature and the wild.
Perhaps this is a personal thing, it is unsurprising to find myself impressionable by a collection of stories about dogs and their ancestors from the Wild, given my fascination and love for the species - and I would give Call of the Wild, White Fang, That Spot 5 stars.
Batard however was a horrible story and I find it hard to find the point in reading a story so…. malignant. So so pointless - in fact I wish I skipped the story entirely.
The rest of the collection was enjoyable no doubt, but they didn’t evoke the feelings of romanticised wanderlust as say Call of the Wild and White Fang. Again, a personal thing, but with this in mind I cannot give this specific edition more than 4 stars.
Nonetheless, reading this wistful collection of novels was a refreshing change of pace, and I would strongly recommend to readers who also find comfort reading about nature and the wild.
August 2, 2025
I bought this book secondhand from the library without knowing anything about it, so I was pleasantly surprised when I actually loved it! I’m not even a dog person, but this was really interesting to read because of the wolfdogs’ perspectives.
January 11, 2025
I read a child adaptation of White Fang when i was in the 5th grade and i really enjoyed it. So, it influenced my choice to read these novels. However, this collection of novels/stories was really dense and often felt really redundant.
2/5 🌟
2/5 🌟
March 27, 2025
Gripping and thrilling stories written incredibly well. Quite hard to read at times, especially if you're an animal lover!
April 17, 2019
4 stories for the price of 1 with this book … BONUS!! I LOVED IT …
… and as it turns out, I want more of Jack London in my life NOW.
Sadly with his passing at the age of only 40 in 1916, so too did his knack for story-telling die with him. Luckily though, he left behind a wealth of material in short stories, novels, articles, essays, plays and even poetry for future generations to savor. I’m taking future reading recommendations as I type this review up. I would gladly read them all if I could be given the opportunity. After reading a bit about London’s personal life, I think it would be safe to surmise that he wrote about what he experienced, what he KNEW from having lived through it. I think this would be a major contributing factor on what made him such a thorough story-teller and very good at it. He wrote about what he was good at, LIVING HIS OWN LIFE and observing the goings-on around himself.
I would however be remiss if I didn’t state right off the bat, just how difficult some parts of THIS BOOK were for me to read. Anyone who is an animal lover or who is simply a kind and decent human being who values all living things, will most assuredly have difficulties with accepting such extremely physical abuse scenarios that London describes with so much detail that very little is left to the imagination. Surprisingly, I not only found myself extremely bothered in a sad way by what I was reading and imagining but I also experienced an overwhelmingly mean spirit that seemed to take over my thoughts during those passages and had me wondering exactly what I would be capable of doing to someone I witnessed hurting an animal or gawd forbid one of my loved-ones.
To me this was a very amazing talent that London possessed when writing. He could draw you into the scene so easily that you could feel the pain, the hunger, the anger … it got pretty brutal during some of those first chapters in the beginning of the book.
Even though this book was my first experience with London’s type of storytelling, I might be very tempted to say he is by far ‘THE FRONT RUNNER’ for ‘MY’ all-time ‘FAVORITE AUTHOR’ title. This collection of stories was captivating in the ways of life from a bygone era. London has been dead for over 100 year now but these stories, as sometimes or I should say most oftentimes seen through the eyes of dogs/wolves really resonated with me. There were many analogies to the human endurance and capacity for survival and ones ability to be re-shaped/re-molded by your circumstances and surroundings.
These 4 stories seem to possess a certain style. It is very distinctive and brutal, it got somewhat overpowering at times. London seems to have a very strong personal and literary identification with the wolf-dog/dog-wolf.
The first short story in this book was called…
~Bâtard~
In hindsight this story probably shouldn’t have been the first introduction to Jack London for me but … it was how the book started and I’m big on doing things in chronological order so …
Bâtard is a story in which a severely abused dog wants to take revenge on his owner. Does he??? Well, you’ll just have to read the story to find out because you won’t get any spoilers from this review.
Right from the beginning, the puppy known as Bâtard, was described as the devil, but can something be born evil? It brings into question one of the oldest arguments in the history of psychology, that of, the Nature vs Nurture debate. Each of these sides have good points that make it really hard to decide whether a living being’s/animal’s development is predisposed in his/her DNA, or a majority of it is influenced by the life experiences and the environment in which this being lives.
