The Just So Stories for Little Children (Illustrated) (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. How animals got their stripes, spots, and humps—illustrated fantastical origin tales for young readersBy Rudyard Kipling
Length4h 52m
About this audiobook
The Just So Stories for Little Children gathers Rudyard Kipling's celebrated "origin" tales, whimsical explanations for how the whale got his throat, the camel his hump, the leopard his spots, and the alphabet its form. Written in a cadenced, incantatory prose meant to be read aloud, the stories combine nursery intimacy with the structure of ancient myth and folktale. In their illustrated form, Kipling's own visual imagination reinforces the book's playful mixture of fantasy, moral wit, and linguistic experiment within the late Victorian and Edwardian tradition of children's literature. Kipling, born in Bombay in 1865 and shaped by both colonial India and English schooling, possessed an unusually acute ear for dialect, rhythm, and oral performance. These tales originated partly in stories told to his daughter Josephine, whose early death lends the collection an undercurrent of tenderness beneath its comic exuberance. His lifelong fascination with empire, travel, animals, and storytelling converges here in miniature, transformed into fables for the nursery. This volume is highly recommended for readers who value children's literature that rewards both delight and close attention. Young readers will enjoy its absurd inventions and memorable refrains, while adults will find a sophisticated meditation on language, imagination, and the human desire to explain the world through story.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A comprehensive Introduction outlines these selected works' unifying features, themes, or stylistic evolutions.
- The Author Biography highlights personal milestones and literary influences that shape the entire body of writing.
- A Historical Context section situates the works in their broader era—social currents, cultural trends, and key events that underpin their creation.
- A concise Synopsis (Selection) offers an accessible overview of the included texts, helping readers navigate plotlines and main ideas without revealing critical twists.
- A unified Analysis examines recurring motifs and stylistic hallmarks across the collection, tying the stories together while spotlighting the different work's strengths.
- Reflection questions inspire deeper contemplation of the author's overarching message, inviting readers to draw connections among different texts and relate them to modern contexts.
- Lastly, our hand‐picked Memorable Quotes distill pivotal lines and turning points, serving as touchstones for the collection's central themes.
Audiobook details
GenreChildren's Literature
Length4 hrs 52 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateAug 26, 2015
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Introduction
2Introduction
3Author Biography
4Historical Context
5Synopsis (Selection)
Show all chaptersShow less
6The Just So Stories for Little Children (Illustrated) (pt. 1)
7The Just So Stories for Little Children (Illustrated) (pt. 2)
8Analysis
9Reflection
10Memorable Quotes
Complete Novels of Rudyard Kipling: The Light That Failed + Captain Courageous: A Story of the Grand Banks + Kim + The Naulahka: A Story of West and East (Illustrated) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling43h 38m$2 · $0.00
Der Mann, der König sein wollte - Zweisprachige Ausgabe (Deutsch-Englisch) (Kommentiert)Rudyard Kipling5h 1m$1 · $0.00
Complete Short Stories of Rudyard Kipling: 25 Illustrated Collections (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling180h 26m$2 · $0.00
The Jungle Book (With the Original Illustrations by John L. Kipling) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling6h 39m$2 · $0.00
Plain Tales from the Hills: 40+ Short Stories Collection (The Tales of Life in British India) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling10h 45m$2 · $0.00
Gesammelte Erzählungen (116 Titel in einem Buch): Das Dschungelbuch + Dunkeles Indien - Phantastische Erzählungen + Aus Indiens Glut + Soldatengeschichten + und mehr (Kommentiert)Rudyard Kipling48h 12m$1 · $0.00
Dunkles Indien. Phantastische Erzählungen (Kommentiert)Rudyard Kipling13h 3m$1 · $0.00
THE JUNGLE BOOK – Complete Edition: Book 1&2 (With the Original Illustrations by John Lockwood Kipling) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling13h 29m$2 · $0.00
