Product Description
If you enjoy nonstop adventure and heroic exploits, then you are sure to love Tales of the North. This masterful compilation includes - in facsimile of the original turn-of-the-century magazines-the complete novels of White Fang, The Sea Wolf, The Call of the Wild, and Cruise of the Dazzler, plus fifteen short stories- all with original illustrations. This is an adventure you won't want to miss! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Book
My father had asked for this book and was pleased with getting it last year.

Wonderfully descriptive adventures
I bought this book new for under $5, shipping included. It is soft cover with some great black and white illustrations that really do add to the enjoyment of the book. The overall quality is good but not great. For someone who loves history and adventure stories like I do, I have been woefully late in coming to Jack London's work. All these stories I should have read in my youth but somehow missed them. How exciting to be reading them now. I absolutely love the the north country and the first person style of writing Jack London uses to carry us into his adventures. So wonderfully descriptive without ever becoming tedious. You will be enthralled.

Great, Great, Great, and Cheap!
I found this on the bargain table at a bookstore. This includes three GREAT Jack London novels, Call of the Wild, White Fang, and The Sea Wolf, along with 15 of his Alaskan wilderness short stories and Cruise of the Dazzler as well.This book can be found on amazon.com for less than a dollar most of the time so as far as bang for your buck you can't do better than picking up a copy of this book. ... Read more

Product Description
The book has no illustrations or index. Purchasers are entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: Tramps; Literary Criticism / American / General; ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

The Road
I was'nt aware of this book--It was a good quick read--I think London must have been one of Jack Kerouac's many inspirations for his famous "On The Road" some 50+ years later.

The Road
Good collection of stories from the road.London delivers.Don't expect Call of the Wild or White Fang, the subject is different.Mainly stories from life as a "hobo".

pictures from a wandering life
this is storie from a time as a wanderer. some of it is a interesting read, some of it not. all in all it's like images, and the reader doesn't get too involved. L has never been famous for writing from a biographical point of view, and it's not surprising. i was charmed by some of the scenes, but on the whole it was not such an interesting read

Impressing
I read this book when I was a teenager: it was a very old german copy, printed in gothic caractes: I can tell you it's hard to read an old gothic font if you are not used to it!
Yet I read the whole book very fast and with great pleasure. I still remember it as one of the best I ever read.
It is a wonderful, adventurous and very human tale of a different America. I think it has both literary qualities and social interest.
As for the "missing historical background", as one reader says, I do not think this is a "serious falling": the story gets even more fascinating being a bit "mysterious". If you are interested in learning more about Kelly's Army, go to a library ore use Google: this is not a school book!
And there IS an end: a quite sad one too, that makes you understand how London did not really fit in a "normal" life -- and in fact he ended up killing himself.
Read this book.

The Road
"The Road", by Jack London is one of his best books that I have read, it is written as though it is a dairy and it is not really written like a story. I bought a copy in Okland California at the Jack London museum. Its is about his travels and experiences during the late 1800s and early 1900s when he was a hobo on the railroad. In my opinion this book is one of Jack London's better lesser know books, I highly recommend it! ... Read more

Product Description
The Scarlet Plague is a futuristic novel by Jack London, set in San Francisco after an epidemic, the Red Death, has ravaged the planet. The main character, James Howard Smith, sees the diminished society and attempts to impart his knowledge to his grandsons, in order that they may restart a civilization. This book is an early post-apocalyptic novel, and will entrance not just science fiction aficionados but all readers alike. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

One of earliest examples of "modern" post-apocalyptic fiction
The Scarlet Plague might not be the absolute grand-daddy of apocalypse by plague stories (Mary Shelley's The Last Man was written 75 years earlier) but it's certainly one of the first, and it's obviously a base on which more recent authors have built their works. Published in 1912 by Jack London (of Sea Wolf, White Fang, and The Call of the Wild fame), The Scarlet Plague is the first example I know of of the elderly survivor telling the story of the apocalypse to those born after it.

In this case, the survivor is James Howard Smith, Professor of English at Berkeley. He is the last person alive who lived before the plague that killed almost everyone in the world, 60 years earlier. Now, he sits around a campfire with his grandsons, who he calls savages, and describes the events of the last days of the old world.

And the story he tells would be instantly recognizable to anyone who's read The Stand or similar books. The plague comes on without warning, and kills within an hour. People try to sequester themselves in their homes, but once one person is infected the disease ravages entire families. He specifically mentions governments covering up the reality of how dangerous the plague is, bodies piled in the streets, violence, murder and mayhem.

He flees San Francisco, meets up with a handful of other survivors, and then their descendants begin to form tribal groups known as the Chauffeurs, the Santa Rosans, the Sacrementos, the Palo Altos, and so on. Those descendants quickly revert back to what Smith refers to as the basest savagery. They wear skins, and carry bows and slings. They're superstitious, have no concept of numbers, and are constantly interrupting and playing tricks on their grandfather as he tells his story.

Overall, I enjoyed it very much. It's only about 100 pages or so, and it does sort of drag towards the end as he describes who married who in which tribe, but it's a pillar of the genre, and so anyone who's a fan should read it at least once.

It's out of copyright, so is freely available in any format you could want. I did the Librivox audio book version, and the quality of the recording was great.

very interesting post apocalyptic storyt
Grizzly bears around San Francisco`s derelict railways...nature is encroaching over the remains of american cities, while and old literature teacher discuss with his brutish grandsons, about what the world was like before the scarlet death exterminated most ofhuman beings, and their civilization.In this rare Jack London`s short novel, a strange and unknown virus killed most of people on earth. Nobody ever discovered where it came from, or how to stop it, before it was too late.

This book is recommended for anyone interested in post-apocalyptical literature. In my opinion,Jack London`s classics, like white fang, and the call of the wild are better, but anyway,this is a very good book.I liked the different depictions about the last days of civilization, and the author`sprose. I mean, the way Jack London writes.

It`s main flaw, is that it lacksanother story, beyond the narrator tale to his grandsons.

A nostalgic memory
The Scarlet Plague (Illustrated Edition) (Dodo Press)This is the book which first introduced me to "science fiction".It belonged to my father and I first read it in the late 1950's.I have read a great many "end of the world" books since then, but none has stuck in my mind quite so well as this.I know there are those critics who take issue with "sexism" and other issues, but given the historical climate of this book, I believe Mr. London hasmade a significant statement about humanity and survival that stands the test of the ages.

Ancestor of "Earth Abides" Somehow Even Bleaker Than "On the Beach"
The content of the book may seem to be a re-tread, but it is in fact one of the very first post-apocalyptic plague stories.It set the mold for later versions, such as George R. Stewart's "Earth Abides," Pat Frank's "Alas, Babylon," Nevil Shute's "On the Beach," and of course, Stephen King's "The Stand," amongst others.

First off in this book, the world as we know it is already gone.Out of billions, there are now only a few *hundred* people left on the planet - all scattered, all isolated ...all neo-lithic.There were not enough people left with the know-how to restart society and at the story's opening, there is only one man alive that even remembers the old world.

Furthermore, this book is not the product of an "All are created equal" mentality.No, this is a book that reflects the thinking of a society that sharply divided between nobles and peasants: the former were as unto the gods, while the latter were barely rabble, just mangy curs that needed stay in their cages ...or, be mercifully put out of their misery altogether.It is to the utter horror of the narrator that the debased, pig-like lowborn eventually take rule over the corpse of high society and make it as fetid as themselves.

Most of the book reflects the narrator's callous, maliciously aristocratic view of the world, both past and present.Every low-born in this book is detestable; every high-born is beautiful, desirable and ultimately, profaned and desecrated.The book's characterizations are the stark, black-and-white depictions of a deeply autocratic mindset.

The narrator is disturbingly aghast at the thought of "the servants taking over" the world with their "grubby little hands."Every depiction of a non-noble seems to include words like "savage," "stupid," and "animal" in them.For a wearied, forlorn teller of ended glory, there is a frightening amount of venom streaking through his glorious recall of things past.The narrator's narrow-minded adoration of the high-born (and their lofty pursuits) contrasts with his horror and overwhelming disgust over "the great unwashed."Disturbing is not quite the word for the narrator's view of things.

While far from PC myself, some years ago I took Stewart to task for his dehumanizing descriptions of the mentally challenged; London's book here makes Stewart seem a gleaming saint by contrast.I realize both are products of their times; I do not so much decry that such thoughts were common - only that they were unnecessary, even in a world such as that.

Secondly, I've noticed this book's tone is quite a bit different than Stewart's "Earth Abides," (its closest, to me, subsequent corollary).London's book takes an extremely dim view of human beings in general, an attitude that gives even a dedicated cynic like me some pause.

This book is nothing like the noble, stoic (and *egalitarian*) characterizations of Shute's "On the Beach" or Frank's "Alas, Babylon."There is no final embrace of family in the defiance of looming death; no, here the children are cast into the gutters upon first sign of infection.Women are not prized and valued as mothers of a new Eden here (a limited view, but quite representative of its time); no, here they are subjugated, degraded, and beaten with vigorous, even joyful savagery... they are purely victims of brutish man-beasts.

Nobody dies peacefully here - there is no dignity or nobility or self-sacrifice at any point throughout; no, all persons here are frenzied, heartless carnivores sprinting about in a cyclone of cruelty and depredation... or, their helpless victims.

This is a far more frightful end to civilization than even Stephen King's (much) later interpretation.There's not one shred of beauty or kindness in it from start to finish.It's pure survivalism, dog-eat-dog, and the worst of the worst here live to spread their malignant existence to the rest of the world.

I mean, even in Shute's "On the Beach," where by the book's end every single person on earth is *dead*, even with Shute there was some beauty, some love, something hopeful ...even at the end.With this book, however, although humanity ultimately survives, it feels far darker, bleaker, and much more hopeless than even Shute's depiction of total nuclear armageddon.