There is a saying that when two devils come together, hell is to pay. This is to be expected, and this certainly was to be expected when Bâtard and Leclere, his master for 5 very long years came together. I do believe that the key to London’s effectiveness is how he can get you so absorbed in this fictional world that he conjures up by having you relate to the feelings that your mind and body experiences almost immediately as you read along about the cold-blooded beatings and killings of many different animals in this story.
This story delves into how hate binds Bâtard and Leclere together in opposition to how love never could bind them. Bâtard could have chosen to run away, every man within the 17 short pages of this story marveled at why he didn’t but London easily layered out the reasoning behind Bâtard’s choice … he stayed because he wanted revenge on the evil man who brutalized him for years more than he wanted his freedom.
Can love overcome hatred?? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. What if you never had love in your life? Is that then a wasted life?? Can revenge give meaning to a life?? A really powerful take on the Nurture/Nature of an animals life. Some will say the ending was acceptable others will not. I will picture ‘the “PENDULUM” swinging back and forth between the two’.
Next up for reading in this book was the novel…
~The Call Of The Wild~
The story which I enjoyed the most of the 4 because it’s about a dog who wants to find his true self again after being exposed to so many life experiences both good and bad. As humans, isn’t this what we’re all about as well??
I absolutely enjoyed London’s seamless capability of being able to project his own human point of observation into another entity. He could almost get inside the skin of an animal and could tell you in the most convincing detail of how it felt and how it thought. This makes for greatness of imagination I think. I felt sort of a kindred spirit with London. Some of the best moments in reading are when you come across something, a feeling, a way of looking at things, which you had thought quirky or particular to you, and now, here it is, described by someone else, who lived a whole other lifetime ago, someone who is long dead, a person you have never met and it’s as if London himself just reached out through the pages and shook my hand and said, “See, you’re not so very different from me and I’m considered a great American author of my time!” lol … OKAY so maybe I’m exaggerating the whole handshake thing but I really do relate to his way of telling a story from an animals perspective on the world around it. On numerous occasions whilst watching a movie with animals in it, I’ve been told to, “STOP doing the VOICE OVER for the animals Jenn, you’re driving me crazy with your thoughts!” OOPS, sometimes I just can’t help myself. SORRY!
So getting back to the review. Here’s a story of a domesticated dog named Buck who was dog-napped from his cushy lifestyle and thrown into the harshness of a cold and oftentimes miserable existence. He had learned to trust in men he knew, and to give them credit for a wisdom that he originally thought outreached his own and this is where the story shows you that perhaps some of our own ways of thinking and seeing life aren’t quite right. A story about a dog who learns to adjust and adapt using his own intelligence that had been carried down through generations of his canine ancestors.
Buck eventually accepts his new life and may even have moments of truly enjoying it but it comes with a price though. Buck’s innate drive eventually calls for only one thing, to be with his own kind. That’s what human kind has deprived him of. His natural instincts are at war with the obedient behavior that has been bred into his psyche after domestication. He wants freedom, he longs for it, and the wild calls him home. Ultimately Buck faces a choice between living in a man's world and returning to nature.
Buck changes over the course of the book. The same nobility and strength is still there from the early goings of the story, but it's tempered with wisdom and experience in wild matters as well as domestic ones towards the end. One pretty amazing thing again about London’s writing style is that as a matter-of-fact Buck's perceptions, experiences, and above all, his helplessness to control his fate successfully stir up as much intimacy and compassion as any human character might do for me. That really surprised me about him(London).
Buck was so different a dog than Bâtard was. Buck seemed to find it easier to mend his ways than to retaliate it. But I do believe that was because Buck had known and felt love whereas Bâtard never had nor felt that emotion.
Buck was an intelligent dog who ‘watched and learned’. Not only did this dog learn by experience, but I think ‘instincts’ long dead but passed down through canine generations had become alive again. One of the many of my favorite London passages in this novel was … “Thus, as token of what a puppet thing life is, the ancient song surged through him and he came into his own again … he was preeminently cunning, and could bide his time with a patience that was nothing less than primitive … he wanted it because it was his Nature.” But Buck had also been ‘Nurtured’ in a loving environment early on in his life so he had a good balance of both with which to base his behavior on.
Ultimately for Buck what made his decision of whether or not to accept 'The(his) Call Of The Wild' so difficult was 'For The Love Of A Man', John Thornton. He was the first man to truly show Buck how wonderful and meaningful a life could be when there was a true love and a true appreciation for life. Isn’t that sort of how us humans get through this thing called life too?? Some of us are lucky right off the starting line, some of us get caught up or tangled up and don’t get as quick a start at it and some are just unlucky because we’ve gotten hurt and we know we have to wait for another one to start and then there’s some who chose not to enter it until they feel it’s just the right one.
