The Jungle Books

The story of the man-cub Mowgli who is raised by wolves in the Indian jungle, guided by his mentors Baloo the bear, Bagheera the black panther and the ancient python Kaa, and who confronts his arch-enemy Shere Khan the tiger, is one of the greatest literary myths ever created. Mowgli's adventures are juxtaposed with other animal stories set in the British Empire, ranging from the heroic battle of 'Rikki-tikki-tavi' and the Himalayan pastoral 'Purun Bhagat' to the drama of survival in 'The White Seal'. With The Jungle Books Rudyard Kipling drew on ancient beast fables, Buddhist philosophy and memories of his Anglo-Indian upbringing to create a rich, symbolic portrait of man and nature, and an eternal classic of childhood that has had a lasting impact on our imaginations.

Part of a series of new editions of Kipling's works in Penguin Classics, this volume contains a General Preface by Jan Montefiore and an introduction by Kaori Nagai discussing the many imperial, Indian and literary contexts of The Jungle Books.


About the Author
Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936) was the author of such classics as The Jungle Books, Kim, and Just So Stories, and was the first English writer to be awarded the Nobel Prize.

Kaori Nagai (editor/introducer) is a Lecturer in Victorian Literature at the University of Kent and author of Empire of Analogies (2006) and Imperial Beast Fables (2020).

Jan Montefiore (series editor) is a professor of twentieth-century English literature at the University of Kent and the author of numerous books in literary studies.