As for the book itself, I was glad to finally read it after all these years of hearing about it.It's been out of print for almost a hundred years from what I can tell, and all I could ever find was its far briefer form as a magazine article.

Again, it is representative of its era and its culture and for this, I am quite glad to add it to my collection.While it may sound strange to say this, it is perhaps the bleakest post-apocalyptic tale I've ever read, and I've read dozens.

As for approach to the content itself, Stewart's "Earth Abides" decidedly ignores the fall of civilization itself, focusing instead upon its slow decay amidst a resurgent nature; in contrast, London focuses upon the days of society's fall, glances briefly upon the intervening years, and leaves an acrimonious bounty of reproach upon the depleted present.

Shute's "On the Beach" was compellingly lovely in its dark depiction of humanity's last, silent gasp amidst the void.Frank's "Alas, Babylon" was the defiant cry of life in the midst of great death.Stewart's "Earth Abides" was a beautiful dirge, eloquently mourning the passing of a once-glorious world amidst an ever-decaying and greatly-diminished present.

...but, "The Scarlet Plague" reads like a spit of contemptuous bile onto the ashen ground of civilization's humbled remains.

For me personally, it's a mixed read; it's likely that my years of anticipation for this book (and frequent study of its numerous descendants) have colored the experience for me, so I don't know how objective I can really be here.I suspect I will have to re-read this a few times before I can find its "voice."I suppose I'm just surprised to read a post-apocalyptic tale with such bile; maybe that's an odd thing to say, but it's how I feel about this book.

The Way We Were
Sixty years after a plague killed billions of people, an old man tries to convey to his three grandchildren what the world was once like so long ago.

The cultured, civilized world of mass communication and technology abruptly gave way to a primitive, savage world of cruelty and barbarism. The survivors and their descendents now live like their stone-age forebears: wearing animal skins, hunting with bows and arrows and believing in superstition.

In describing the plague's onslaught, the old man tells his grandchildren of the chaos and degradation that wiped out civilization. Money became worthless, the streets of burning cities were littered with corpses, animals grew wild as mankind lost his supremacy over nature.

The three boys have a lot of trouble understanding the words "Granser" uses, due to their lack of education. (Even the word "education" is something the boys have never heard of.) Nevertheless, the old man does the best he can, in spite of the children's limited vocabulary.

It's interesting to compare "The Scarlet Plague", which was written in 1912, to the more widely-known "Earth Abides". Both books are set in the same place. They both contain that sense of nostalgia, where old men, left over from the "lost world" yearn for a past that was more attractive.

This could well be the blueprint for life-after-the-apocalypse stories. If this story hadn't been written, their would probably never have been such books as "Earth Abides", "The Day of the Triffids", "Empty World" or "The Stand." ... Read more

Product Description
This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Jack London's "The Sea Wolf"
I truly enjoyed this book. I wasn't sure if I would or not, since it was written a century ago, but, I did. I would recommend it for anyone who enjoys sea adventure stories.

The Sea Wolf
i have not read it yet but i think it will be very good because of the reviews that i read thank you for the best ones just thanks.

Solid adventure story.
It has been many years since I've read any Jack London and it was good to get back in the adventure story groove.He does paint a good visual in one's mind of the settings even with the 19th century language.The story moves along pretty well although some of the flowery romantic speech seem to drag for me.The conclusion was sufficiently satisfying and it is suitable reading for young readers.

Entertaining
Having a Kindle helps one to discover books which otherwise would certainly have been missed.This is one of them.

It's the tale of a rather bookish "gentleman" who is virtually press-ganged to work on a sailing ship.Through vicious hardship he is faced with the choice of survival (and in the process compromising his morality) or almost certain death.The main villain, if you will, is the Captain of the ship, who's physical strength and presence is overwhelming.

Some of the language is a little archaic, but the Kindle dictionary didn't let me down.

It's well worth the read.Get past the first ten pages, and you may find it hard to put down.

You will not be disappointed.
Great book! I had never read Jack London before but after visiting his burnt down estate in Northern California I became interested in his writing. This book is excellent, entertaining and fast paced. The kindle edition seems not to be missing any pages. Great Free Download. ... Read more

Product Description
Publisher: New York, The Macmillan CompanyPublication date: 1922Notes: This is an OCR reprint. There may be typos or missing text. There are no illustrations or indexes.When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free. You can also preview the book there. ... Read more

Product Description
In The Sea-Wolf, London's most gripping novel, Humphrey Van Weyden is rescued from the freezing waters of San Francisco Bay by a demonic sea captain and introduced to fates far worse that death. Through this story London recalls his own adventures on a sealing vessel at the age of seventeen. John Sutherland's notes include a history of pelagic seal hunting and an account of the many cinematic versions of this novel. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Wow, what a story and what a character!
So imagine taking the real world brutality that London's wolves or dogs face in his Youkon novels.Now add that survival of the fittest and the most banal might make right themes from nature and apply them to a seafaring novel.That combination makes this novel.

The main protagonist is the victim of a ferry shipwreck near San Fransico and is swept out to sea where he is picked up by Captain Wolf Larson's sealing vessel.Larson refuses to returm him or to let him board another nearby vessel heading into San Fransico and so he is forced to serve on the vessel.He is in every way the antithesis of the sealers: weak, educated, literary, and not accostomed to manual labor.Half the story is the growth of the protagonist into more of a "man" through his experiences.

The genius of this novel however is in the character Wolf Larson, the ship's captain.He is stronger, meaner, and smarter than any other man he has met.By his own might he rules the ship.He is also well read and self educated, and his literary knowledge bonds the two main characters together.Larson takes the essence of nature, where the strongest rule and dominate, and applies it to man.Man is a part of nature and therefor not subject to any higher laws.Larson intimidates, beats up, murders, and takes any other measures of strength necessary to rule his vessel.In the end, even when he is dying and needs the protagonist to have any hope of escape, he still tries to commit murder to his would-be saviours.Why?Just to prove he still can.Its a brilliant study of humanity and a dichotomy of beliefs in the very nature of humanity versus nature.

A must read for any fan of London, American literature, or just a very good read (like me).

An epic tale of the sea
Many consider The Sea-Wolf by Jack London to be among the best sea stories ever written. I found it a moving and epic tale. Not only did it achieve great popular and literary success, but it also was effectively realized in several cinematic versions (most recently as a TV mini-series). The story ranks in the great tradition of one of London's literary influences, Herman Melville, while I saw similarities to another story of a life changed by sea voyage, captured by Rudyard Kipling in Captains Courageous.

Drawing upon his experiences seal hunting in the North Pacific, London created a story with a lot of realism. He put himself and his contradictory nature into the two opposing characters, the captain Wolf Larsen, a ruthless and rugged individualist, the superman, and Humphrey van Weyden, a weak, but highly cultivated and virtuous gentleman. It is in the clash of these two forces that London gives vent to his innermost struggles: idealism versus materialism, conscience versus instinct, desire versus soul.

So he wasn't Lucifer afterall....
This is not a book that one easily forgets. True, you can read it as a simple adventure story of life on a turn-of-the-century seal-hunting schooner, but it is far more than this. It is essentially the story of Wolf Larson- and Wolf Larson is the entire mainstream of 19th and 20th century America in microcosm.

Larson is no simple brute. He is, rather, a complex brute. He is a master of men and a master of the seas- but that is ALL that he is. Larson is an intelligent, driven, ruthless master of industry (in this case, seal hunting.) He has succeeded through his own abilities, hard work, and talent- or so he would have you believe. Truth is, brutal backstabbing, deception, exploitation, and disregard for the law has played an equal measure in his rise and dominance. You see, Larson believes in the rule of the jungle. He believes in it so much that he is driven to prove that this is all there is to existence. He must always seek to degrade and destroy anyone who seeks to rise above this state. This is also why he must disregard the possibility of the existence of a human soul. Larson is an intelligent, hard-nosed materialist that simply cannot conceive of anything beyond a social Darwinist hell of survival of the fittest. And Wolf Larson must be the fittest of them all. As much as money means to Wolf, it is really power over other beings- men and animals that means the most to him. Without this power to sadistically degrade and dominate others, the money would have no meaning. Ultimately that explains why he has risen to command his own vessel at all costs- he is a control freak that MUST be in absolute, totalitarian command of his whole world. This is why he only mans his ship with the lowest, most bestial types of human being, and does everything in his power to make them worse- not unlike many modern corporations. This is also why the sudden presence of a higher sort of individual, with ideals that transcend mere survival and materialism are so totally threatening to him.

There are moments when one is almost tempted to sympathize with the Wolf as a champion of freedom- until you realize that in his sort of world his "freedom" means that everyone else must be a slave.

