The Just So Stories for Little Children (Illustrated Edition) (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. Pourquoi tales of magical transformations and animal origins, with classic illustrations.By Rudyard Kipling
Length4h 53m
About this audiobook
The Just So Stories for Little Children gathers Rudyard Kipling's playful origin myths explaining how the leopard got his spots, the camel his hump, the elephant his trunk, and other wonders of the natural world. Written in a richly oral, incantatory style, the tales delight in repetition, invented words, comic logic, and rhythmic address to the "Best Beloved." In the context of late Victorian and Edwardian children's literature, they combine nursery intimacy with imperial travel, folklore, fable, and mock-scientific curiosity; the illustrated edition further emphasizes Kipling's gift for visual wit and narrative design. Rudyard Kipling, born in Bombay in 1865 and educated in England, drew deeply on childhood memories of India, journalistic observation, and a lifelong fascination with language, animals, and cultural storytelling. Composed partly for his own children, these stories reflect both paternal tenderness and the imaginative range of a writer shaped by colonial movement, literary ambition, and an ear trained by ballad, Bible, and popular speech. This edition is warmly recommended to readers who value classic children's literature as art rather than mere diversion. It offers young readers enchantment and humor, while giving adults a sophisticated example of myth-making, linguistic play, and the enduring pleasures of storytelling aloud.
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
Rating★★★★ 4.2 (65.2K)
Includes Goodreads, StoryGraph, Amazon, LibraryThing
GenreChildren's Literature
Length4 hrs 53 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateAug 27, 2015
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1The Just So Stories for Little Children (Illustrated Edition) (Annotated)
2Introduction
3Author Biography
4Historical Context
5Synopsis (Selection)
Show all chaptersShow less
6The Just So Stories for Little Children (Illustrated Edition) (pt. 1)
7The Just So Stories for Little Children (Illustrated Edition) (pt. 2)
8Analysis
9Reflection
10Memorable Quotes
Kim (Adventure Classic) - IllustratedRudyard Kipling11h 54m$1.99 · $0.00
The Complete Short Stories of Rudyard Kipling: 440+ Tales in One EditionRudyard Kipling179h 14m$1.99 · $0.00
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 38m4.5 (1.1K)$2 · $0.00
Der Mann, der König sein wollte - Zweisprachige Ausgabe (Deutsch-Englisch) (Kommentiert)Rudyard Kipling5h 1m4.4 (18)$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 45m3.9 (12.9K)$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 12m4.4 (102)$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 29m4.1 (1.4K)$2 · $0.00
The Jungle Book & The Second Jungle Book (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling13h 27m4.3 (4.8K)$2 · $0.00
The Complete Works of Rudyard Kipling (Illustrated) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling319h 29m4.3 (391)$2 · $0.00
The Irish Guards in the Great War: The First & The Second Battalion (Volume 1&2 - Complete Edition) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling25h 23m4.6 (12)$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 2m4.4 (2.3K)$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 59m4.1 (12.5K)$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 33m4.4 (125)$2 · $0.00
