To Build a Fire and Other Stories
Written by Jack London
Narrated by Patrick Lawlor
4/5
()
About this audiobook
Jack London
Jack London was born in San Francisco on January 12th 1876, the unwanted child of a spiritualist mother and astrologer father. He was raised by Virginia Prentiss, a former slave, before rejoining his mother and her new husband, John London. Largely self-educated, the teenage Jack made money stealing oysters and working on a schooner before briefly studying at the University of Berkeley in 1896. He left to join the Klondike Gold Rush a year later, a phenomenon that would go on to form the background of his literary masterpieces, The Call of the Wild (1903) and White Fang (1906). Alongside his novel writing London dabbled in war reportage, agriculture and politics. He was married twice and had two daughters from his first marriage. London died in 1916 from complications of numerous chronic illnesses.
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Reviews for To Build a Fire and Other Stories
17 ratings7 reviews
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5If you want to read a story that's half description of setting and half a stupid, overconfident man freezing to death in the arctic cold while his dog watches then you'll love this.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Probably the best short story I have ever read.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5To Build A Fire' - arguably the greatest short story written in the English language? London at his very best.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Probably the best short story I have ever read.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5To Build a Fire is a bittersweet tale of a man last few hours before his death. It was a a melancholy experience to read about this callous man who begins to freeze while he walks to meet some other men. It is such a cold day that the man had been forewarned. He is so stubborn he believes the warnings are from weaker people than he. I liked this adventure even though I prefer happier endings and would only recommend it to students who can maturely reason the man’s death and see that the dog makes the ending a happy one.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I gave this 5 stars in paper format, but never reviewed it. It's been decades since I last read it, so I'm overwriting that edition with this one. I remember some of the stories very well.
Overall, the stories ranged from OK to fantastic, but overall, they were quite good. It was depressing as hell, though. It's a tough world where a 'happy' ending is surviving intact. I'm not surprised I let so many years go by between reads. Definitely memorable, but certainly not uplifting. Still, I recommend it.
There is an underlying morality to all the stories of perseverance & honor. No matter how bad it gets, the best keep trying to do their best. It might kill them, but it's a harsh world. Mere death is no excuse.
If you haven't read these stories or don't remember them, don't read the spoilers. They are & sometimes that's what really makes the story good.
To Build A Fire 5 stars but depressing as hell. Great point & adventure story of the Yukon, though.
The Red One 2 stars, an attempt at mixing "Heart of Darkness" with a Wells or Verne SF story. Didn't do much for me. Takes place in the Solomons, Guadalcanal.
All Gold Canyon 4 stars, another gold digging adventure that was rather manic depressive.
A Piece of Steak 4 stars, a boxing story & depressing as hell. Is he trying to get me to follow him into alcoholic depression? It's moving as hell, although a bit long winded.
The Love of Life 4 stars, survival in the arctic, although at least it is relatively warm. Tough men!!! At least one lived. About time.
Flush of Gold 3 stars, kind of a horror story, a real shame.
The Story of Keesh 3 stars. Told as a myth, it's memorable & one of the few that isn't depressing, if you look at it one way. In another, it's horrible. OK, the guy was feeding folks, but killing polar bears by feeding them bones that tore up their innards & killed them slowly & in great pain is awful.
The Wisdom of the Trail 3 stars. Not really a myth, but kind of a native voice. A short story of tough times on the northern trails. - Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5Yep. I DNFed a short story."In reality, it was not merely colder than 50 below zero; it was colder than 60 below, than 70 below. It was 75 below zero. Because the freezing point is 32 above zero, it meant that there were 107 degrees of frost."I suppose, if one has never been to Alaska or only been in the summer, that is interesting. The best aspects of this story are how it tells you, quite thoroughly, what Alaska and the Yukon are like down to the details of freezing spit and saliva. Trouble is, I've lived there. I don't need repeated descriptions of the minutiae of what it's like in the winter. I've walked to work at 60 below. I know.His descriptions of the area are excellent. His writing is not to my taste.