Ultimately, the Wolf meets the inevitable fate in a world ruled like the jungle. When he loses his sight and strength, the monsters that he has surrounded himself with turn on him. In the last measure there is nothing great about Larson after all, for in facing death he proves to be a petty, murdering, weakling that would rather take all those around him down with him. It seems that despite his grand pretensions, he was no Lucifer at all, but merely a sick, pathetic, sociopath incapable of making the leap into being truly human. ... Read more

Product Description
Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free.This is an OCR edition with typos.Excerpt from book:IllTHE STAMPEDE TO SQUAW CREEKTWO months after Smoke Bellew and Shorty went after moose for a grub-stake, they were back in the Elkhorn saloon at Dawson. The hunting was done, the meat hauled in and sold for two dollars and a half a pound, and between them they possessed three thousand dollars in gold dust and a good team of dogs. They had played in luck. Despite the fact that the gold-rush had driven the game a hundred miles or more into the mountains, they had within half that distance bagged four moose in a narrow canyon.The mystery of the strayed animals was no greater than the luck of their killers, for within the day four famished Indian families, reporting no game in three days' journey back, camped beside them. Meat was traded for starving dogs, and after a week of feeding Smoke and Shorty harnessed the animals and began freighting the meat to the eager Dawson market.The problem of the two men now was to turn their gold-dust into food. The current price for flour and beans was a dollar and a half a pound, but the difficulty was to find a seller. Dawson was in the throes of famine. Hundreds of men, with money but no food, had been compelled to leave the country. Manyhad gone down the river on the last water, and many more, with barely enough food to last, had walked the six hundred miles over the ice to Dyea.Smoke met Shorty in the warm saloon, and found the latter jubilant." Life ain't no punkins without whiskey an' sweet- enin'," was Shorty's greeting, as he pulled lumps of ice from his thawing mustache and flung them rattling onto the floor. " An' I sure just got eighteen pounds of that same sweetenin'. The geezer only charged three dollars a pound for it. What luck did you have?"" I, too, have not been idle," Smoke answered with pride. " I bo... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

The land is frozen; the action is smoking!
"Smoke Bellew," a group of short stories, was published in book form in 1912.It takes us to the sub-zero temperatures of the Klondike during the Alaskan gold-rush days of 1897 in more London scribed adventures supporting his belief in Darwin's theory:Survival of the Fittest.His hero is Smoke Bellew, nee Christopher, who -- much like London's intellectual but physically soft character Humphrey van Weyden from his 1909 "Sea Wolf" novel -- has to overcome huge challenges to stand on his feet and become a man to be reckoned with. His adversaries include ruthless prospectors, cheating gamblers, savage Indians, and Mother Nature at her unforgiving worst.On his side is fellow prospector Shorty, a precursor of Gabby Hayes.Because these are short stories, there are a number of loose ends throughout, but that detracted only a little from the overall book.A word of caution:As a result of the London copyright having expired, a number of publishers have their own version of this book on the market.Just make sure you buy a book with all twelve chapters and you will be okay.

Caution!
Great book but be aware - EasyRead Edition is not complete, it has only six stories out of twelve. Go for ISBN-10 142641983X for the full version.

interesting tales
some interesting stories here. L can be sly, descriptive, philosophical, straightforward, psychological..... he shows his talents in this book. most of all, L can be interesting. it is easy to read and understand his stories, so it is never a great disappointment when he delivers a story that's not so great. there is little greatness here, though

Book is Incomplete
Do not, under any circumstances, buy the Microsoft Ebook version of this book since it is incomplete.It contains only the first six chapters of the twelve chapter book.Check the file length.If it still says that it is only 193K long, they haven't fixed the problem yet.

about russian translation
As good as almost everything Jack London wrote and muchbetter. For any ages. Buy the book for your kids! ... Read more

Product Description
Jack London is a powerful witness to the politicalupheavals of the twentieth century and their terrifyingcontradictions. By turns impoverished laborer, renegade adventurer,war correspondent in Mexico, dedicated socialist, and writer ofenormous worldwide popularity, London dramatized his ideas aboutmodern societies through incidents of adventure, romance, and brutalviolence. "The Iron Heel," an astonishing political fantasy,anticipates a United States dominated by a capitalist police state andripped apart by urban warfare. Personal experiences lie behind "ThePeople of the Abyss," which vividly re-creates the slums of EastLondon, and the exhilarating camaraderie of hobo gangs roaming acrossAmerica in "The Road." "John Barleycorn" describes in harrowing termsLondon's struggles with alcoholism, while the intenselyautobiographical novel "Martin Eden" foreshadows his own death at ageforty. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Great American writing
This volume contains some of London's best writing, especially his fictional autobiography Martin Eden, which has given inspiration (and a little despair) to generations of amateur writers.This kind of concise, visceral prose would not be seen again until Hemingway came along in the 1920's.Although the times and conditions he writes about in these pages has changed, the concepts are still relevant today: the division between rich and poor is ever widening, a society based on competition favors that wealthy and connected, those with wealth and power are not always the most intelligent or enlightened people, the evils of drinking and a society who often measures manliness in one's ability to consume large ammounts of alcohol.The book is wonderfully bound, and a real bargin here on Amazon.com.A great addition to any personal library.

The Socialist's Jack London
This Library of America edition contains some of the less well known works of Jack London.Many are autobigraphical in nature, others fictional self-portraitures,and all written in a very socialist bent.In these writing, Jack London clearly has a bone to pick with American Capitalism and the upper classes, no doubt from personal grudges stemming from his background and his struggle for success.

In "The People of the Abyss", Jack London goes undercover in the Whitechapel district of London, more than a decade after Jack the Ripper, to vividly describe the social degredation of the inhabitants of the East End.One can see a heavy influence of H.G. Wells in this lengthy essay that seems to be illustrating in non-fictional narrative the degeneration of the worker into the Morlock as described in Well's "Time Machine".

"The Road"is a quite interesting autobiographical narrative of Jack's life as a Hobo, while "John Barleycorn" is a non-fictional account of London's life using alcohol as a theme. The depressing "Martin Eden" is a quasi-fictional autobiography of London's struggles to become a successfull writer.

"The Iron Heel" is a novel of the future set in Berkeley. It bears resemblance to theme and style of Edward Bellamy's "Looking Backward" and is filled with Socialist drivel a la Berkeley.The climax, set in Chicago during massive riots of the proletariat, is a reworking of scenes from Well's "War of the Worlds."

While there is much of historic interest in these works, which is what attracted me to them since I am a resident of the S.F. Bay where much of these works take place, unless you are a student of London, you will probably find much of the socialist commentary and biographical repition a bit tiresome. Moreover, Jack London can be extremely depressing.I would not advise, for example,reading "Martin Eden" when you are already a sour frame of mind ... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (90)

Another Great London Novel
London's novels are very philosophical.They are adventure stories with timeless moral themes.Some of the dialogue is a bit dated but I found this refreshing after reading "The Girl With the ...." Trilogy recently.After reading this try "The Iron Heel" also by Jack London.A book that has a brilliant description of socialism in it.

Decent nautical yarn, ambitious and overachieving.
As a psychological adventure novel, The Sea Wolf is the story of a writer, Humphrey Van Weyden shipwrecked in the ocean and rescued by the monstrous, brutal captain Wolf Larsen. Van Wedyen is soft, bookish character, and is astonished by the ugly strength and egoism of Larsen. Larsen forces Van Weyden to accompany the ship in its voyage across the ocean to hunt seals, and along the way he learns the toughness of nautical life, measured by the novel's repeated metaphors of callouses and scars on what were his soft, gentleman's hands, and what Larsen calls "standing on his own legs."

There is a weak romantic element tacked onto the story, when the crew rescues a from another shipwreck the poet Maud Brewster, a delicate aesthete and again a foil against Larsen's brutality. Brewster and Van Weyden fall in love in the course of their adventures but the book represses this until a last page kiss. Truly feeble.

But the central failing is that this novel would have been better with a more interesting or believable antagonist. Although reviewers gush about the intensity of the character portrayal of Wolf Larsen -- really, he is not that interesting. Overly talky and one-dimensional despite that, Larsen spouts philosophical cliches (as does Van Weyden) as if he's in a late-night drunken argument in a freshman dorm room. Predictable, and his routine of menacing and bullying doesn't really shock as much as the author thinks it does.

The novel's greatest strength is in the telling of the nautical adventure itself, the sailing of the schooner is wonderfully detailed and the descriptions of the techniques of seal-hunting quite interesting.

Great book and always has been
Read it in high school fifty some years ago, and now it's easier to read and buy, on amazon.com's bookstore.

The Sea Wolf
Absolutely loved this book!

Humphrey Van Weyden is a 35 year old bookish man who has never had to stand on his own two feet. He almost drowns when the boat he is on collides with another in the San Francisco Bay, but is soon rescued by the Ghost and its captain, Wolf Larsen.Wolf is a Darwinian philosopher of sorts who has taken survival of the fittest to the extreme with his raw, wolf-like savageness. And this savageness, OH YES THIS SAVAGENESS, makes The Sea Wolf one hell of a read!

Wolf exclaims "life was a ferment, a yeasty something which devoured life that it might live, and the living was merely successful piggishness. Why if there is anything in supply and demand, life is the cheapest thing in the world. There is only so much water, so much earth, so much air; but the life that is demanding to be born is limitless. Nature is a spendthrift. Look at the fish and their millions of eggs. For that matter, look at you and me. In our loins are the possibilities of millions of lives. Could we but find time and opportunity and utilize the last bit and every bit of the unborn life that is in us, we could become the fathers of nations and populate continents. Life? Bah! It has no value. Of cheap things it is the cheapest. Everywhere it goes begging. Nature spills it out with a lavish hand. Where there is room for one life, she sows a thousand lives, and its life eats life till the strongest and most piggish life is left."

Make no mistake that Wolf stays true to this philosophy.

Meanwhile, Hump learns to stand on his own two feet in two significant ways - one seemingly unintentional. He unexpectedly becomes an intellectual playmate of Wolf's, which sort of buys him time from Wolf's brutality. Also, he overcomes extreme physical obstacles while on the Ghost and while trying to escape.

During my elation while reading this book I became curious as to why it hadn't made it to the Novel 100 list by Daniel S. Burt or other similar lists. I was thinking 5 STARS! 5 STARs! The dialogue was wonderful and plentiful (in a good way). Wolf's character was amazing in a brutal and sordid way. I think most of us can relate to the fantasy of our primitive selves. Why not one of THE classics?

Well it seems that some of the works referred to in The Sea Wolf are anachronistic and the story itself is considered "patchy". Patchy as in melodramatic (But this was funny and interestingggg....), philosophic debate (INTERESTING!), travelogue (Soooo?), and love story (Yeah...the love story was a bit cheesy. A famous female author just happens to be the one who washes up for the bookish Hump????)