Jack London did an exquisite job of describing Buck for me. This poor dog endured many struggle-some situations, and through it all, I felt in some ways like I was Buck. I felt his sorrow and his pain as well as his joy and abundance of love. When he was happily following the call of the wild, I felt his happiness. When he was in pain, I felt the heavy whip blows and the struggle to pull that loaded sled. I felt his anger, a deep, pure, hateful anger wriggling inside of him. I was fully able to understand how he made his way through the obstacles life threw at him. I was inside his brain, his heart, his body. It almost seemed like I was transported to the wilderness, swept up in the struggle to survive.
Ultimately this novel shows the similarities in lifestyles with humans and dogs. How we both have personalities, we continually change throughout our lives, and adapt to our environments. We are shaped by our surroundings, and we humans have free will to make our way. But also, we shape other's lives by our own choices. This is an adventure story for everyone with some strong messages about the way people should treat animals, the way people should treat each other, about nature, about instinct, and about social structure and the abuse of power.
What if you were torn away from your home, your life, your family, and everything that was ever familiar to you, and you were thrown into harsh, life threatening situations? Would you adapt in order to live and survive or would you be totally enveloped in the chaos and just give up, and die??
This is one of those novels that will always be a lifetime treasure for me I think. AND I didn’t give away the ending of whether or not Buck chooses The Call Of The Wild over The Love Of A Man. You’ll just have to read it yourself.
Next up was another short story called …
~Love Of Life~
A tale of survival.The story is simple and immediately understandable. Two gold prospectors are suffering from starvation as they trudge across the frozen landscape to find food. One of the men is called Bill and the other, the protagonist, well he remains unnamed for the entirety of the story. Unfortunately for him, starvation and exposure to the elements are the good news for him because he soon sprains an ankle and his dear friend Bill abandons him to his fate. Without bullets for his rifle, he marches towards an uncertain fate. You know that eventually happens when you have a hungry wolf on your trail.
This short story doesn’t give you the how these two men got themselves into this predicament, because you know I’m sort of curious about these sorts of things. I want to know how they got themselves into this mess in the first place, but Mr London just gives you an indefinite amount of possibilities for back stories because he never offers up his own. He definitely didn't over-write this short story.
There is nothing at all disappointing about this adventure.
The brilliance of the piece is that it compels you to want to know how the saga ends and what happens to the poor prospector. Your own fear of his situation and your empathy for his plight won’t let you stop reading until you know the outcome. On one hand London has you thinking that surely Bill will wait for him at their rendezvous point and you hope along those lines for awhile, but then again who up and leaves someone alone like that in the first place. BAD BILL!! This seems to be a solid demonstration of Jack London's writing genius. If he had not created that situation and just left it at Bill leaving his friend behind, we would not anticipate the future disaster.
Needless to say this poor nameless prospector is beset by obstacles including a close encounter with a bear. But, in the end, it is a lone wolf that endlessly stalks him that creates the most anxiety. Sick and starving himself, the wolf slowly walks behind the hapless prospector. Several times, in fact, the wolf creeps forward to lick his face while he sleeps, testing his strength and his ability to fight off an attack. And each time he scampers back, waiting with the patience of the starved and desperate. How can an author create so much terror out of a nearly dead wolf?? The possibility of salvation in the form of a whaling ship eventually shows up towards the last few pages of this short story. Rescued at last!!! OR NOT??? At the moment the prospector spots the ship, London makes you believe that the prospector does not possess the physical strength to make his way to it. Our prospector's titanic 'will to live' doesn't fail him but his body is close to it's end and he grows ever weaker, ever closer to the ripping jaws of the death-wolf that follows. Here’s another favorite sentences that London uses to describe near death, …”Soul and body walked or crawled side by side, yet apart, so slender was the thread that bound them together.”
Does the poor prospector make it? Does he live? In the final, savage confrontation with his nemesis, the wolf, is he victorious? Or is he overcome and eaten by the beast within sight of deliverance? I’m not telling you!!! You’ll have to read it for yourself. But I’ll tell ya it was a very interesting 24 page little short story.
Last but never least is the final novel by the name of …
~White Fang~
I loved this adventure in the wild. Jack London was a master in telling stories. I am not surprised that his collection is still cherished and no doubt will be for a long time to come. All said in the unique narrative of a wolf-dog. I never though this story dragged, from page one I was captured by White Fang’s struggles through life and rooted for him till the very last page. This story is full of suspense and intrigues and most of all extremely gripping.
