The Jungle Book(s) Illustrated

One of my all-time favorite books is also one that has many different styles of illustrations: The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling.

In this thread I plan to show illustrations from different editions of this much-beloved classic, and compare/critique their illustrators.

Stay tuned!

Good choice

Here's my first edition, courtesy of Google:



It is listed as a 2009 edition. Alicia Vasquez is the artist, and I think she brings an interesting stylized view of Mowgli and the wolves.

Here is her Baloo:



And her Mowgli:



I especially like her wolves on the cover.

The second edition I have this evening is a Harper Collins, from 1995, with Jerry Pinkney illustrating:



Here's Mowgli and Kaa:



And Mowgli with his family:



I am not as keen on this edition: it seems darker and muddied. And I don't like the wolves much.

>4 fuzzi: I like that Mowgli. He looks like a boy who is being raised by animals.

>5 SylviaC: he does, at that. I think that is a mixed media, with watercolors used. I just don't care for the wolves, much.

Next, from 1963, is the copy I read repeatedly as a child, because it is the edition our local public library had:



The illustrator is Tibor Gergely.

The animals are not as realistic as other illustrators, but I still like them.

Here’s one of my favorite pictures from the book:

Addendum:

You might recognize Tibor Gergely's style, from these childhood favorites:

Mowgli peering out of that first cover by Alicia Vasquez really grabs me. I like her Baloo, as well. When was that edition first published?

>9 2wonderY: the art is dated 2009, so probably around then.

Here's another edition that I own The Jungle Book, superbly illustrated by Eric Kincaid




Endpapers...woo!


I love this picture of Mowgli with Kaa. Kaa was horribly maligned by Walt Disney, yet remains a noble friend of Mowgli's.


Shere Khan, demanding that the baby Mowgli be given to him, to kill.


Shere Khan and text.


Stampede...I have to try to scan this instead of just taking a photo of it...

While I bought this edition for the illustrations, I do not read it. Why? Because the publisher has taken liberties with the text, and doesn't have the honesty to mention it.

But I love the illustrations. The pictures I've posted were taken by the camera on my iPad, and don't show how glorious they truly are!

This edition was published by Brimax Books Ltd (1991).

Note: pictures re-added 10/28/14 (hosting site went down)

>11 fuzzi:

I love those illustrations. They're so strong. Too bad about the text.

The Alicia Vasquez cover is awesome as well.

I put a few pictures in my member gallery of the edition my parents gave us 3 or four copies of when the boys were little. As each new one (after the first one) came I found someone to give it to. I never had the heart to tell them that even one copy was never read.

https://www.librarything.com/work/9468398/book/35992428

#11
I hope that's Eric Kincaid. There's some combining to do there.

Wow! Those are quite powerful illustrations!

>11 fuzzi: These are my favourite so far of the ones you've posted, fuzzi. But then, I am always biased in favour of tigers :-D

>14 2wonderY: it is, and yes...there's a ton of fixing to be done with this title.

>15 Sakerfalcon: I am usually biased in favor of GOOD art, well done realistic illustrations. But I also like some illustrations that aren't as realistic.

>13 MarthaJeanne: I just checked out the pictures you mentioned: what a gorgeous edition!

I wish you'd given a copy to me...

They went to the school libraries the boys were at at the time.

>18 MarthaJeanne: well, that was good. I hope someone read them.

So do I. There are a couple of classic children's books I just don't like. Can't get into them, never could and have stopped trying. Jungle Book is one. Sorry. The other one that comes to mind is Wind in the Willows. I have read and enjoyed other Kipling, and read the boys the Just So Stories. In fact I recall that I read much longer than I should have, 'Just one more, Mama, pleeeeease!' ... So if you want to come and get the copy left on the shelves, I'd gladly give it to you.

Wow, what illustrations in that edition, >20 MarthaJeanne:!

The edition dates back to 1908 (some sources say 1903), and is illustrated by Maurice Detmold and Edward Detmold.

What can I say besides the pictures are fantastic!







This was an older edition, hopefully the newer printings don't edit the material.

It just gets better and better!

>20 MarthaJeanne: "... if you want to come and get the copy left on the shelves, I'd gladly give it to you."

Where do you live? :)

EDIT: aw, you're in Europe... :sniff sniff:

Eurotrip :)

>24 JerryMmm: The cover picture is right - we have a nudist colony around the corner. but before you get your hopes up:
a) the fences are such that you can't see inside
b) those going in and out are not only dressed, but generally at least my age.

>23 fuzzi: Europe is both a nice place to live and a nice place to visit. And I know a lot of nice places to see around here.

>21 fuzzi: Yikes, Kaa is a bit too realistic for my liking!

>26 Sakerfalcon: but I like Kaa, that is, Kipling's Kaa, not the Disney version.