So, 4 stars because of the out of place references and all too convenient terms of the love story, but still, a thrilling read!

Blunt, forceful, un-cheesy book--weak ending
I was surprised to discover how excellent this book was.I found the first few pages rather cheesy, but very soon London's character of Wolf Larsen, a brutal and all-powerful sea captain, changed all that.I found him one of the most disturbing and forceful characters in all of literature--a sort of Hitleresque beast, yet created almost thirty years before anyone ever heard of Hitler.

Contrasted with Wolf Larsen is the main character, appropriately named Humphrey, a wimp extraordinaire--who falls prey to the power and control of Larsen, and slowly learns to find himself and his strength in Larsen's midst.However, for maybe the first thirty or forty pages of their interaction, the book seemed a bit over-philosophical, almost teenage in its grand discussion of "life" and "morality" and "humanity" and "death."But then, somehow, Jack London gripped me anyway, and his created world of ultra-violence and distorted masculinity, where physical strength and personal force are everything, became all-too-real, all-too-believable, and all-too-powerful.I couldn't put it down.Kudos to Jack London!

Unfortunately, though, the book peters out in the last few chapters.I don't want to give away the ending, but suffice to say that I felt London just couldn't sustain the story.Yes, intellectually the ending works, but emotionally it doesn't.It turned wooden--and false.I found myself bored at the end, and I hoped that London would somehow redeem it.Alas, he didn't.

But in spite of the cheesy ending the book is still unique--and a worthwhile read.I have trouble imagining anyone writing such a book today. ... Read more

Product Description
Raised in poverty as an illegitimate child, Jack London dropped out of school to support his mother, working in mind-deadening jobs that would foster a lifelong interest in socialism. Brilliant and self-taught, he haunted California's waterside bars, brawling with drunken sailors and learning about love from prostitutes. His lust for adventure took him from the beaches of Hawaii to the gold fields of Alaska, where he experienced firsthand the struggles for survival he would later immortalize in classics like White Fang and The Call of the Wild.

A hard-drinking womanizer with children to support, Jack London was no stranger to passion when he met and married Charmian Kittredge, the love of his life. Despite his adventurous past, London had never before met a woman like Charmian; she adored fornication and boxing, and willingly risked life and limb to sail and explore. She typed his manuscripts while he churned out novels, serving as his inspiration and his critic.

Lover, fighter, and onetime hobo, Jack London lived large and died before he was forty. This is a rare biography that proves the truth can be more fascinating--and a far greater adventure--than a fiction.
Amazon.com Review
Alex Kershaw plunges readers into the world of Jack London by using lotsof direct quotations and maintaining a fast-paced narrative--justright for dealing with an author who crammed as much action intohis brief, 40-year existence (1876-1916) as can be found in his classic adventurefiction The Call of the Wild. Kershaw does justice toLondon's ardent socialism and pioneering efforts to protect thenatural environment; his distasteful racism is acknowledged, butonly briefly. This heartfelt tribute aims to kindle ouradmiration for "the passion and energy with which [London] lived,and which still sustains his best prose." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (13)

What a Life
I've always loved to read Jack London, from "The Call of the Wild" to "On the Makaloa Mat" and many of the books and short stories in between.His stories always take you to another world, an adventure, and another incredible feat of survival.I've often wondered where these amazing stories came from and now I know, he lived them.

Alex Kershaw tells an amazing story of an even more amazing man.He leaves nothing out, the many strengths and human weaknesses bring us all a lot closer to one of the finest authors this country has ever produced. This is an excellent and fascinating read.I just loved this book.

Lively but not definitive
It would appear that others have read previous London biographies and that Kershaw's work doesn't tread any new ground. I will have to take the word of the many reviewers who have stated this. That said, since this is my first Jack London biography I will review it accordingly.

Alex Kershaw does a sufficient job of describing Jack London's early life of poverty, struggle and devotion to unleashing his creative vision. His exploits on the docks, pubs and back alleys of San Francisco are documented in lively, rough fashion. Jack's wanderlust and exploits to the North are likewise given adequate treatment as are his years as a "success." In fact, for the entirety of the book we are given a good overview of the many stages of Jack's brief but fascinating life; adventures, friendships, loves, fatherhood, etc. What's missing however, is a more intensive look at the man himself. Jack's alcoholic rages, absentee roll as a father, proto National Socialism, gluttony, mood wings, regrets, emotional exhaustion, depression and realization of mortality and many, many contradictions are given superficial treatment in the beginning and middle stages of the autobiography. It's almost as if Kershaw is willing to skim over many aspects of London's personality because Jack's genius as a writer overshadowed whatever shortcomings or riddles he possessed as a man. The problem is however, as any fan of London's work will tell you, Jack is the literature and the literature is Jack. Very few writers were able to inject themselves quite so thoroughly into their work as Jack London. His presence smothers every page of his work. It's not until the end that Kershaw begins to thoroughly explore Jack London's psyche. As Kershaw clearly points out, Jack associated his physical prowess with his creative drive. The two were linked. If the body was iron, the mind was steel. For the majority of Jack's young life his body was robust, his mind Nietzschean in its discipline and resolve. As he approached the age of forty however, a still-young Jack was beset by disease and the failure of the corporeal. His vitality and energy slowly gave way to impotence and lethargy (and increasingly an inwardly-directed rage). His spirit began to collapse. Indeed, even his financial and material landscape served as a metaphor. As his kingdom crumbled, so too did the king's life force slowly ebb away. Kershaw poignantly describes Jack's slow descent and it is here that the autobiography does good service to the memory of Jack London.

Jack London A Life will give first time biography readers a good overview of Jack London; the timeline is easy to follow and Kershaw, perhaps adopting Jack's invigorating, descriptive writing style, pens the biography in a fashion that London himself would have appreciated.

Yet another error in the book
In his brief treatment of London's last novel, "The Star Rover," Mr. Kershaw describes several of the "past lives" the main character narrates. He describes one as, "a wagon boy who is killed by Indians." (p. 258)

In fact, in this episode the boy is a victim of the rather infamous Mountain Meadows Massacre and he is murdered by the Mormons who perpetrated this treachery.

Kershaw's mistake is even more problematic when one remembers the history of the Mountain Meadows Massacre: that some of the Mormon attackers were disguised as Indians, and that the cover-up story concocted by the murders and later followed by Mormon historians blamed the entire event on the Indians.

The Mountain Meadows Massacre of 1857 is a fascinating bit of Western history in itself and also because of the intense amount of public relations spin the LDS church still devotes to white washing this piece of their dirty laundry. That London was even writing about the event in 1915 is rather remarkable...

Poor research?
I wonder how accurate the rest of the book is when the author, Mr. Kershaw, did not care to notice that Dawson City, the Klondike, and surrounding region are not in Alaska but well inside Canada. He makes these erroneous references often.

It sucked
It was so terrible, it made me want to kill myself ... Read more

Product Description
The book has no illustrations or index. Purchasers are entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: Working class; Young men; Authors; San Francisco (Calif.); Fiction / General; Fiction / Action ... Read more

Customer Reviews (50)

the real thing
This book affected me more than any book I've ever read except the Bible.I'm not an atheist, but in this book Jack London made it clear what life and existence would really be about if there was no God.He is the only author I've ever read, or person I've ever heard that was a real atheist and didn't try to hide himself from the implications of that belief.He doesn't paint a rosy picture and he doesn't try to keep from seeing the horrible truth of a universe without meaning; he looks directly at it.

Worst publication of London's best story
Please, do yourself a service and DO NOT buy this publication of Martin Eden. There are no quotation marks, no apostrophes, and double spaces after periods, and other weird punctuation errors.

Best Book I Have Ever Read
Everyone should read this book. I read it again every so often, and give my copy away to spread the joy.

MARTIN EDEN: Someone Ayn Rand Would Not Like
Jack London called MARTIN EDEN his greatest book. That's right: MARTIN EDEN, not THE CALL OF THE WILD or THE SEA-WOLF. He also said that THE PEOPLE OF THE ABYSS gave him the greatest satisfaction as an artist and THE IRON HEEL was his "gift to socialism."

Hm... that's not what we are taught in school, is it? Why has MATIN EDEN been so slow to emerge as a great American classic? There are two reason for this: one literary and the other historic.

When first confronted by the character of Martin Eden, most readers are overwhelmed by his mental and physical strength, by his monumental drive to succeed as a writer and in so doing capture the woman of his dreams: Ruth Morse. Martin's meteoric rise comes across as not only heroic but downright inhuman, something that could only happen in the wildest of novels. But therein lies the trap. It really isn't a piece of fiction. For all intents and purposes Martin Eden is Jack London and the wraith-like Ruth Morse is Mabel Applegarth, the young woman he loved and aspired to marry and mate with.

Contrary to popular opinion, the book is not the glorification of the individual but just the opposite: a warning of what can happen to the strongest of men when he foregoes societal consciousness. Martin's ultimate suicide is proof-positive that human beings are first and foremost societal creatures, that we need each other's love and affection in order to have complete and happy lives. In a word, Jack London and Ayn Rand would not have gotten along.

Then there's the historic angle to MATIN EDEN. Unlike his great predecessor Herman Melville, Jack London is never given much credit for spending his artistic capital. But oddly the facts of his life show just the opposite. We must remember that London was writing at a time when the"robber barons" reigned supreme and the American worker had no protection whatsoever. There was no forty-hour work week, no child-labor laws, no workmen's compensation, no pension plans, no social security, and no safe working conditions. American workers were cogs in the great machine called the factory system. And as a child Jack London was one of those very cogs. He therefore detested the injustice he saw everywhere, especiallythe way the rich exploited the poor. THE IRON HEEL, his brilliant and direct assault on capitalism, was justifiably dubbed "the first negative Utopia." But it was much more than that. It was a critique on the entire economic and social fabric of the day and was viciously and unfairly panned by the press. Nor did the criticism end there. London's next book - yes, you guessed it MARTIN EDEN - was panned too. London took his lumps and never wrote another great novel.

