The Jungle Book - "Read a Classic Novel"
I had never read it (had seen the cartoon, though!)
Each of my (longer in the program) students are reading a book as part of their tutoring and one of them just finished "The Jungle Book" so it was sort of a "book on tape" for me.
The Jungle Book was written in 3rd person narration, but reads as if it was somebody who was very close to the action, or a folk story that might have been told by a parent to a child.
Set in the jungles of India, the book tells of a "man cub" (baby) who was taken from a village and hunted by a tiger - a tension that lasts throughout the book.
The story goes through Mowgli (the man-cub) being adopted into a wolf family. and all of his adventures in the jungle, with the bear Baloo and panther Bagheera - his closest friends and mentors. When Mowgli is supposed to be listening and learning, he's off on another adventure.
This book can be a sort of gospel story.
Mowgli is not like the animals in the jungle, but he is adopted into a wolf family. He is close to this family, but he is not really accepted into the larger community, even though he provides a service to them.
The enemy knows who Mowgli is and the enemy is determined to destroy him.
This enemy is death personified. He is the only one in the jungle to openly hunt and kill man. All cower when he comes...Except Mowgli
The enemy comes into the camp, and persuades the wolf pack to reject him, put him out and banish him.
In Mowgli's absence, the wolf pack suffers and they are hungry with the enemy leading them, and the enemy is still determined to hunt Mowgli.
There is a great battle and *good* wins, and the family is reunited.
The Verdict:
This book is plain enough for a middle-elementary student to read nearly independently and enjoy (the only problem words were the Indian names), and complex enough to be a good, light read for adults - but I think that it is best read together.
I will probably pick up the sequel (I never knew there was such a thing)
