The Call of the Wild Paperback – April 4, 1903

The “Call of the Wild” by Jack London is a great book on a dogs perspective of their life. It was a great read, it is only about 110 pages. I finished the book in one day, actually a few hours. I highly recommend you read this book.

I read this book as a child when it was suggested to me by not only my family, but by my school. I’m not certain how old I was, but I’m certain that I wasn’t out of grade school. Of course, this was a different time when we found different priorities and I suppose my reading level was more important than my not finding the book I was reading to be full of sadness. Doesn’t most children love dogs and find animal abuse horrifying? I know that I certainly did, but once you start a book like this there’s no quitting it. So anyone who has not read this book and thinks it’s a good adventure book to give to a small child, I suggest you read it first. I was a tough kid, it was okay, just not what I expected as a child hoping for adventure.It is a good book though, good enough for me to want to put it in my reviews and even skim it again. The story is set during the Klondike gold rush when a big and beautiful pet is stolen from a ranch in California to be used as a sled dog.Buck’s life changes overnight from being pampered to being beaten by humans and bullied by other dogs. The temperature drops practically overnight, and Buck must learn to adapt to living in freezing conditions and snow with no shelter and very little food. He learns the pecking order fast, and learns that he doesn’t want to be submissive.When they reach their destination the dogs are starved and further abused, but Buck is fortunate and is saved by a kind man that he forms a new bond with. That was one of my favorite parts of the book.This is still a classic and good for young adults, but not for children imo.

I had always heard about The Call of the Wild and intended to read it much sooner. After watching PBS’s Great American Read, I was reminded of all the classics I have yet to read (and those I need to revisit).This was a hard one for me to rate and to review. There are so many different themes represented in the book: man and the natural world, competition, pride, suffering, respect, loyalty, friendship, perseverance, knowledge, and more!The story is told from the point of view of a good and kind dog named Buck. Buck’s life takes some drastic and (devastating) turns. He experiences pain (both physical and emotional) from both humans and other animals. But he doesn’t give up. He fights. Becomes stronger. And in doing so, becomes more in tune with the “wild animal” inside of him. And this is where Buck’s story culminates, with his full devotion and acceptance of the wild parts of his being, and subsequent return to nature.What exactly did London what the reader to glean from his writing? No one will ever really know except London himself, but in a lot of ways, I wondered if this wasn’t a clever way of telling the story of how all beings (even humans) can, if they are not careful, lose their grip on who they really are. How important it is to remain true to who we are deep inside. Our natural self. Not that we should venture off into the woods and live off the land, but rather we shouldn’t let the world around us shape us into a person we don’t feel comfortable (or happy) being.The prose is fairly effortless to read compared to some classics, so this would be well suited even for fairly young readers. BEWARE: If you are at all triggered by animal cruelty and violence, you may want to skip this over.Often the best and most lasting art leaves those who enjoy it with more questions than answers. This is surely one of those. A great pick for a book club discussion.

The book arrived in superb condition. Delivery was also quick!!! I will order from this seller again when needed.

I really enjoyed this audiobook. The narrator's delivery was easy to listen to, and he seemed to get into the story quite nicely. Now for the review: Jack London takes his Alaskan gold mining experience to create an awesome tale.Buck belonged to a judge in California, in the days of the Klondike gold rush in Alaska. Buck was a large dog, half St. Bernard and half German Shepherd. he was not one of the judge's "kennel dogs," nor was he one of the "house dogs." He walked with his master when he was outside, and hunted with the judge's sons. Buck was the king of his outside domain, but even though the judge treated him well, he did not know love.One day the judge's Chinese cook ran up a gambling debt, and when no one was looking, he took Buck to town on a rope leash and sold him to a Klondike sled dog broker. It was then Buck learned the law of the club and fang. To get Buck into submission, the broker beat him mercilessly with a club. Buck was later sold and took to Alaska to start the menial and hard life of a sled dog.London's writings are powerful and insightful. Buck goes from pet to work dog, from a life of relative ease to one of the harsh reaities of survival in one of the harshest environments of the world. Buck toughens up and survives, and rises to the top of the sled dog pack. Through a series of jobs where the dogs are nearly used up and destroyed, Buck is nearly killed by a family of idiots who buy them. He is saved by a man who shows him true love. Once his new master is lilled by Indians, Buck is free to join a wolf pack and becomes its leader. From beginning to end, this shows of survival of the fittest and the call of the wild on all dogs.For and animal lover like myself, there were many times where I was cringing at the treatment of the animals. Buck triumphs over harsh treatment, harsh weather, lack of food, and other dogs that would kill him.The call of the wild is a phrase that is part of American language even today. Great book.

Jack London cria uma impressionante história sobre a vida literalmente selvagem de homens e cães no cenário inóspito do Alasca, nos tempos da corrida pelo ouro. Sendo um aventureiro, provavelmente muitas de suas experiências pessoais dão suporte à narrativa. Seu estilo, simples e direto, facilita a entrada do leitor nesta incrível aventura e o prende até o final do livro. A história é contada pela perspectiva de um cão doméstico, Buck, acostumado a uma vida tranquila em um sítio na Califórnia, até ser sequestrado e levado às terras do Norte. Lá, ele se torna parte de uma matilha de cães puxadores de trenó. A duras penas, Buck vai percebendo a natureza boa ou má dos companheiros caninos, a lei do chicote e a crueldade dos homens, despidos de qualquer compaixão. No rigor do ambiente gelado o que resta a Buck é a luta corajosa por manter-se vivo. Assim, vai deixando aflorar seu instinto primitivo e primordial, anteriormente mascarado por um verniz de civilidade. O livro também pode ser lido como uma metáfora. Quando submetida a condições extremas, a fina divisória entre a civilização e a barbárie é rompida. Mas Buck ainda guarda uma ética rudimentar. Ele nunca perde a dignidade. Sua violência é pela sobrevivência, não é gratuita. No meio da traição, esperteza, ciúme, raiva e inveja, ainda há espaço para a amizade, gratidão, lealdade e amor.

Great sorry loved it

I loved the book when I read it about 8 years ago and so I decided to gift it to a friend who was beginning a new journey.

Un bellissimo libro d'avventura che esprime tutto il talento dello scrittore statunitense e il suo amore per la natura, anche nei suoi aspetti più duri e selvaggi.La storia del cane Buck inizia in California alla fine dell'Ottocento, figlio di un sanbernardo e di una femmina di pastore scozzese, vive nella villa del giudice Miller. Con l'inizio della "corsa dell'oro" nel Klondike, aumenta la richiesta di cani da slitta, unico mezzo possibile per percorrere quella freddissima parte settentrionale del continente americano e il povero Buck viene venduto dal losco giardiniere del suo padrone a un trafficante dai modi brutali... le dure condizioni dei cani da slitta sono descritte in modo molto realistico e commovente.

Todo ok.