So how do I end all this? Perhaps on a personal note. In 1962 my father said to me, "You know, son, Jack London is not properly understood in the United States. To my mind MARTIN EDEN was his best effort and it might do you some good to read it." I took Dad's advice and did so. It blew me away. Then, at age forty, I said to myself: "I bet MARTIN EDEN does not pack the punch it had twenty-two years ago." I was wrong. It hit me stronger than before. Now, at age sixty-six, I plan to read it a third and final time. Only this time I know it was not disappoint. Of that I am certain. Just like the last two times it will spin its magic and make me a better human being.

All time Favorite
One of my favorite books of all time. London captures the paradoxical pursuit of human life and happiness with Eden's story. ... Read more

Product Description
While researching Jack London, biographer Daniel Dryer uncovered an amazing truth - that London's real life was just as rich and exciting as the stories and characters he created. Equally adept in writing as he was at thrill-seeking, London left school at age eleven to begin his lifelong courtship of adventure.He worked as a seal hunter, an oyster pirate, and a factory worker.And by the time of the Klondike gold rush, he was well on his way to becoming one of the world's most popular writers.This comprehensive biography takes the reader into the mind and life of this memorable author. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Jack London
London is my inspiration. From working for ten cents an hour at menial jobs, to the Crimean War, to becoming one of the greatest American authors, this book details his life. He literally learned his craft to keep from starving to death. The book is geared more toward young adults. It's a quick read and can be used to inspire the young to peruse his other works. L.W.

Great Book about a Sometimes Great Man
Jack London, the author of many stories such as "Call of the Wild" and "White Fang," was a very interesting man.This book tells the story of his life, from his rough childhood up to his death as a rich and famous man.I didn't always like Jack London as he was portrayed in this book--he spent some of his life as a drifter, stealing rides on trains and begging for money on the streets.He was also not a very good father to his two daughters.I have to admit, though, that his life was terribly interesting.He traveled a great deal, all around the world both when he was young and as he grew older.It was fascinating to see where he got the ideas for his stories--most of them were based on experiences he actually had.Jack London was admirable in that he always knew he wanted to be a writer, and he dind't let anything stand in his way.He achieved his goal through hard work and dedication, despite all obstacles he had to overcome.

I liked that this book was a wealth of information, containing a lot of details about London's thoughts and feelings at certain times in his life, gathered from journals, letters and from people who knew him.I felt like the book gave a well-rounded description of his life.

Okay
It was okay, but i found it a bit boring at times. I would recomen it to those who like his books, but those who don't, i don't see why you would care!

Jack London: a biography by Daniel Dyer
This book was a great book and I would suggest that anyone out there who likes Jack London books read this biography of him!Jack is a great person to write this on, he is a courageous hard worker and a family man, but his own family keeps moving while Jack is out on business trips. The author did a fantastic job on making details so you could actually picture exactly what it was he was tlaking about!This book is also very unique, but probably because it was the first biography I have ever read, but it was a great one.The author used a lot of strange words that I did not understand, but that is why he put a glossary in the back of the book.That was very useful.The author used several metaphors and similes, and acted a little sarcastic at times.I really, really enjoyed how this book was published and how the author decided to write it!I think everybody should read this biography, especially if you are a fan of Jack London's work!

Dyer is an Angel!
I found this book at a book fair just two days before my paper on Jack London was due.This book saved me. It is very informative, well written and easy to understand.My paper turned out and was even handed in ontime.Yeah! ... Read more

Product Description
Jack London's most read short story of a man and a dog and their struggle to survive against nature's indifference. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great, but a collection may be better
"To Build a Fire" is one of the greatest short stories ever and perhaps Jack London's masterpiece. A consummate naturalist work, it is a superb example of realism, almost painstakingly portraying what it is like to be in the bitterly cold Yukon without adequate provisions. This alone would lend significant historical value, an intriguing look at America's last frontier, but the story is of course far more than this. Its genius is its simplicity; London manages to put a world of significance into a short work with very little conventional action. The story itself is absorbing; suspense mounts and mounts, and London has the trick of making us always feel that something ultra exciting is happening or about to happen. His prose is also top-notch - restrained yet lyrical. What makes the story great above all, though, is its plethora of important themes:human hubris, nature's immensity, humanity vs. nature, etc. Naturalism normally shows how environment shapes people, sometimes almost fatalistically, but London vividly shows that we are always in control of our fate. Nature may seem unsympathetic or unforgiving but is actually neutral and certainly not malicious; it is a blank canvas on which we paint our lives - sometimes to our detriment. One could argue that the story's real message boils down to the famous Boy Scout motto:"Be Prepared." It unforgettably shows how this is far easier said than done. An excellent work all around, "To Build" is essential for anyone interested in London, American literature, or the time and place - nay, for anyone at all interested in short stories. It is worth reading alone, but the fact that it is in virtually every London collection plus many others makes a standalone hard to justify. The important thing at any rate is to read it in some form. ... Read more

Product Description
White Fang is one of Jack London's most well known works and is widely considered to be his masterpiece. This is a new edition of London's timeless classic. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (165)

curtisk@wms
I recommend White Fang for anyone age 10 or above.The book is a symbolic piece of art.It shows that if you always stay strong and never have fear, you can make it through anything.This book is a great book for people who like the wilderness and is a testament to survival and endurance.

The book starts in the wild north of North America during the time of the first meetings between white colonists and the Native Americans of the West.The climate is very cold and deadly at the beginning of the book, but it soon becomes springtime.The story is always set in the wilderness.

The plot of the story is that a cub is born to an alpha wolf father and a half-wolf half-dog mother.He grows and learns the way of the wolf without his father because his father was defeated by a savage lynx.One day when the cub was stalking and hunting for food in a foolish and playful manner, he stumbled upon a river.For the first time ever, the cub met man, the Indians.The Indians quickly overwhelmed the cub.With the cub's wailing and crying, he attracted his mother who was full of wisdom.She knew that she could not save the cub or herself, so she surrendered to the tribe.The tribe then named the cub White Fang, and the legend was born.Soon the Indian who owned White Fang and his mother sold her to another tribe because of his debts.White Fang had to learn the rough lone way of the wolf.

The conflict in the book is nature vs. man and nature vs. nature.White Fang has to learn to deal with and put up with man and to work together with them.White Fang must also learn how to obey and understand the rough ways of the wild north.To do this, he must fight and endure the rough conditions of Mother Nature.He must also learn how to fight and to stand up for himself against many wild and savage creatures fighting to do the same thing.

At the resolution of the book, White Fang is taken in by a loving family from California.When be is "bought" by some thugs to dog fight, what will happen to White Fang?Maybe you should read the book!

Awesome Book!
This book was just right. It's a great story about a dog who goes owner to owner to owner. Each owner tells him to do something different.

The first owner he had told him to dogsled. He was a good dogsleder until, one day, he escaped from the owner. He was now in the wild. He left because he met a girl-wolf. They had children and they were happy. Soon they found an indian camp and the indian's gave them names and that's how White Fang got his name.

His next owner was a very mean owner. He made White Fang do dog fights with other dogs. Even though he won every time, he was injured every time. One time, there was a new dog in town. He beat White Fang in seconds. A guy in the crowd brought White Fang from the owner and he tought White Fang to not attack everyone.

This book is a great family book. If you like dogs, you will like this. It shows how White Fang changes after every new owner he has. So go get this book at a library or a book store.

Leaving the Wild
Jack London intended for "White Fang" to read as a companion piece to his wildly successful novel, "The Call of the Wild," yet he also intended that the two stories be opposites of each other.While "The Call of the Wild" was about a civilized dog becoming wild, "White Fang" would be about a wild dog becoming civilized.While just as poetic and unique as "The Call of the Wild,""White Fang" definitely reads as the lesser of the two.

The story begins with a wild wolf pack following a sled team of dogs and their two men, the hungry wolves patiently picking off one dog after another until they can pick off the men as well.The story then moves to the courtship between two wolves and the eventual birth of the gray cub who will become White Fang.White Fang and his mother, who used to be a somewhat civilized dog, are retaken by the Indian tribe that she used to belong to, and White Fang gets his first taste of life with humans.As a wolf, he is different than the other dogs and is mistreated by them.He leads a relatively happy and comfortable life until he is sold to the cowardly beast, Beauty Smith, who trains White Fang to be a fighter.His redemption is assured when he is rescued during a gruesome fight by Weedon Scott and his fortunes change for the better.

"White Fang" is a uniquely told story, given mainly from the perspective of its title character.London's writing is descriptive and poetic, but sometimes too repetitive as if he could not think of another way to describe a character or situation.The tale drags at some points, not moving as quickly as "The Call of the Wild," but is still a relatively fast-paced and enjoyable read."White Fang" is definitely not a children's story just because it is a "dog" story.Its content and themes are marked by a darkness that makes it much more appropriate for older readers.In fact, labeling London's works as children's stories has done them a great disservice.

White Fang
"White Fang" By Jack London

The story is really well written and relates a lot to the readers even though it's from the perspective of White Fang, a wolf who is thrown into different kinds of human surroundings. I enjoyed how the wild, especially through White Fang, had more order and peace than his life with the humans who had developed their own kind of cruel wild in the dog fights and the busy city streets. "The men outside shouted and applauded, while Beauty Smith, in an ecstasy of delight, gloated over the ripping and mangling performed by White Fang." This wild seems more scary and crueler than the frontier where it was eat or be eaten, live or die. That was the way of things but no creature took joy in watching as others beat and killed one another for no sensible reason.

