Feb. 2022: I just finished reading this with my 10 year old daughter. She was slightly amused. Ha!

2020: My 10 year old son and I have been reading this slowly over the last year and just finished tonight. It was a silly and fun read, if a little slow in places. Silly nonsense tales a la Lewis Carroll. Definitely British. ( )

From the curiosity of the elephant's child, to the crab who played with the sea, from the ingenious invention of the alphabet, to how the rhinoceros got its wrinkled skin, these are stories of strange happenings in the High and Far-Off Times.

A fun book to read to kids; creative tales about the origin of animals. ( )

I had never read any Kipling so thought I would start with this children's book and well, it wasn't what I expected. I get that these were written in 1902 and like other famous authors contain racist passages, I just don't like it so blatant in my children's literature. Plus I didn't think these stories were as clever or stood the test of time the way other great children's literature like A.A. Milne's Winnie the Pooh has. (Yes, I know that was published in 1926 which is a bit later.) So, look at Beatrix Potter's books - those are much more clever as well and have easily stood the test of time and Peter Rabbit was first published in 1901.

If you're reading these for yourself and their historical value, sure go ahead. If you're looking for something to read to your child - honestly there are so many better choices out there. ( )

Setting aside the problematic aspects of Kipling's tainted world views, this is in itself a light and enjoyable read of a fictional mythos of the world. The obvious historical rascism in some of the stories would need a open discussion with any children looking to read this, as although in its original context was highly normative, it has now aged poorly.

The mythos surrounding the stories are still enjoyable, albeit one must be aware of the imbedded orentalism. ( )