Jack London’s masterpiece describing the timeless bonds between man, dog, and wilderness
Buck, half St. Bernard and half Scotch shepherd, is a bold-spirited dog living the good life in the Santa Clara Valley. But when a treacherous act of betrayal results in his kidnapping, he is stripped from his comfortable life on the California estate and thrust into the rugged terrain of the Yukon, where he is made a sled dog. Strong dogs are in high demand as the Klondike gold rush rages on, and Buck must battle the bitter cold and savage lawlessness of man and beast, striving to serve the man who shows him kindness. Can he rise to the challenges he faces and once again become the master of his realm?
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"Mmm, these books. I read them when I was in my middle school girl phase, which was comprised of me loving wolves and everything about them. I didn't appreciate these books as I should have, merely treating them as fun dog books. I reread them when I was older and loved them much more. The characters and the simple idea that London conveys through both: the wild lives in all of us, and animals deserve a right to live and feel that. The characters and the way London stylizes both of these works is flawless and an amazing read. I've reread Call of the Wild many times, and doubtless I will read it many more."
— Kaia (5 out of 5 stars)
“Offers a strong and powerful narration by John Lee…As he brings every word to life, his enunciation is clear and his tone impassioned. He transports listeners to the desolate North…Simply stunning. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award.”
— AudioFile“[A] marvelously graphic picture...Fierce, brutal, splashed with blood, and alive with the crack of whip and blow of club.”
— San Francisco Chronicle“In this classic…you’ll find profundity in its raw beauty and a new appreciation for canine independence.”
— Entertainment Weekly“Fervently American.”
— E. L. Doctorow, New York Times bestselling author“The Call of the Wild is the greatest dog story ever written and is at the same time a study of one of the most curious and profound motives that play hide-and-seek in the human soul.”
— Carl Sandburg, winner of Pulitzer Prizes for poetry and biography“No other popular writer of his time did any better writing than you will find in The Call of the Wild…Here, indeed, are all the elements of sound fiction.”
— H. L. Mencken, American journalist, satirist, and scholar" The most important book of my childhood. Very exciting story! "
— Marieka, 2/17/2014" I enjoyed White Fang more, but both were fantastic stories. "
— Lora, 2/15/2014" i love these little pocket books. a great couple of stories as well. quintessential London. "
— Sarah, 2/14/2014" ehh okay i guess not my thing "
— Angel, 2/6/2014" I read this when I was young, and have memories of loving both of the books. Probably one of my favorite books growing up. "
— James, 2/4/2014" A beloved classic. Mine was the hardcover Hamlyn illustrated in color version. "
— Joy, 1/29/2014" This book helps stoke the wildness within any young boy. It's about badass wolves and the spiritual connection to them, to fire, to history, etc. "
— TeacherMrLoria, 1/28/2014" Read this combo of his two classics on our trip to Alaska...made them even more interesting as we headed north. "
— Rob, 1/23/2014" Read this and White Fang back in the 1960's "
— Andy, 1/20/2014" I enjoyed these two books. They are fun reads, but not memorable or life-changing. "
— Cory, 1/20/2014Jack London (1876–1916) was an American author, journalist, and social activist. Before making a living at his writing, he spent time as an oyster pirate, a sailor, a cannery worker, a gold miner, and a journalist. He was a pioneer in the then-burgeoning world of commercial magazine fiction and was one of the first fiction writers to obtain worldwide celebrity and a large fortune from his fiction writing. He is best known for his novels The Call of the Wild and White Fang, both set 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 of the South Pacific in such stories as “The Pearls of Parlay” and “The Heathen.” He was a passionate advocate of unionization, socialism, and the rights of workers and wrote several powerful works dealing with these topics, including The Iron Heel, The People of the Abyss, and The War of the Classes.
John Lee is the winner of numerous Earphones Awards and the prestigious Audie Award for Best Narration. He has twice won acclaim as AudioFile’s Best Voice in Fiction & Classics. He also narrates video games, does voice-over work, and writes plays. He is an accomplished stage actor and has written and coproduced the feature films Breathing Hard and Forfeit. He played Alydon in the 1963–64 Doctor Who serial The Daleks.