One of the things that I really wished the story would have done is completed or ended the relationship of White Fang with his mother. Although we learn that after she is taken away and has another litter of puppies she can longer recognize or realize that White Fang was her own pup, I still feel that this relationship lacked closure. If there was another instance, for example right before White Fang left with Weedon Scott back to his family, that White Fang at least saw his mother, alive or dead, at least that part of his life would have had a more final ending.

Set in the wild of the frontier and the wild created by mankind, White Fang feels like it is a story that anyone can relate to, as it expresses the feelings and inner turmoil that one goes through as they fight against their natural instinct and desire for acceptance but also for survival. It's also a great story about the discovery of love and kindness in a world that had always shunned White Fang. Through Weedon Scott we find the hope and care that lay dormant in White Fang himself, maybe expressing that within everyone, regardless of their heritage and past, is capable of loving and caring for another.


~Natalie Dickson

eye opening
when i was in third grade - back in 1993 - i bought my first book with my own money at a school book fair.... the author was Jack London and yes being a kid i bought it for the cover... but i DID read it and i fell in love with the whole Alaska/history/dogsledding/gold rush plot. i bought other books by Jack London but Whitefang and Call of the Wild stood out among them.

At the time when i read them i was a kid(a girl!) raised on PBS and Disney movies..... these books were a cold splash of much needed reality on the way nature REALLY works: Something everyone needs to learn at some point before it's too late. I still have my battered old copies of these books and they are waiting for the day when my two sons are old enough and ready to read them.

They are short, easy to read, easy to understand, and they still have an amazing plot. nothing today compares to these "to the point" books. there is no drowning in detail or wading through boring dialogue. its non-stop action from beginning to end. ... Read more

Product Description
Jack London (1876-1916)[1][2][3][4] was an American author who wrote "The Call of the Wild" and other books. This collection includes many of his best known tales. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Do You Like Jack London?
Well, if you do, then get the damn book. If you don't, then why are torturing yourself looking at this page you flippin' weirdo! If you don't know who Jack London is, but you are trying to reconnect with your grandaddy, then yeah, get this if it's cheap. The stories are absolutely twisted in a 1920s kind of way.

A good dose of Jack London
If you like Jack London and want a good dose of his many works, this is it.

Not Just Wolf Stories
The Best Short Stories of Jack London
As I enter my second childhood, I am re-reading my favorites from my first childhood. Right now I have a shelf of books checked out from the Library: Robert Louis Stevenson, Jules Verne, Edgar Allen Poe and Jack London. London could write about watching paint dry and make it interesting. His reporter's eye missed nothing; he had a gift of observation and recording life. From his oystering days in San Francisco, to gold panning in the Klondike, to the South Seas, he was a masterful writer. Occasionally his socialist moralizing becomes tedious, as in "People of The Abyss", but for plain exposition he has few equals.
London was one of those fortunate writers who achieved fame and considerable wealth in his lifetime, which ended at the age of forty.
This collection contains some of the best of his short stories."The Story of Keesh," "The League of the Old Men," and "To Build A Fire" among them.
After reading the latter, I know I'm not going out in the woods without a down sleeping bag, propane stove, and GPS.

Some seminal tales from a master storyteller...
For all their moods of isolation, Jack London crafted some soulful stories filled with a kind of humanity that is outside of conventional terms. All of these stories are worth delving into, often more than once even, but the opener 'To Build a Fire' packs a whallop to the gut that has never left me. The narrator's struggle to keep warm, originally one of pride and daring that slowly is reduced to one of futility says all that needs to be evoked about the cold, merciless disposition of Mother Nature towards a sole human being struggling to overcome, but if you are a glass half-full person, as I have known to be on occasion, you just might find the beauty an' enormity of the world around you in even such a tragedy. I am no socialist or existentialist (in fact I'm a Christian) but I find much of worth in Jack London's writings. This is a good place to start.

Excellent Writing.
Occasionally a writer creates a story that is both horrible and wonderful; TO BUILD A FIRE is one of these stories. Reading it I thought of some negative criticism I had recently read about London's writing. I think the critic is full of it. TO BUILD A FIRE and much of London's writing is high octane, powerful stuff. ... Read more

Product Description
Four of Jack London's best short stories are included. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

A Classic book review
In the book, The Call of the Wild and other stories, a dog name Buck is forced to leave his home in Santa Clara Valley, California after he is sold to two men that are going up north for the gold rush. They are headed to the region of Klondike Canada and once they get there Buck soon realizes that it is a very uncivilized place compared to his home. Buck competes with the rest of the sled dogs for head dog and it becomes a very violent contest in which Buck wins.After a while, Buck and the rest of the sled dogs become very weak after the long and treacherous journey. Buck is sold to an experienced gold hunter named John Thornton and they build a great relationship.After John Thornton dies Buck is forced to survive on his own and it is truly a Call of the Wild.

I enjoyed the book Call of the Wild because it was a great adventure story and a story that I think people of all ages would enjoy.I also liked how the author Jack London depicted the relationship between dog and man.He described how Buck felt towards all of his owners and how he learned that humans were only superior to him if they had one thing, a weapon.London went into more detail about Buck and John Thornton's relationship by describing how they were the best of friends.He showed that Buck was so obedient towards John that he would jump off a cliff if he were told to do so.

London did a great job of using imagery to enhance the book.I believe the plot of the book itself is what makes it a classic but the imagery and diction London chooses to use makes it just more interesting than it already is.I really think people of all ages would enjoy reading this book and even if you aren't into the wilderness type of book I think you will still enjoy the story.

The strong and whole hearted dog
The cold Alaskan air could burn anybody's skin and heart, but not this wolf named Buck. He showed he had heart in everything that he did. One of the many things Buck did during his three thousand miles was earning ownership from all the dogs on the team and from all of the men and women who owned him. He showed courage by pulling twenty five-pound sacks of flour for one hundred yards all by himself. This book is a good one to read if you love adventure, excitement and danger. I would recommend this book to anybody, but mostly the younger children because of its many fun adventures.

Really thrilling, but not quite a five
This review is by a family of three kids. Our mom read this book aloud to us. Here are our opinions:
Anne (12): I think this was a really moving book, but some of the writer's opinions, I didn't quite agree with. Jack London says that we are shaped by our society, but I believe that we can change ourselves, because we have free will.
Michelle (11): It was a great book, but I didn't like the middle portion, because White Fang was all hatred, killing all the dogs he met.
John (9): The best part was when White Fang was sitting at the shore as boats came up, waiting to kill all the dogs. I think White Fang was good and bad. He would be a good guard dog. But he was bad because he tried to kill. He never let any dog retreat to save themselves.
Mom: This was really a good book, but I recommend it as a read aloud. The reading level is way above my kids heads, but they understood it in context as a read aloud. There are some very ferocious parts that I skipped as I read, because I thought them too graphic. But the book did inspire us to discuss the idea that we are shaped by our surroundings, and that we have free will to make our way. But also, we shape other's lives by our own choices -- so we areresponsible before God to others.

White Fang Review
London's near epic tail of a wolf struggling to adapt to civilization is one marked by adventure, excitement and emotion.London flawlessly depicts the nature of wild beasts and the environment in which they live.
The storyline follows a young gray cub called White Fang, who is thrown into the midst of human culture against his will.The young cub develops into a dominant wolf and experiences confrontations beyond his vivid imagination.White Fang possesses unique and distinctive qualities for a wolf which is wonderfully detailed in the characters countless struggles.
This is truly a well-written book, with more than enough excitement to keep any apathetic reader intrigued.Although an interesting and insightful look at the nature of animals, the book's beginning can be considered a toil to accomplish and perhaps even tedious for some.
Fortunately, with the introduction of mankind, the story sweeps into action as White Fang strives to fuse with society, and the domesticated animals that come along with it.White Fang's Possession changes multiple times during the novel, keeping readers enthused and captivated.Be advised however, the exhilaration reaches a climax only halfway into the book, and never achieves the high level of excitement at any point afterward.
Despite the less absorbing material in the first and last parts of the book, Jack London's timeless account of a ferocious wolf molded by the fingers of civilization is well worth the read.The emotional attachment one attains from reading the pages of White Fang is more than enough to engage readers of all types.Don't miss out on this book.

Readable classic for everyone
This is one of the first great books I read. I started on White Fang, and have read it twice more since then.People with even a passing interest in wildlife will find themselves drawn into this story, as it takes youthrough the life of a wolf from survival in the wild to dogfights todomestication. ... Read more

Product Description

In 1902, Jack London purchased some secondhand clothes, rented a room in the East End, and set out to discover how the London poor lived. His research makes shocking reading. Moving through the slums as one of the poor; eating, drinking, and socializing with the underclass; lining up to get into a flophouse, London was scandalized and brutalized by the experience of living rough in Britain’s capital. His clear-eyed reflections on the iniquities of class are a shaming testament to the persistence of social inequality in modern times.

Customer Reviews (8)

The People of the Abyss
What Jacob Riis did for New York City with his photos of tenements, Jack London did for London with his book, The People of the Abyss.The abyss that he referred to was the squalid East End of London, where the poorest of the poor lived and died.

All of the horrors are there, described not by a dispassionate historian keeping a professional distance in his reporting, but in eyewitness accounts of and interviews with people living in appalling conditions.

What I found most horrifying about this book is that so many things haven't changed since it was written at the turn of the last century.His descriptions of homeless people forced by the police to literally walk all night due to a law which forbade sleeping in public places brought to mind the sweeps done in our own cities, forcing the homeless off the streets and out of our sight.

