Two Adventures With Doctor Dolittle Paperback – December 18, 2008

I read only the second of these two books, The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle. The book was a delightful read. Be aware though, 1951 was BEFORE the days of political correctness. This (as well as fun aspects of the book) open the door for conversation.I gave it 4 stars because of minor discrepancies of time in the story and little things I myself would have wished different. Evolution is referenced, something I wouldn't have thought had invaded literature of this era. Also, he is regarded in such high esteem, (yes I know this is a work of fiction) one would think he is the messiah, and indeed his exploits are so great, in the eyes of the natives he does seem god-like. The Dr. is a bit of controversy himself, while he can talk to animals as his equal, he has no problem eating them as he is not vegetarian or vegan.All in all a fun read especially for late elementary, or middle school -and their families.As pointed out in another review, these books are NOTHING like the Eddie Murphy movies of Dr. Doolittle name.

Just got a Kindle and am having fun accumulating some books from my childhood that I would like to reread and pass along to my children. Unfortunately, the Dr. Dolittle books have been censored in more recent editions, leaving them mere shells of the originals. I was pleased to find this one, promoted as the original text. These books left enduring memories with me as I journeyed with the doctor as a child on his adventures. I'm happier to share them in this form, without the political-correctness police intruding on my reading pleasure.

I am reading Dr DoLittle out loud to my children aged 5 and 9 and they adore it. Video games get thrown aside for Dr Dolittle. My 9 year old will even read it out loud to her brother because they can't always be bothered to wait for me to finish washing the dishes.The language is surprisingly easy to read for a book that was written so long ago. Occasionally terms, concepts or values that are different to todays occur and these allow for interesting disscussions about how the world has changed. Sometimes values are surprisingly for the time. For example when a king in Africa wanted to lock up the Doctor because his only experience of white people was of people who came and shot all the elephants, my daughter nodded sagely and thought that was perfectly understandable.The main themes are about understanding and caring for all creatures no matter how big or small. The books are full of adventure, excitement and humour, with pirates, stowaways, and floating islands. But with the animals always ready and willing to assist, the good Doctor is always able to extricate himself and his friends from the stickiest situations.

If you're looking for an unedited version, this is it... Some versions of the Dolittle series have been edited to conform to modern sensitivities, this one I'm glad to say remains as originally written. Unfortunately, the original and wonderful illustrations are not contained within, and the kindle store at the time of my writing this does not carry further Dolittle stories beyond the original first two.

Hugh Lofting wrote the first of these while serving in the trenches. He could have taught a great deal about honor and plain speech to Hemingway, who had the option of retiring to a bistro behind the lines.

I'm in the Adventures of Doctor Dolittle the show, so it's fun to comepare the two.