>25 MarthaJeanne: I'd love to visit Europe, especially Germany and Denmark and Sweden, where my ancestors came from.

Switzerland and Austria would be lovely to visit, too, but there's no way I can afford it, not in the next couple of years, anyway. :(

Well, I rather doubt the book is going anywhere in the next few years. What do you want to bet that Mom has already given a copy to my grandsons?

>27 fuzzi: I have a phobia of snakes, even fictional ones!

>29 Sakerfalcon: sorry. My phobia is cockroaches. It's helpful to be able to stomp that which freaks you...

>28 MarthaJeanne: lol...someone needs to read the book...

This edition caught my eye, and the illustrator's name Robert Ingpen is familiar:







Here's Kaa (sorry Sakerfalcon):



These illustrations are also gorgeous, imho, though they are more muted than the Detmold versions. It might be that these pictures that I found on the web don't have as much resolution as others posted in this thread.

This edition of "The Jungle Book" is listed here on LT as coming from Palazzo Editions, published in 2007.

Addendum: here is a bio on this illustrator: http://www.palazzoeditions.com/authors/profile/robert-ingpen

I do see some similarities in colors, and more particularly, in the shadows, to his illustrations for TWITW. This material is much more compatible to Ingpen's style, I think. Nicely done!! Hard to choose a favorite, eh?

>29 Sakerfalcon: - I hear ya! My stomach turns and clenches every time I see an illustration of Kaa. :P

On to the next...and there's no picture of Kaa in this post!

This is the Illustrated Junior Library edition, published in 1950 by Grossett & Dunlap.





Fritz Eichenberg is the artist on this edition, and I have to admit I like his pastel/watercolor plates. His ink drawings are interesting, as well. I am just having a hard time finding them on the web.


If his work looks familiar, you might recall his drawings from Black Beauty.

This is a stand-alone picture that I wanted to include, "just because":



Artist is Olivier Vatine.

These were taken from a resale site, so I hope they stay up for a while:

Mowgli, The Jungle Boy published by Grosset & Dunlap in 1951, illustrated by William Bartlett:



I like this Bagheera, but am not too fond of Mowgli


I think the artist does animals better than humans.

I also appreciate how the illustrations and text are combined.



I hope you can see the pictures fairly well: I upped the image size to make them clearer.

Addendum: I just noticed that this edition is also abridged...

I like the Fritz Eichenberg illustrations; even though they are not realistic in style they have a real sense of motion - Merrylegs from Black Beauty looks as though his tail continues to swish after you look away, and the Jungle Book characters have the same kind of energy. I really like the Olivier Vatine one too, but am less keen on the third artist. Both humans and animals look very posed.

>37 Sakerfalcon: thanks for the input, I agree with your opinion. There's a picture of Mowgli being kidnapped by the Bandar-log (monkeys) that looks as if they are swinging the boy between them.

Look here:



I ordered a used copy of the Fritz Eichenberg book, and will try to share more pictures...soon.

And here they are!


Bagheera and Mowgli color plate


Mowgli being adopted by the wolf pack


I love this black and white illustration of Mowgli and Bagheera


Notice how the artist makes his simple line drawings come alive!

Those really are special. I'm so glad you now own the book for yourself, fuzzi!

>40 Sakerfalcon: I think so, too. Pictures can enhance a reading experience.

Here's an oldie I noticed this evening...



No date that I could find...

Cover by Gianni De Conno:



I'm having problems getting dates of editions. If any of you care to assist, I'd be thankful.

Or just enjoy them for what they are.

Here's the cover for the illustrations on post 21:

Nice old poster, from about the time of The Jungle Book's publication:

From 1948, both the first and second Jungle Book(s):



Illustrator is Aldren Watson.

I really like #43 and #44 except for the character renditions. #43 the animals are too childish. In #44 the Mowgli silhouette is just all wrong.

That profile tiger head has its echoes above done by many artists, and always effectively, it seems. That is one of my favorite shots.

>47 2wonderY: good points! The style of the animals vs. the style of Mowgli in #43 are very different. And both silhouettes are not accurate in #44, but I love the tree design.

Found a new one today, illustrator unknown:

I am looking for a hardbound edition for myself (I am 61, and want a "keeper"). Besides having good paper and binding, I'm looking for illustrations that are more adult and classical. Besides Detmold, can you recommend any other illustrators?

>50 rodstevens: I'm still partial to Fritz Eichenberg (post 39) but Robert Ingpen's are good.

I just noticed that Kurt Wiese illustrated The Jungle Book as well (cover from post 42), and it was republished in 1994. His drawings are lovely.

Here's a site that lists ALL those who have illustrated The Jungle Book:

http://www.junglebook-collection.nl/pmwiki/pmwiki.php?n=Main.Illustrators