Healthcare was an issue then just as it is now.Families were forced into poverty and sometimes starvation when the husband, the main breadwinner, was injured, became ill or died.The majority of bankruptcies in our own time are caused by overwhelming medical bills.

More than a century ago when this book was written, when a man was out of work due to illness or injury, his wife was unable to adequately support the family because the only jobs open to her paid too little.Sadly, in our own time, women are still not able to adequately provide for their families on their own because they are paid, on average, 70 cents for every dollar a man earns doing the same job.A statistic that should outrage everyone (but strangely doesn't) is that post-divorce, children slide down the economic scale, sometimes into poverty thanks to their mothers' inability to earn a living comparable to their fathers who actually ascend the economic ladder post-divorce due their higher earning power.

The cost of housing, rents equal to half their income, brings to mind the mortgage crisis we are suffering today.As the cost of housing during the last real estate bubble, reached stratospheric levels, families were forced to pay more and more of their income for housing, leaving little to actually live on.All it takes is a job loss or catastrophic illness for them to find themselves on the street as the banks foreclose on their homes.Their counterparts a century ago faced a similar fate for the same reasons.Job loss or illness resulted in the loss of the tiny rooms that they rented.

Yet for all the similarities, there are important differences.We have laws governing the workplace and a social safety net that prevents the worst of the gruesome results of illness and unemployment described in this book.Laws about workplace safety and working hours prevent employers from exploiting their workers.Unemployment insurance replaces a portion of lost wages. Food stamps and free or reduced cost meals in schools stave off starvation.

We have come a long way since 1902.After reading this book, I realized that we still have a long way to go.

There is a numberless starving army at all the gates of life (H. Longfellow)
Jack London's social document written in 1902 about the slum of London's East End paints no less than hell, `a huge killing machine': an illiterate scrambling mass of human beings living in the most squalid conditions, inhaling air saturated with sulfuric acid.
The fact, that there were `more people than houses', was fully exploited by house-sweaters.
The fact that there were `more men than work' was ruthlessly used by employers to pay starvation wages. Moreover the working conditions were abominable; every year 1 out of 1400 workers were killed, 1 out of 2500 were totally and 1 out of 9 temporary disabled.
55 % of the children died before the age of 5. The average lifetime was 30 years.
The renowned economist Pigou estimated that 71 % of the population of London lived on the brink of starvation.

In the innermost centre of Christian civilization, in the heart of the wealthiest and most powerful empire in the world, cynical moral indecency was the standard. The church goers remained callous before the permanent hunger wail and the slaughter of the innocents: `It's their own fault'. More, the `soul snatchers' promised paradise after life.

The situation in London reflected the global situation in England, which was perhaps worse, because people continued to migrate in the city.

If Jack London's book is a dramatic plea for more humanity on behalf of the powerful, his solution (`better management') is more than naive. What the starving poor (the vast majority of the population) needed was democracy (one man, one vote) in order to grab power themselves.

This book is unfortunately still topical, because, in a certain sense, the social contrasts inside London at the beginning of the 20th century reflect our North/South division.

Not to be missed.

One of London's Best
London's expose of the underbelly of England's capital in the early years of the twentieth century still packs a punch even though, both in method and some content, it has considerably dated.

For London, the 'vast shambles' of the 'abyss' is an economic pit of despair, one into which 'pours a flood of vigorous strong life that not only does not renew itself, but perishes by the the third generation'. The city is a large maw into which tumble down the exploited millions, who eke out their lives in misery, dumb desperation and filth. At a time when the British Empire was at its height, and missionaries were traditionally sent to 'save' those doomed souls overseas, the impact of this book was great and assured London his reputation.

As investigative novelist with a socialist conscience, London took Dickens' earlier, famous pity married with concern for the poor to the next logical step, by actually spending time in the 'underworld of London with an attitude of mind ... like that of an explorer' in the summer of 1902. 'The People of the Abyss' is an account of those months and weeks, supplemented with official statistics and reports. Through his time he posed as an American seaman down on his luck, and never condescended to those he encountered. London's sojurn with those at `the bottom' was not without a safety net however; he regularly took funds sewn into his clothes, and was happy to return to a shave and a bath when he was morally and physically exhausted.

His book interposes personal findings and offical data to construct an effective condemnation of the early Edwardian metropolis. The first half of his book has more of the sense of adventure and daring, the `exploring' he describes, which is subtly changed by the degree of proselytising which follows. Despite the succeeding pages of court report extracts and economic league tables (or perhaps because of them) the best sections of the book are those which spring from the author's direct anger over injustices. Author London, as he makes clear, has seen both sides of the tracks already in the States, and finds the comparisons odious. His impressions of Britain's underbelly are written with an outrage hard to find elsewhere in literature at the time.

Occasionally a reader senses that reality has been sharpened to make a point. For instance when London claims to have encountered a VC decorated soldier at the end of his tether (a neat but, to modern eyes, somewhat contrived touch). When he claims detailed knowledge of tortured lives - which surely must have been privileged information - one suspects that characters and types have been melded and worked on by the novelist, the salient facts polished and prepared (but not invented) with the aim of creating more of an impact.

The selection of statistics, which fill a few pages, have somewhat faded in impressiveness, and are probably available today elsewhere in more comprehensive extract for the interested historian. Similarly a lot of the social background can now be consulted in more detail in many sources.(Even London feels constrained to mention such major contemporary works as those produced by Mayhew.) What redeems any doubts and weaknesses is London's concern for his subject matter, the urgency for reform he communicates on almost every page - married to an immediacy of portraiture which only a novelists skills provide.

London's brand of socialism of course was a very personal one (and the idiocyncracies of his politics were attacked by comrades later in his career). It has to be said that there is no sign of his later racism in this book where one might expect to see signs, for instance in `The Ghetto' chapter. Marx never raises his head either, and Engels gets a bare mention. Instead of real revolution, the author ends rather lamely with an appeal for better 'management' of social systems, and a poem by Longfellow, rather than an over-significant quote from "Das Kapital' or such pertinent tracts. Such sentimentality can be a strength and a weakness, depending on your viewpoint and politics.

Some weaknesses aside, there are elements of the book which remain with one long after one has put it aside: the cruelty of the 'spike' for instance, or the irony of 'Coronation Day'; the scenes of degradation shown in 'A Glimpse of Inferno' and so on.

`People of the Abyss' remains one of London's best books, to be placed aside `White Fang', `The Sea Wolf' and `The Iron Heel', and can be confidently recommended to casual readers and students of this author alike.

Great book
I love this book, Jack London is quite possibly my favorite author, whether it's fiction or non-fiction.It was incredible to read a first-hand account of the struggle of the working class in england, even today this book sheds light on many issues such as poverty/labor laws...one of the coolest features of this book are the black and white photographs!

Shades of "The Jungle"
The Abyss was the poverty-stricken East End of London, England. The People were the unfortunate millions in the late 1800s and early 1900s who teetered on the edge, waiting for the all-too-common event--"the thing," as Jack called it--to send them careening over the edge from which there was virtually no hope of return. It could be loss of a job, an illness, a debilitating injury, or a family breadwinner's death. What followed was a slow descent into hell, a long, losing struggle for gainful employment, food, and shelter. The Abyss was a cesspool of misery, disease, crime, abject poverty, drunkenness, debauchery, and early death. According to Jack London (an American outsider), responsibility for it lay with the high and mighty managers of society, the rich politicians who largely wrote-off the district as an aberration created by those who inhabited it.

People of the Abyss is reminiscent of Upton Sinclair's classic about the Chicago meatpacking industry, written some decades later. I found it better written, more readable, and more convincing as an impetus for social change. Where Sinclair employed a fictional device to shock readers with deplorable working and living conditions around the stockyards, London's book is very much like a journalistic report, a book-length essay on his real-life, "undercover" experiences in the Abyss. Also, while both writers do more moralizing than is generally acceptable in today's literature, London does less of it than Sinclair does. Less exaggerating too.

The book has a lot of historical value, and makes an interesting read. It's fascinating to learn of the horrendous conditions suffered by millions of unfortunate Londoners a hundred years ago. The debate rages on as to whether present-day inner-city conditions have improved. --Christopher Bonn Jonnes, author of Wake Up Dead. ... Read more

Product Description
The book has no illustrations or index. Purchasers are entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: Dogs; Adventure stories; Juvenile Nonfiction / Drama; Juvenile Fiction / Animals / Dogs; ... Read more

Customer Reviews (358)

Not just for kids: robust, Conan-like over-the-top prose mythology (with dogs)
On the one hand these stories are absurd, investing sled dogs and their drivers with godlike qualities. The Alaskan wilderness is timeless, endless, mythic. The prose becomes hugely purple: for example, a scrap between a couple of dogs is treated as a titanic battle. But this very effusiveness is what lifts the stories from the banal - if you're prepared to run with the mythology, there's some wonderfully heroic stuff here in the vein of Conan, where men are real men, and dogs are personifications of wild primordial urges. Buck isn't a dog, he's all dogs, he's all dogs throughout history.He's also The Warrior, The Companion, The Leader, and The Hunter.

I'm not saying it's not rough out in those extreme conditions, or that there isn't a world of contrast between soft city living and harsh tundra survival, but London goes wonderfully over the top with this:
"...This first theft marked Buck as fit to survive in the hostile Northland environment. It marked his adaptability, his capacity to adjust himself to changing conditions, the lack of which would have meant swift and terrible death. It marked, further, the decay or going to pieces of his moral nature, a vain thing and a handicap in the ruthless struggle for existence. It was all well enough in the Southland, under the law of love and fellowship, to respect private property and personal feelings. But in the Northland, under the law of club and fang, whoso took such things into account was a fool, and insofar as he observed them he would fail to prosper..."