Again I have to say that it’s not an easy story to read. The descriptions are fascinating but sometimes the brutality is very graphic. You’re exposed to a lot of cruelty. White fang is a story of survival, trust, mistreatment, love, cruelty and kindness. A great book for all dog lovers, but most importantly, humanity. It is a tale about perseverance, hope, love, nature, and redemption.
Being able to adapt to different situations was an interesting thing to learn through the feelings of a dog. Also learning from White Fang that you have to sometimes let things go was another unique lesson to take away from this book. When White Fang loses his mom and then a year or so later he finds her and she has COMPLETELY forgotten about him. Like WOW, does that really happen in the animal world. That was sad.
London writes a lot about ‘clay’ and how like ‘clay’ the ‘wild’ White Fang came to be ‘molded like clay’ over time. I like that type of metaphor. I actually love the symbolism being it. All the more reasons why London is at the top of ‘MY FAVORITE AUTHOR’ list. I could go on and on and on about White Fang and how much I loved to see his transformation but I think it’s something that everyone should read for themselves. So again, no spoilers from me as to whether or not the wild beast in him was ever tamed or whether or not love had anything to do with it. You’ll just have to pick up this book for yourself and see why Jack London was internationally famous for his books. Why he wrote passionately about the great questions of life and death and the struggle to survive with dignity and integrity, and why he also sought peace and quiet inspiration from the natural world. It’s really no wonder why his writings appeal to millions of readers. I can only imagine what he would think of and write about our world as we know it today.
Ya I know this review is bordering on its 20,000 character maximum, but c’mon now … it’s a review of 4 stories not just one … lol
Definitely gets 5 full stars in my opinion.
… and as it turns out, I want more of Jack London in my life NOW.
Sadly with his passing at the age of only 40 in 1916, so too did his knack for story-telling die with him. Luckily though, he left behind a wealth of material in short stories, novels, articles, essays, plays and even poetry for future generations to savor. I’m taking future reading recommendations as I type this review up. I would gladly read them all if I could be given the opportunity. After reading a bit about London’s personal life, I think it would be safe to surmise that he wrote about what he experienced, what he KNEW from having lived through it. I think this would be a major contributing factor on what made him such a thorough story-teller and very good at it. He wrote about what he was good at, LIVING HIS OWN LIFE and observing the goings-on around himself.
I would however be remiss if I didn’t state right off the bat, just how difficult some parts of THIS BOOK were for me to read. Anyone who is an animal lover or who is simply a kind and decent human being who values all living things, will most assuredly have difficulties with accepting such extremely physical abuse scenarios that London describes with so much detail that very little is left to the imagination. Surprisingly, I not only found myself extremely bothered in a sad way by what I was reading and imagining but I also experienced an overwhelmingly mean spirit that seemed to take over my thoughts during those passages and had me wondering exactly what I would be capable of doing to someone I witnessed hurting an animal or gawd forbid one of my loved-ones.
To me this was a very amazing talent that London possessed when writing. He could draw you into the scene so easily that you could feel the pain, the hunger, the anger … it got pretty brutal during some of those first chapters in the beginning of the book.
Even though this book was my first experience with London’s type of storytelling, I might be very tempted to say he is by far ‘THE FRONT RUNNER’ for ‘MY’ all-time ‘FAVORITE AUTHOR’ title. This collection of stories was captivating in the ways of life from a bygone era. London has been dead for over 100 year now but these stories, as sometimes or I should say most oftentimes seen through the eyes of dogs/wolves really resonated with me. There were many analogies to the human endurance and capacity for survival and ones ability to be re-shaped/re-molded by your circumstances and surroundings.
These 4 stories seem to possess a certain style. It is very distinctive and brutal, it got somewhat overpowering at times. London seems to have a very strong personal and literary identification with the wolf-dog/dog-wolf.
The first short story in this book was called…
~Bâtard~
In hindsight this story probably shouldn’t have been the first introduction to Jack London for me but … it was how the book started and I’m big on doing things in chronological order so …
Bâtard is a story in which a severely abused dog wants to take revenge on his owner. Does he??? Well, you’ll just have to read the story to find out because you won’t get any spoilers from this review.
Right from the beginning, the puppy known as Bâtard, was described as the devil, but can something be born evil? It brings into question one of the oldest arguments in the history of psychology, that of, the Nature vs Nurture debate. Each of these sides have good points that make it really hard to decide whether a living being’s/animal’s development is predisposed in his/her DNA, or a majority of it is influenced by the life experiences and the environment in which this being lives.
