Have I read this before: I don’t think I’ve ever read this, but I did listen to an audiobook version of it back when I was working at Pima in 2012. I had to tag PDFs for read-aloud accessibility software – super mundane – and I listened to a good number of audiobooks while doing that.

Review: It’s so refreshing to read a book that’s not yet another exploration of class struggles in 18th- or 19th- or 20th-century England. I mean, I guess I just finished Breakfast of Champions, which was a great departure from what has been a typical theme/setting on this book list, but still. This one is from a dog’s perspective. About as different as you can get. And honestly, it was easier to empathize with Buck than it has been for a number of the English characters I’ve read about over the past few years, despite the fact that I am assuredly not a sled dog (at least in this lifetime).

Favorite Part: I like how this book almost reads as a fable. There’s something fantastical and legendary about Buck and his trials and eventual response to the “call of the wild” could easily be argued as teaching a moral lesson.

Rating: 6/10