The Call of the Wild - Jack London

(Update, 20 Nov 2019: There's a movie coming out!)

When I was a child, I read and re-read and re-re-read an abridged version The Call of the Wild, and was filled with wonder for dogs and the North and life in the late 1800s. I even had a husky Beanie Baby as a cherished thing. But, somehow, I never went back and read the full book, instead just living with a simmering yearning to relive the adventure. Then, stumbling upon a $2 copy of The Call of the Wild at a thrift store, I leapt at the opportunity like Buck -- our canine protagonist -- leaps at the throats of his foes.

Expect a White Fang review shortly.

This story is straightforward. Buck is a pampered and gigantic dog living comfortably in California, when he is stolen and sold to be used as a working dog in Canada and Alaska. He quickly learns the ropes (and whips and clubs and sleds), and sets about becoming more and more of a wolf. As he passes from owner to owner, and tragedy to tragedy, he grows stronger, more cunning, and more drawn to The Wild. Written like a myth, our main character lives larger than life, achieves feats of unbelievable strength and endurance, and ascends into the realm of legend.

One should read this book for the lovely use of English. Jack London's style and era gives the book a robust, old-timey charm. In my head, it felt like Nick Offerman was reading the book to me. Many a passage is deeply naturalist and spiritual, plunging the reader into the thick of the Wild and filling their heart with the same passion that drives Buck. Here's a favorite example:

"He would thrust his nose into the cool wood moss, or into the black soil where long grasses grew, and snort with joy a the fat earth smells; or he would crouch for hours, as if in concealment, behind fungus-covered trunks of fallen trees, wide-eyed and wide-eared to all that moved and sounded about him. It might be, lying thus, that he hoped to surprise this call he could not understand. But he did not know why he did these various things. He was impelled to do them, and did not reason about them at all."

I suppose this book is like Walden or Into the Wild. Read it to indulge your wanderlust and craving for the smell of snowy pines and crisp mountain air. Savor the thrill of adventure.