There is a saying that when two devils come together, hell is to pay. This is to be expected, and this certainly was to be expected when Bâtard and Leclere, his master for 5 very long years came together. I do believe that the key to London’s effectiveness is how he can get you so absorbed in this fictional world that he conjures up by having you relate to the feelings that your mind and body experiences almost immediately as you read along about the cold-blooded beatings and killings of many different animals in this story.
This story delves into how hate binds Bâtard and Leclere together in opposition to how love never could bind them. Bâtard could have chosen to run away, every man within the 17 short pages of this story marveled at why he didn’t but London easily layered out the reasoning behind Bâtard’s choice … he stayed because he wanted revenge on the evil man who brutalized him for years more than he wanted his freedom.
Can love overcome hatred?? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. What if you never had love in your life? Is that then a wasted life?? Can revenge give meaning to a life?? A really powerful take on the Nurture/Nature of an animals life. Some will say the ending was acceptable others will not. I will picture ‘the “PENDULUM” swinging back and forth between the two’.
Next up for reading in this book was the novel…
~The Call Of The Wild~
The story which I enjoyed the most of the 4 because it’s about a dog who wants to find his true self again after being exposed to so many life experiences both good and bad. As humans, isn’t this what we’re all about as well??
I absolutely enjoyed London’s seamless capability of being able to project his own human point of observation into another entity. He could almost get inside the skin of an animal and could tell you in the most convincing detail of how it felt and how it thought. This makes for greatness of imagination I think. I felt sort of a kindred spirit with London. Some of the best moments in reading are when you come across something, a feeling, a way of looking at things, which you had thought quirky or particular to you, and now, here it is, described by someone else, who lived a whole other lifetime ago, someone who is long dead, a person you have never met and it’s as if London himself just reached out through the pages and shook my hand and said, “See, you’re not so very different from me and I’m considered a great American author of my time!” lol … OKAY so maybe I’m exaggerating the whole handshake thing but I really do relate to his way of telling a story from an animals perspective on the world around it. On numerous occasions whilst watching a movie with animals in it, I’ve been told to, “STOP doing the VOICE OVER for the animals Jenn, you’re driving me crazy with your thoughts!” OOPS, sometimes I just can’t help myself. SORRY!
So getting back to the review. Here’s a story of a domesticated dog named Buck who was dog-napped from his cushy lifestyle and thrown into the harshness of a cold and oftentimes miserable existence. He had learned to trust in men he knew, and to give them credit for a wisdom that he originally thought outreached his own and this is where the story shows you that perhaps some of our own ways of thinking and seeing life aren’t quite right. A story about a dog who learns to adjust and adapt using his own intelligence that had been carried down through generations of his canine ancestors.
Buck eventually accepts his new life and may even have moments of truly enjoying it but it comes with a price though. Buck’s innate drive eventually calls for only one thing, to be with his own kind. That’s what human kind has deprived him of. His natural instincts are at war with the obedient behavior that has been bred into his psyche after domestication. He wants freedom, he longs for it, and the wild calls him home. Ultimately Buck faces a choice between living in a man's world and returning to nature.
Buck changes over the course of the book. The same nobility and strength is still there from the early goings of the story, but it's tempered with wisdom and experience in wild matters as well as domestic ones towards the end. One pretty amazing thing again about London’s writing style is that as a matter-of-fact Buck's perceptions, experiences, and above all, his helplessness to control his fate successfully stir up as much intimacy and compassion as any human character might do for me. That really surprised me about him(London).
Buck was so different a dog than Bâtard was. Buck seemed to find it easier to mend his ways than to retaliate it. But I do believe that was because Buck had known and felt love whereas Bâtard never had nor felt that emotion.
Buck was an intelligent dog who ‘watched and learned’. Not only did this dog learn by experience, but I think ‘instincts’ long dead but passed down through canine generations had become alive again. One of the many of my favorite London passages in this novel was … “Thus, as token of what a puppet thing life is, the ancient song surged through him and he came into his own again … he was preeminently cunning, and could bide his time with a patience that was nothing less than primitive … he wanted it because it was his Nature.” But Buck had also been ‘Nurtured’ in a loving environment early on in his life so he had a good balance of both with which to base his behavior on.
