White Fang (Scribner Illustrated Classic)
Even as a pup, he is different from his brothers: A large gray cub among a litter of red-haired puppies, with a quicker bite and heavier paw. When he leaves the protection of his snug cave, he and his mother are captured by the fire-making gods — man-animals who live in teepees, and who determine that the pup is half-dog, half-wolf, and name him White Fang. White Fang finds himself relentlessly tormented by the tribe’s domestic dogs, and quickly learns to surpass them in cunning and viciousness. His brutality is encouraged even further when he is sold to a sadistic man who takes advantage of the dog’s massive size and tremendous strength to pit him in to-the-death dog fights. White Fang is driven near mad, until a young man comes along who offers him kindness and friendship. But friendship is something White Fang doesn’t understand…yet.
Jack London’s adventure masterpiece is not only a vivid account of the Klondike gold rush and North American Indian life, it is an intriguing study of the effects of our environments in forming who we are. Caldecott winner Ed Young’s exquisite illustrations bristle with energy in their portrayal of an angry young wolf struggling with the loss of wild independence that is his birthright, but gaining a new freedom through a profound and unconditional love.
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Really good literature on a fascinating time in Western history,
This is the story of White Fang – 3/4 wolf and 1/4 dog. It tells of White Fangs parentage, his birth, his early days in the wild, his meeting with men and learning to live with them, of his meeting with white men and learning to live with them. Along the way, he learns some terribly hard lessons, and also learns some great joys as well.
I must say, now that I have finally taken the time to read this book, I clearly see why it is considered a classic! The story is very well-written, filled with action and adventure, and presents a strangely compelling world – the world of the Arctic Circle at the beginning of the 20th century. Now, this is no happy-happy book written for the more sensitive reader. Indeed, the story is filled with violence and conflict and death, much as the Yukon was back then.
I really found this book to be compelling reading, one that I could not put down. Indeed, one of the most interesting facts is how much this story is the mirror opposite of The Call of the Wild, in which a dog moves from the company of men to living in the wild. Anyway, if you want to read some really good literature on a fascinating time in Western history, then get this book. You won’t be disappointed!
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|Great Story,
This is a great story that I have read many times. It is one of those books that I fall back on when I need a comforting story to read.
It follows the life of one poor dog as he moves from one master to another, and even ends up as a fighting dog at one point. Its a bit like “Black Beauty” I guess seeing as it follows an animals life, but white fang is more of a story. White Fang is not just some docile horse but a real wild dog that has survived where others haven’t. A great read and a great story.
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|Adventure in the Wild,
As a boy I used to love books like this, about untamed nature and woodlore and woodcraft, but it has been many years since I’ve read them. I recently had the occasion to revisit this excellent novel, and found that it has aged quite well and is still a terrific read.
The story has to do with a wolf named White Fang, and begins before he was born, with his father and mother leading a pack in the dead of winter in the frozen Canadian wilderness. There is no game around and all are starving. They harass and harry a beleaguered dog-sled team over the course of several days, picking the dogs off one by one, then finally surrounding the one remaining man. He builds a ring of fire to protect himself from these ravenous wolves, but knows he soon must succumb to exhaustion. He notices the she-wolf, sitting patiently outside the ring, seemingly indifferent–except for the string of drool coming out of her mouth in anticipation of making a meal out of him.
That is the lesson here, in this story of White Fang. It is a savage world, a world in which you either kill or are killed, eat or are eaten. His first day out of the den he kills and eats a small bird, then in turn is almost eaten by a hawk. He observes a porcupine roll itself into a ball to defend itself against a lynx, then observes the lynx yowl in pain after foolishly getting stung. The lynx plays another prominent role. Trying to survive a typical lean winter, White Fang’s mother takes the desperate step of going to the absent lynx’s den to eat its offspring. The enraged lynx later comes to their den and attacks, but with the help of a growing White Fang, they defeat it. It also becomes a meal.
White Fang eventually gets taken in by men, first an Indian tribe where he is “tamed” with brutality, then by white traders who use him for their own base purposes. Through it all we see the cruel world in which he lives and feel his pain and hunger and anger. It is a well-plotted adventure carefully observed, and serves as a great reminder of how savage the untamed wilderness is, and that mankind is often only a bare step above it.
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