The Jungle Book & The Second Jungle Book (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling13h 27m$2 · $0.00
The Complete Works of Rudyard Kipling (Illustrated) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling319h 29m$2 · $0.00
The Irish Guards in the Great War: The First & The Second Battalion (Volume 1&2 - Complete Edition) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling25h 23m$2 · $0.00
Rudyard Kipling: 440+ Short Stories in One Edition (Illustrated) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling179h 19m$2 · $0.00
The Complete Poetical Works of Rudyard Kipling (570+ Poems in One Edition) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling23h 2m$2 · $0.00
Der Mann, der König sein wollte / The Man Who Would be King - Zweisprachige Ausgabe (Deutsch-Englisch) / Bilingual edition (German-English) (Kommentiert)Rudyard Kipling4h 59m$1 · $0.00
Lange Latte und Genossen (Autobiographischer Roman) (Kommentiert)Rudyard Kipling11h 1m$1 · $0.00
Die Taten des Tauchboots - Erzählungen aus dem "Handelsbetrieb" (Kommentiert)Rudyard Kipling2h 25m$1 · $0.00
Nur so Geschichten - Das tierische Märchenbuch (Kommentiert)Rudyard Kipling5h 16m$1 · $0.00
RUDYARD KIPLING PREMIUM COLLECTION: His Greatest Works in One Volume (Illustrated) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling244h 33m$2 · $0.00
The Irish Guards in the Great War (Volume 1&2 - Complete Edition) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling25h 26m$2 · $0.00
Collected Works of Rudyard Kipling (Illustrated) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling244h 33m$2 · $0.00
The Daughter of AuschwitzTova Friedman3h 2m1.0 (1)$18 · $0.00
RevolutionariesSanjeev Sanyal7h 25m$24 · $0.00
Warriors #6: The Darkest HourErin Hunter8h 8m$26 · $0.00
Eyes That Kiss in the CornersJoanna Ho5m$4 · $0.00
The Complete Works of Beatrix Potter (Annotated)Beatrix Potter5h 11m$2 · $0.00
Maddi's FridgeLois Brandt, Vin Vogel11m$5 · $0.00
The First Cat in Space and the Wrath of the PaperclipMac Barnett1h 29m$16 · $0.00
Little Lord Fauntleroy (Annotated)Frances Hodgson Burnett7h 56m$2 · $0.00
The Nutcracker and The Mouse King (Annotated)E.T.A. Hoffmann4h 4m$2 · $0.00
My Weird School Special: We're Red, Weird, and Blue! What Can We Do?Dan Gutman1h 4m$13 · $0.00
Deep ZoneTim Green6h 12m$20
REBECCA OF SUNNYBROOK FARM & NEW CHRONICLES OF REBECCA (Children's Book Classics) (Annotated)Kate Douglas Wiggin15h 32m$2 · $0.00
The Pilgrim’s ProgressRousseaux Brasseur3h 22m$17
Just William (Illustrated) (Annotated)Richmal Crompton6h 30m$2 · $0.00
The Labors of Hercules BealGary D. Schmidt8h 17m$8 · $0.00
Clancy of the Overflow (The Matilda Saga, #9)Jackie French14h 24m$33 · $0.00
The House at Pooh CornerA. A. Milne3h 13m$12
The Great Fairy Tales - Oscar Wilde Edition (Illustrated) (Annotated)Oscar Wilde6h 31m$2 · $0.00
The Sour GrapeJory John14m$4 · $0.00
Hans Christian Andersen: Complete Fairy Tales Collection (Children's Classics Series) (Annotated)Hans Christian Andersen40h 11m$2 · $0.00
You may also like
The Just So Stories for Little Children (Illustrated)Rudyard Kipling4h 40m$2 · $0.00
Mother Goose's Menagerie (Illustrated Edition)Carolyn Wells1h 29m$2 · $0.00
Something Else AgainFranklin P. Adams1h 30m$2 · $0.00
The Just So Stories for Little Children (Illustrated Edition)Rudyard Kipling4h 40m$2 · $0.00
Cajun Night Before ChristmasTrosclair13m$5 · $0.00
Exotics and RetrospectivesLafcadio Hearn4h 15m$1 · $0.00
Knickerbocker's History of New York, CompleteWashington Irving14h 35m$1 · $0.00
History of BeastsAnonymous8m$2 · $0.00
Stories of BirdsLenore Elizabeth Mulets2h 57m$2 · $0.00
The Complete Works of Robert Burns: Containing his Poems, Songs, and CorrespondenceRobert Burns, Allan Cunningham43h 7m$1 · $0.00
The Complete Poems (Annotated)Johann Wolfgang von Goethe18h 4m$2 · $0.00
The Complete Works of Washington Irving: Short Stories, Plays, Historical Works, Poetry and Autobiographical Writings (Illustrated)Washington Irving215h 14m$1 · $0.00
Mr. Punch's Scottish HumourVarious2h 40m$1 · $0.00
Flowers from a Persian Garden and Other PapersW. A. Clouston8h 52m$2 · $0.00
Alarms and DiscursionsGilbert Keith Chesterton5h 19m$2 · $0.00
Little Masterpieces of American Wit and Humor / Volume IVarious4h 31m$2.30
Pagan PapersKenneth Grahame3h 18m$1 · $0.00
The Bad Child's Book of BeastsHilaire Belloc7m$2.30
The Complete Works of Robert Burns: Containing his Poems, Songs, and Correspondence (Annotated)Robert Burns, Allan Cunningham38h 14m$2 · $0.00
The Book of NonsenseEdward Lear1h 48m$1 · $0.00