Ultimately for Buck what made his decision of whether or not to accept 'The(his) Call Of The Wild' so difficult was 'For The Love Of A Man', John Thornton. He was the first man to truly show Buck how wonderful and meaningful a life could be when there was a true love and a true appreciation for life. Isn’t that sort of how us humans get through this thing called life too?? Some of us are lucky right off the starting line, some of us get caught up or tangled up and don’t get as quick a start at it and some are just unlucky because we’ve gotten hurt and we know we have to wait for another one to start and then there’s some who chose not to enter it until they feel it’s just the right one.
Jack London did an exquisite job of describing Buck for me. This poor dog endured many struggle-some situations, and through it all, I felt in some ways like I was Buck. I felt his sorrow and his pain as well as his joy and abundance of love. When he was happily following the call of the wild, I felt his happiness. When he was in pain, I felt the heavy whip blows and the struggle to pull that loaded sled. I felt his anger, a deep, pure, hateful anger wriggling inside of him. I was fully able to understand how he made his way through the obstacles life threw at him. I was inside his brain, his heart, his body. It almost seemed like I was transported to the wilderness, swept up in the struggle to survive.
Ultimately this novel shows the similarities in lifestyles with humans and dogs. How we both have personalities, we continually change throughout our lives, and adapt to our environments. We are shaped by our surroundings, and we humans have free will to make our way. But also, we shape other's lives by our own choices. This is an adventure story for everyone with some strong messages about the way people should treat animals, the way people should treat each other, about nature, about instinct, and about social structure and the abuse of power.
What if you were torn away from your home, your life, your family, and everything that was ever familiar to you, and you were thrown into harsh, life threatening situations? Would you adapt in order to live and survive or would you be totally enveloped in the chaos and just give up, and die??
This is one of those novels that will always be a lifetime treasure for me I think. AND I didn’t give away the ending of whether or not Buck chooses The Call Of The Wild over The Love Of A Man. You’ll just have to read it yourself.
Next up was another short story called …
~Love Of Life~
A tale of survival.The story is simple and immediately understandable. Two gold prospectors are suffering from starvation as they trudge across the frozen landscape to find food. One of the men is called Bill and the other, the protagonist, well he remains unnamed for the entirety of the story. Unfortunately for him, starvation and exposure to the elements are the good news for him because he soon sprains an ankle and his dear friend Bill abandons him to his fate. Without bullets for his rifle, he marches towards an uncertain fate. You know that eventually happens when you have a hungry wolf on your trail.
This short story doesn’t give you the how these two men got themselves into this predicament, because you know I’m sort of curious about these sorts of things. I want to know how they got themselves into this mess in the first place, but Mr London just gives you an indefinite amount of possibilities for back stories because he never offers up his own. He definitely didn't over-write this short story.
There is nothing at all disappointing about this adventure.
The brilliance of the piece is that it compels you to want to know how the saga ends and what happens to the poor prospector. Your own fear of his situation and your empathy for his plight won’t let you stop reading until you know the outcome. On one hand London has you thinking that surely Bill will wait for him at their rendezvous point and you hope along those lines for awhile, but then again who up and leaves someone alone like that in the first place. BAD BILL!! This seems to be a solid demonstration of Jack London's writing genius. If he had not created that situation and just left it at Bill leaving his friend behind, we would not anticipate the future disaster.
Needless to say this poor nameless prospector is beset by obstacles including a close encounter with a bear. But, in the end, it is a lone wolf that endlessly stalks him that creates the most anxiety. Sick and starving himself, the wolf slowly walks behind the hapless prospector. Several times, in fact, the wolf creeps forward to lick his face while he sleeps, testing his strength and his ability to fight off an attack. And each time he scampers back, waiting with the patience of the starved and desperate. How can an author create so much terror out of a nearly dead wolf?? The possibility of salvation in the form of a whaling ship eventually shows up towards the last few pages of this short story. Rescued at last!!! OR NOT??? At the moment the prospector spots the ship, London makes you believe that the prospector does not possess the physical strength to make his way to it. Our prospector's titanic 'will to live' doesn't fail him but his body is close to it's end and he grows ever weaker, ever closer to the ripping jaws of the death-wolf that follows. Here’s another favorite sentences that London uses to describe near death, …”Soul and body walked or crawled side by side, yet apart, so slender was the thread that bound them together.”
Does the poor prospector make it? Does he live? In the final, savage confrontation with his nemesis, the wolf, is he victorious? Or is he overcome and eaten by the beast within sight of deliverance? I’m not telling you!!! You’ll have to read it for yourself. But I’ll tell ya it was a very interesting 24 page little short story.