Trapped in a Video Game: The Complete SeriesDustin Brady13h 27m4.7 (6.4K)$23
Big Nate Blasts OffLincoln Peirce2h 4m4.7 (13.7K)$16 · $0.00
Because My Destiny AwaitsCorwin McGinnis2h 40m5.0 (41)$15
A Wolf Called FireRosanne Parry4h 7m4.7 (1.2K)$7 · $0.00
The Daughter of AuschwitzTova Friedman3h 2m4.6 (15.6K)$18 · $0.00
RevolutionariesSanjeev Sanyal7h 25m4.6 (1.9K)$24 · $0.00
Warriors #6: The Darkest HourErin Hunter8h 8m4.6 (70.2K)$26 · $0.00
The Complete Works of Beatrix Potter (Annotated)Beatrix Potter5h 11m4.6 (1.5K)$2 · $0.00
The Violet Fairy Book (Annotated)Andrew Lang11h 39m4.7 (304)$2 · $0.00
Little Lord Fauntleroy (Annotated)Frances Hodgson Burnett7h 56m4.6 (1.5K)$1.99 · $0.00
The Nutcracker and The Mouse King (Annotated)E.T.A. Hoffmann4h 4m4.6 (1.5K)$2 · $0.00
Deep ZoneTim Green6h 12m4.6 (2.8K)$20
REBECCA OF SUNNYBROOK FARM & NEW CHRONICLES OF REBECCA (Children's Book Classics) (Annotated)Kate Douglas Wiggin15h 32m4.6 (1.4K)$1.99 · $0.00
The Pilgrim’s ProgressRousseaux Brasseur3h 22m4.7 (158)$17
Just William (Illustrated) (Annotated)Richmal Crompton6h 30m4.6 (1.2K)$2 · $0.00
The Labors of Hercules BealGary D. Schmidt8h 17m4.6 (10.4K)$8 · $0.00
Clancy of the Overflow (The Matilda Saga, #9)Jackie French14h 24m4.6 (471)$33 · $0.00
The House at Pooh CornerA. A. Milne3h 13m4.5 (117.7K)$12
The Great Fairy Tales - Oscar Wilde Edition (Illustrated) (Annotated)Oscar Wilde6h 31m4.6 (1.1K)$2 · $0.00
The Boy Who Followed His Father into AuschwitzJeremy Dronfield6h 54m4.5 (28.5K)$24 · $0.00
You may also like
The Just So Stories for Little Children (Illustrated Edition)Rudyard Kipling4h 40m4.2 (67.5K)$2 · $0.00
The Burgess Animal Book for Children (Illustrated) (Annotated)Thornton Burgess8h 58m4.0 (1.3K)$2 · $0.00
The Just So Stories for Little Children (Illustrated)Rudyard Kipling4h 40m4.2 (69K)$2 · $0.00
The Just So Stories for Little Children (Illustrated Edition)Rudyard Kipling4h 33m4.2 (126.2K)$2 · $0.00
Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan: First SeriesLafcadio Hearn9h 31m4.2 (510)$1 · $0.00
The Just So Stories for Little Children (Illustrated) (Annotated)Rudyard Kipling4h 53m4.3 (5.5K)$1.99 · $0.00
The Origin and Situation of the GermansTacitus1h 5m4.0 (3.9K)$1 · $0.00
The Death of Sitting BearN. Scott Momaday2h 30m4.1 (674)$6 · $0.00
The Cat that Walked by HimselfRudyard Kipling2h 17m4.3 (2.5K)$4 · $0.00
It's Christmas Again: 550+ Tales, Legends & Myths for Holiday SeasonLouisa May Alcott, Charles Dickens, O. Henry, Mark Twain, Beatrix Potter, William Shakespeare, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Emily Dickinson, Robert Louis Stevenson, Rudyard Kipling, Hans Christian Andersen, Selma Lagerlöf, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Martin Luther, Walter Scott, J. M. Barrie, Anthony Trollope, Brothers Grimm, L. Frank Baum, Lucy Maud Montgomery, George Macdonald, Leo Tolstoy, Henry Van Dyke550h 20m$1.99 · $0.00
Collected Verse of Louis EssonLouis Esson1h 1m$10
In the Andamans and NicobarsC. Boden Kloss11h 6m$2 · $0.00
In Northern Mists (Vol. 1&2) (Annotated)Fridtjof Nansen28h 56m4.2 (89)$1.99 · $0.00
The IowaThomas of Washington D.C. Foster2h 33m$2 · $0.00
Beautiful WalesEdward Thomas4h 20m3.5 (10)$2 · $0.00
The Summers readers: primerMaud Summers1h 12m$2 · $0.00
From the Heart of Israel: Jewish Tales and TypesBernard Drachman6h 59m$2 · $0.00
The Collected WorksHenry Schoolcraft96h 45m$2 · $0.00
Stories of BirdsLenore Elizabeth Mulets2h 57m$2 · $0.00
The Native Races of East AfricaWilfrid D. Hambly59m$2.30