plaintalesfromthehills

Judge A Book By Its Cover

Book Reviews and Synopses

Plain Tales from the Hills

Rudyard Kipling

Kipling, Rudyard. Wadsworth Classics. Ware, Hertfordshire. 1993.

Rudyard Kipling’s Plain Tales from the Hills reminds us of life’s simple pleasures, and how we forget to notice and enjoy them in a modern, technological world. It is the complete, unabridged set of Kipling’s biographical tales from his life in the hills with his family and friends.

Plain Tales from the Hills begins with an introduction to the set of stories with a short story, distinctly expressing Kipling’s life before moving to the wilderness with his family. The story paints a colorful picture of the events and inspirations that encouraged his wild ambition. He grew tired of living in the city where there was never any silence, safety or privacy. His extended family and a few close friends enthusiastically agreed to live in the middle of the wilderness, far, far away from civilization.

Because of his long lasting interest in wilderness survival, Kipling decided to move to the wilderness by himself to build a cabin and find a safe environment for his family to live in. The story reels off his initial struggle to survive, and his panging desire to move back to the city, but Rudyard fights the urge. His father had, in Rudyard’s younger ages, taunted him, saying that he couldn’t stand a day in the wild. He directly swore to his father that he could, and will someday. This section is very inspirational, knowing that Rudyard struggled to find food and water, build shelter - and eventually succeeded, after many hardships.

Plain Tales from the Hills gradually pieces together Rudyard’s life in the hills from start to finish. The tradition of living with family and friends in the hills and living off the given resources was passed on for generations because of Rudyard’s adventurous undertaking.

The stories in Plain Tales from the Hills are especially good for children, as it is very informative in terms of wilderness survival and resources as well as a well-written novel, each story more captivating than the last. It may seem old-fashioned to many readers, but as people become more and more disconnected from nature, Plain Tales from the Hills will become more and more important in our lives.

5 out of 5 stars.

Contributed by C. Corazza

September 19, 2012