Last but never least is the final novel by the name of …
~White Fang~
I loved this adventure in the wild. Jack London was a master in telling stories. I am not surprised that his collection is still cherished and no doubt will be for a long time to come. All said in the unique narrative of a wolf-dog. I never though this story dragged, from page one I was captured by White Fang’s struggles through life and rooted for him till the very last page. This story is full of suspense and intrigues and most of all extremely gripping.
Again I have to say that it’s not an easy story to read. The descriptions are fascinating but sometimes the brutality is very graphic. You’re exposed to a lot of cruelty. White fang is a story of survival, trust, mistreatment, love, cruelty and kindness. A great book for all dog lovers, but most importantly, humanity. It is a tale about perseverance, hope, love, nature, and redemption.
Being able to adapt to different situations was an interesting thing to learn through the feelings of a dog. Also learning from White Fang that you have to sometimes let things go was another unique lesson to take away from this book. When White Fang loses his mom and then a year or so later he finds her and she has COMPLETELY forgotten about him. Like WOW, does that really happen in the animal world. That was sad.
London writes a lot about ‘clay’ and how like ‘clay’ the ‘wild’ White Fang came to be ‘molded like clay’ over time. I like that type of metaphor. I actually love the symbolism being it. All the more reasons why London is at the top of ‘MY FAVORITE AUTHOR’ list. I could go on and on and on about White Fang and how much I loved to see his transformation but I think it’s something that everyone should read for themselves. So again, no spoilers from me as to whether or not the wild beast in him was ever tamed or whether or not love had anything to do with it. You’ll just have to pick up this book for yourself and see why Jack London was internationally famous for his books. Why he wrote passionately about the great questions of life and death and the struggle to survive with dignity and integrity, and why he also sought peace and quiet inspiration from the natural world. It’s really no wonder why his writings appeal to millions of readers. I can only imagine what he would think of and write about our world as we know it today.
Ya I know this review is bordering on its 20,000 character maximum, but c’mon now … it’s a review of 4 stories not just one … lol
Definitely gets 5 full stars in my opinion.
May 1, 2021
Two classic stories that I somehow missed out on until now. A unique perspective being told through the eyes of two canines who have completely opposite paths through life.
July 7, 2025
The Call of the Wild — I dearly wish I could have experienced this story as a young boy. It is awesome, and London has those lyrical moments in which he blends concrete descriptive poetry with a naturalist, philosophical reflection…
“Buck was older than the days he had seen or the breaths he had drawn.” (Paraphrase)
That kind of mysterious stuff spoke to my little boy heart.
“Buck was older than the days he had seen or the breaths he had drawn.” (Paraphrase)
That kind of mysterious stuff spoke to my little boy heart.
October 8, 2025
4.5* Wrote this off as a kid's story from when I was a kid... but Chapter 6 is something else. When Buck pulls that massive sled as men are betting on him--might make a grown adult wanna howl at the moon...
September 2, 2024
For all of the exploration on animal instincts, domestication, and early settlements and life in the Great North, Jack London’s worldview was very of its time. I do think there is merit in injecting human imagination into the psychology of Men’s Best Friend, but this also means whatever human biases he had got carried forward into constructing a supposedly primal essence of mammalian life. It’s not actually objective or truthful, and it misleads people to think that it is. It’s somewhat insidious and problematic. I worry readers don’t take this with the tablespoon of salt that it needs, and think the flawed perspectives in this book is just the way nature is.
… and after writing all this there is still a part of me that’s like “Who cares? It’s about dogs.” I don’t know. I just found this such a disappointment and did not enjoy it.
… and after writing all this there is still a part of me that’s like “Who cares? It’s about dogs.” I don’t know. I just found this such a disappointment and did not enjoy it.
August 20, 2020
Kitap, her ne kadar bir köpeğin yaşam mücadelesini anlatsa da okurken bu mücadelenin bir insana da ait olabileceğini düşünüyorsunuz. Tüm canlılar için acı verici bir hayat.
Umarım bir gün her tür canlının ticareti son bulur dünyada.
Umarım bir gün her tür canlının ticareti son bulur dünyada.
April 18, 2012
This man was undoubtedly a good writer, his concise, tight occasionally prosaic phrasing works well, reminding me a little, and only a little, of William Goulding.
Each books stands on it own merits;
Call of the Wild
4-Stars
Excellent! Stars White Fang in a cameo role, some great descriptive prose which captures a sense of the Alaskan wilderness well as well as contextualising the brutality of man and beast.
