The first story opens in the jungle near a native village, a setting that evokes a timeless atmosphere, similar to the beast fables of Aesop or to certain folktales where animals have the power to think and speak. The reader is first introduced to the wolves, who are passionately discussing the violence of humans. Father Wolf then saves Mowgli, a human baby who has strayed away from the village, from a hungry tiger named Shere Khan. Father Wolf brings Mowgli home to Mother Wolf, who rears him as one of her own.

In later stories the reader observes a human household from the viewpoint of a mongoose and sees an army camp through the eyes of the army animals. In one story Kipling leaves the Indian jungle altogether to tell the story of a young seal in the Bering Sea, who, like the jungle animals, understands all too...