The Call of the Wild, Jack London

This classic tale follows the life of a domesticated dog named Buck who is stolen from his comfortable California home and taken to the harsh wilds of the Alaskan gold rush of 1897 to work as a sled dog. Although told from the perspective of a dog, the allegorical story presents the journey undertaken by anyone who has left the predictable and safe for adventure and danger and who has consequently undergone a complete transformation along the way.

Related Readings

A Wolf Tale—informative nonfiction by Dr. Ann Squire

With Age, How Do the Animals Fare?—newspaper article by Sherry Joe Crosby

from Sled Dogs: Arctic Athletes—informative nonfiction by Elizabeth Ring

The Animal Mind—magazine article by James L. Gould and Carol Grant Gould

The Cat That Walked By Himself—short story by Rudyard Kipling

Study Guide (PDF)