White Fang
2-Stars
Call of the Wild in reverse; brutality of the wilderness, hate,savagery etc. belaboured ad nausea; dogs characters personified then de-personified = Darwinian contradiction.
If white Fang were a human movie character he'd be the testosterone pumped all American action antihero a la Bruce Willis in Die Hard or The Last Boy Scout. has it's place but I grew out of it years ago
B'tard
1 Star
A man and a Dogs who's lives are defined by their hatred of each other. Pointless! like a a scene from white fang.
Moon Face
1 Star
Gratuitous murder
Brown Wolf
3 Stars
That Spot
2 Stars
To Light a Fire
4 Stars
The best of the short stories in this volume
September 11, 2013
White Fang is by far the greatest story I've ever read. I haven't really read a lot of books by Jack London, but I think White Fang is his best and demonstrates conclusively the author's remarkable talent. The journey of a wolf cub born in and molded by the fierce and merciless Wild of the frosty Arctic to the 'sun-kissed' and civilized territory of humankind was depicted by London in a vivid and imagination provoking fashion. Everything from the magnificent features of Nature to the minutest fraction of emotion of both man and beasts was masterfully portrayed. Sometimes I felt lost and vulnerable in the vastness and the unknown of the Wild and heart sickened by those moments when a good soul was hurt, but other times I was filled with joy and pleasure at the sight and the feel of love between characters. London really did a great job of captivating his readers with such descriptions. I dare say no one could ever embark upon this epic adventure without a sense of awe and wonder.
This novel has definitely become my all-time favorite and Jack London is absolutely the best choice of mine whenever I need another world to get lost. Haha!
Five stars for White Fang - a highly recommended novel.
This novel has definitely become my all-time favorite and Jack London is absolutely the best choice of mine whenever I need another world to get lost. Haha!
Five stars for White Fang - a highly recommended novel.
November 16, 2016
If I'd known ahead of time how many throats would be ripped out in the course of these stories, I might not have picked these as lunchtime audiobooks.
In both The Call of the Wild and White Fang, I found Jack London's manner of seeing the world through a dog's or wolf's eyes intriguing. Often, it wasn't like he was seeing things as a human mind inside of a dog but rather seeing directly through the dog's eyes. Of course, there's no way to know if his interpretation is accurate. The canine perspective, particularly White Fang's, certainly seems colored by the author's race biases, a distinction that I doubt that a wolf or dog would make. But London's exploration wolf and dog behavior, of the factors that lead to loyalty within a dog, and his descriptions of dog sledding and of different dog fighting techniques are interesting enough that my eleven-year-old was willing to look past some inconsistencies with wolf behavior she spotted ("Mom, wolves don't really form packs that large unless they're banding together temporarily to bring down large prey. But then it wouldn't be considered a pack...").
In both The Call of the Wild and White Fang, I found Jack London's manner of seeing the world through a dog's or wolf's eyes intriguing. Often, it wasn't like he was seeing things as a human mind inside of a dog but rather seeing directly through the dog's eyes. Of course, there's no way to know if his interpretation is accurate. The canine perspective, particularly White Fang's, certainly seems colored by the author's race biases, a distinction that I doubt that a wolf or dog would make. But London's exploration wolf and dog behavior, of the factors that lead to loyalty within a dog, and his descriptions of dog sledding and of different dog fighting techniques are interesting enough that my eleven-year-old was willing to look past some inconsistencies with wolf behavior she spotted ("Mom, wolves don't really form packs that large unless they're banding together temporarily to bring down large prey. But then it wouldn't be considered a pack...").
December 12, 2012
Eh. It...wasn't as exciting as I thought it'd be. I mean, the stories were fairly cool and I did enjoy some aspects of them, but after getting 1/3 of the way through White Fang it started losing steam. Maybe these books are best to read one at a time? Call of the Wild was interesting enough, and Love of Life was a good gripping story. Yeah, probably better to read these one at a time.
Jack London's not a bad writer, though. He spares few details, and the way he portrays hierarchy and social order between dogs and wolves is pretty neat, too.
Jack London's not a bad writer, though. He spares few details, and the way he portrays hierarchy and social order between dogs and wolves is pretty neat, too.
February 21, 2011
Reading this as an adult was definitely a surprised experience - I didn't remember how dark it was. Jack London's style was fascinating - the only emotion in the book is what I brought to it. He kept the story from an animal's perspective - no emotion, just relating to it as far as how it affected Buck's survival and well-being. Great read. Now to re-read White Fang...
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