The book isn't entirely composed of this macho faux-philosophy (cf. `Starship Troopers' and the execrable `Gor' novels), but it underpins the stories. The final story, `That Spot' (this edition adds a couple of his later dog stories) is quite consciously a `tall' one, but, whether or not he took himself seriously, London plays the others with a straight bat. There is an admiration for an unforgiving landscape where weakness cannot be hidden, and while there is some arrogance in an author creating the urbanely regal writer of `Brown Wolf' (the other added story), it is a nice, hopefully self-deprecating moment when the down-to-earth, inarticulate frontiersman, challenged on a point of law by the complacent sophisticate,
"...carefully looked the poet up and down as though measuring the strength of his slenderness.
The Klondiker's face took on a contemptuous expression as he said finally, 'I reckon there's nothin' in sight to prevent me takin' the dog right here an' now.'..."
We can see a tension from London's own colourful life. On the one hand he's proud (and massively relieved) to have used his intelligence and writing skills to escape the stultifying drudgery of factory work, and the massive depredation and ordeal of prospecting in Alaska (his health appears to have been permanently damaged from his year nearly starving in the frozen North). On the other he's contemptuous of soft living, with Buck as his model only discovering his true noble self through escaping luxury and living a violent, harsh, independent, hard-working life.

The guy himself was an interesting personality, a bit of a celebrity in his time. Like Herman Melville and Robert Lewis Stevenson, some of the larger than life incidents are actually based on pretty extreme real life experiences. Is he just exaggerating characters and experiences to make a good yarn, or is there some real insight in describing how conditions shape morality? I think he's pushing things, at times almost comically, too far (I mean, would you really entitle a chapter `The Dominant Primordial Beast' without being mock heroic?) - but it adds sinew and poetry to what otherwise could merely be some animal stories. This, thank goodness, is far more Kipling than Disney (and whoever sucked all the potency out of `The Jungle Book' by combining those two should have been shot). Moreover the individual stories that make up the book both stand alone and integrate effectively. Actually, upon reflection, the whole movement of the book, introduction, progress and conclusion, is one of the most satisfying I've come across.

By the way, I probably never would have read this book except for a pretty bizarre coincidence. My wife had left a few `kids' books on our floor that she found in the back of a church cupboard or something - she was going to donate them to the Salvos. I wouldn't have even particularly noticed except the name `Jack London' leapt out at me because the night before I'd just read `The Death Artist', a short story by Alexander Jablokov. It opened with a vignette of a cold northern death, highlighting the depth of relationship between a tough as nails wilderness man and his dog - `Jack London'. Expecting something sentimentally `Lassie' flavoured, I flicked open this book by an author with that same name and read:
"...All that stirring of old instincts which at stated periods drives men out from the sounding cities to forest and plain to kill things by chemically propelled leaden pellets, the blood lust, the joy of the kill - all this was Buck's, only it was infinitely more intimate. He was ranging at the head of the pack, running the wild thing down, the living meat, to kill with his own teeth, and wash his muzzle to the eyes in warm blood.
There is an ecstasy that marks the summit of life, and beyond which life cannot rise. And such is the paradox of living, this ecstasy comes when one is most alive. This ecstasy, this forgetfulness of living, comes to the artist, caught up and out of himself in a sheet of flame; it comes to the soldier, war-mad on a stricken field and refusing quarter; and it came to Buck, leading the pack, sounding the old wolf cry, straining after the food that was alive and that fled swiftly before him through the moonlight. He was sounding the deeps of his nature that were deeper than he, going back into the womb of Time. He was mastered by the sheer surging of life, the tidal wave of being, the perfect joy of each muscle, joint and sinew in that it was everything that was not death, that it was aglow and rampant, expressing itself in movement, flying exultantly under the stars and over the face of dead matter that did not move..."
Kids' book? (Just glanced at a few amazon reviews - whoever thought this was aimed primarily at children? Even my edition is from the `illustrated junior library' - a misleading title. Sure the black and white depictions are in some sense childish, and people gushing about how `true' it is are not speaking from experience but imagination - but the myth is what's so engaging. Adults should be more aware of this: I'm not sure how ideal it is for kids to utterly embrace it). Whatever, it got me in and I'm glad to have come across the engaging and unique voice I found here. I'm sure the Jablokov's story was part homage, and I suspect he would be pleased to know that his reference put another reader onto London. Weird as that in the 24 hours that book was in my room I became aware of that name for the first time from another source.

My 8th Grade Class' Review
I liked this book because it was very descriptive and interesting. I would recommend that only children of twelve years and older read this book. It is filled with much violence, blood, gore and some brief language (in French). The author did a great job of making you not want to put it down. The main character, Buck, learns some valuable lessons that stay with him. You can relate to Buck because he makes his emotions so great. - M.C.

This was a short and sorrowful book. I liked it but I would not recommend it to readers under twelve, or if you are depressed. It's about a Saint Bernard cross-breed who is dognapped and forced to be a sled dog in Alaska. It is now his job to survive. I liked it because of its good description and historical accuracy. Don't read it if you dislike blood, fighting or dogs being abused. - D.J.

"The Call of the Wild" is very well written by the author, Jack London, who draws you into Buck's adventure. I enjoyed this book very much, not just because of Jack London's amazing writing, but because Buck (the dog) shows us human greed and how the love of a man could tear his world in half. Of course, Buck was created by London, but London gave Buck emotions and feelings any human can relate to. "The Call of the Wild" is a great book to relax and read. This book is highly recommended for 12 years of age and up because of violence and gore. - M.L.

This book is a great book. It's about lots of different dogs Buck (the main character) meets. There are many deaths and lots of love and death situations. Some dogs get killed in this book, because they don't have the will to go on. I liked this book a lot, except for the deaths. I'd recommend it for 13 years and over. - J.T.

literature book
The book is itself is ok, instructive and interesting and short. ideal for mu daughther, but unfortunately the book was not received in the best conditions; 5 pages were cut(tear)

Excellent book. The annotations are so cool!
It is a wonderful story about a particular dog's life and struggles. The annotations discuss the influences on London, including what dog he based Buck on. There are real pictures showing places where London travelled, and they pleasantly fill out what is already a great read.

Perfect!
I own a log home in the North Georgia mountains, which I named "Call of the Wild".We don't actually have wolves here, but we do have lots of other wild animals.I wanted a name that would relate to wolves, as I've always loved pictures of them and have many pictures of wolves in my home. I commissioned a local artist to paint a canvas portraying the essence of "Call of the Wild" and she paintd the picture from the new dust jacket.So, of course, I wanted the book to display near the painting.As I said, it's PERFECT!

Elaine ... Read more

Product Description
As a young man in the summer of 1897, Jack London joined the Klondike gold rush.From that seminal experience emerged these gripping, inimitable wilderness tales, which have endured as some of London’s best and most defining work. With remarkable insight and unflinching realism, London describes the punishing adversity that awaited men in the brutal, frozen expanses of the Yukon, and the extreme tactics these adventurers and travelers adopted to survive.As Van Wyck Brooks observed, “One felt that the stories had been somehow lived–that they were not merely observed–that the author was not telling tales but telling his life.”

This edition is unique to the Modern Library, featuring twenty-three carefully chosen stories from London’s three collected Northland volumes and his later Klondike tales.It also includes two maps of the region, and notes on the text.
... Read more

Product Description
1920. In the words of Jack London, "I have written some novels of adventure in my time, but never, in all of the many of them, have I perpetrated a totality of action equal to what is contained in 'Hearts of Three'." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Execrable Publishing!!!!!
Beware OCR (Optical Character Recognition)Publishing!
This means a robot scans,types,proof reads and designs the book,resulting in such delights as(page 2):"Thousands of scenario writers a literally tens of thousands,for no man,nor woman,nor child was too mean not to write scenariosa tens of thousands of scenario writers pirated through all literature (copyright or otherwise) and snatched the magazines hot viii.FOEEWOED from the press to steal any new scene or plot or story hit upon by their writing brethren"(sic-yes,very sick) ;
or on page 7,where the same person is called Regan,Eegan and Began.
(I haven't read any further.)
The publisher(General Books) does print an apology clause at the start,which,to me.translates:"You've been conned-and there's no comeback!'
Pity Jack London,to be treated so abominably-and pity the frustrated buyer for having to pay about $20 for this trash!
DON'T BUY THIS BOOK!

Good book, bad publisher
So many mistakes, typos and lost symbols - it is very awful edition for reading.

The Unexpected Jack London
This book was London's personal favorite. Inexplicably it never found a following in his own country, while abroad it has always been one of his most famous works. Finally there is an affordable edition of this fantastic, gripping adventure story.

not King' Solomon's Mines, but Mayan treasure's as intriguing
Why is this book so difficult to find? Why hasn't it been re-printed? Who knows...

This book was extremely difficult to find for some time. I had a Russian translation of it.

The fact is that translations of this relatively unknown work by J. London, actually a novelization of a movie script by Charles Goddard, are in wide circulation, especially in Russia, where it has been one of a group of favourite books.

I myself have read it a several times, bot as a child, and as an adult. In that latter occasion I was reading more critically and it is my opinion that it has nothing less than "King Solomon's Mines" or other similar books, widely read by many... Romance, exotic location, colorful portraying of characters, magnificent villains, burning sun and glowing treasure, lovely señoritas, twists - all that in a shape of a gripping narrative in one of the best books by London I have ever read. Scholars specializing on the author's work may state that it is a lot different then other more popular of his works, but I don't think anyone could say that it's not top of its genre. You will enjoy it immensely!

EDITED: it was finally reprinted in 2003 by Kessinger Publishing Co

Best adventure/love novel
I read this book when I was little. Since then, I have neither been able to forget it nor to find it. The book is especially ideal for teenagers/older children. Why is it out of print? ... Read more