Just So Stories
Kipling wrote these as bedtime tales for his own daughter, and it shows: each one answers a child's daft, brilliant question (why the whale has that throat, how the leopard got its spots) with a story built to be read out loud. The direct address to "O my Best Beloved" and the rolling, repeating phrases ("the really truly twirly-whirly eel") practically perform themselves. Short enough for one sitting, silly enough to ask for again.
Read the whole collection on one page: Just So Stories.
12 pieces from this collection.
The Elephant’s Child
Rudyard Kipling
The Elephant’s Child
How the Leopard Got his Spots
Rudyard Kipling
How the Leopard Got his Spots
How the Camel Got his Hump
Rudyard Kipling
How the Camel Got his Hump
How the Rhinoceros Got his Skin
Rudyard Kipling
How the Rhinoceros Got his Skin
How the Whale Got his Throat
Rudyard Kipling
How the Whale Got his Throat
The Cat that Walked by Himself
Rudyard Kipling
The Cat that Walked by Himself
The Beginning of the Armadillos
Rudyard Kipling
The Beginning of the Armadillos
The Butterfly that Stamped
Rudyard Kipling
The Butterfly that Stamped
The Crab that Played with the Sea
Rudyard Kipling
The Crab that Played with the Sea
The Sing-song of old Man Kangaroo
Rudyard Kipling
The Sing-song of old Man Kangaroo
How the Alphabet Was Made
Rudyard Kipling
How the Alphabet Was Made
How the First Letter Was Written
Rudyard Kipling
How the First Letter Was Written