Bambi: A Life in the Woods
By Felix Salten, Cindy Thornton and Hannah Correll
4/5
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About this ebook
Most 90s kids grew up with the adorable Disney movie Bambi, but did you know it was originally a book? Now the classic 1923 novel about the life of a young deer is getting a new edition filled with beautiful, full-color illustrations!
The original story of young Bambi starts as he begins life in the forest with his mother, cousins, and other furry friends. However, as winter spreads it icy hands over the forest, Bambi’s father, a powerful stag, leaves Bambi and his mother alone to brave the elements and scavenge for food. Bambi also faces the threat of Man, along with Man’s weapons that can hurt and kill any animal.
Though Bambi fears for his life and the well-being of his friends and family, nothing, not even Man, can stop him from growing to become a mighty Prince of the Forest. With the beautiful refurbished text and illustrations, adults and children of all ages can enjoy this new edition of the original Bambi.
Felix Salten
Felix Salten (1869–1945) was an Austrian author and critic in Vienna. His most famous work is Bambi.
Read more from Felix Salten
Bambi's Children: The Story of a Forest Family Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Perri Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Forest World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fifteen Rabbits Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Renni the Rescuer Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Hound of Florence Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFlorian: The Emperor's Stallion Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bambi: A Life In the Woods Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe City Jungle Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDjibi Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
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Reviews for Bambi
324 ratings15 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I am not sure if it is possible to find someone who can now read the book BEFORE seeing the movie.. but if you are one of those people, you might try it out. For the rest of us, as the first reviewer hinted.. there is at least one lesson left out of the movie.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5It's a nice little book. It's kind of hard to read, not because of itself but because everyone knows the story of Bambi - the Disney story. Which bears little resemblance to this, like 101 Dalmations. No Thumper, no Flower, a lot more death and grimness. Gobo was completely cut out of the movie - not surprising, that's a complicated and morally ambiguous sequence. And the insistence on self-sufficiency is pretty much out of the movie, or at least not given anything like the emphasis it has in the book. Now I wonder if there are other translations of the book, or if Chambers' version is the standard one? This language is just a little odd - slightly stilted, with some odd word choices, particularly with adjectives. I'd be interested to read a different translation, to see if the feel is different. Nice story, but carrying a lot of baggage until it's hard to see it for itself.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A very heartbreaking story about the struggles of a baby dear out in the wild, Bambi is sure to expose your soft side.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The differences between this book and Disney's animated version are many. As others have already mentioned, this is definitely a darker tale. I thought the beginning was slow, but by the first appearance of the fall season I was hooked. I hope that other adults will not shy away from giving this children's classic a try. You will not be disappointed.
Now that the story is over I find myself still mulling over the conversation between the two leaves. I have great respect for Salten's ability to evoke empathy for something as seemingly innocuous as a leaf. I'm also mentally munching on the face-off between the fox and the hound. That scene was incredible. - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I loved this book as a child. I remember renewing it every two weeks for about three months from the library at one point. I just re-read to see what I would think of it as an adult and found it really interesting. Salten's depictions of masculinity and femininity are really interesting to parse out, especially in regards to the ideas of independence, solitude and wisdom. I wasn't as focused on the relationship of Man to wildlife that forms the core of the book, but instead was really taken by the ways in which Salten defines the transition from youth to adulthood.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A classic story for animal fantasy. The book from which Disney’s movie Bambi was based, though the book and movie have only some similarities. The book is a lot more violent though most of it is only hinted and the man (called He and Him in the book) plays a lot more of an in story role. I really liked how within the story so many different views are given to what He is from almost a kind of a god to just another living being. A really heart warming tale.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I know what you're thinking...Bambi, seriously? Yes, I've been on a kick of reading children's classics that are also Disney movies, in order to see how Disney ruined them or improved them.
First off, Bambi is a strange book. You could group it with other animals-with-human-characteristics books, such as Watership Down and The Rats of NIMH. But, unlike those books, which have a great-escape type plot, Bambi doesn't have much of a plot, it's simply the life of a deer, being born and growing old.
Disney made the film version very cutesy, however, Bambi as a book is very serious. There's no skunk named Flower, no Thumper (although there is a rabbit with a minor role), and no running around being "twitterpated". There's no comedy or laugh out loud cute moments. The film builds up to the potential-childhood-scarring-scence were Bambi's mother dies, making it the great tragedy of the cartoon. However, in Bambi the book, there is much more death.
Seeing as Bambi is probably not on a lot of people's "must read", I'll go ahead and ruin it for ya...animals with minor roles die (squirrel, rabbit, fox), Bambi's mother, Bambi's cousin, Bambi's father, and even one of the hunters dies in the forest. It's unclear if the hunter tripped and hit his head or killed himself with a gun or what since it's from Bambi's point-of-view, anyhow he's bleeding and dead.
One could argue that Bambi's doe, Faline, is dead at the end of the book, because there's a fawn running around looking for her mother that looks just like Faline. However, I just read that Felix Salten wrote a sequel with Faline as one of the characters, so I guess she's not dead. Although, if you didn't know that, you could interpret that way.
Anyhow, after reading the book, I really wish there was a film version that did the book justice. I think the essence of Bambi's story would fit in well with Hayao Miyazaki films such as Pom Poko and Princess Mononoke.
Overall, Salten did a good job in teaching the reader about a deer's life, but it's an odd book. - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I first read this book when I was in the fourth grade. It's probably been over 40 years since I last read it, but as I found an old copy in a resale store, I decided to reread it.Bambi can be read by children, as I read it many years ago, and enjoyed for the animals, but it's really not a children's story, but a story that can be enjoyed by young and old alike, for different reasons. I really enjoyed it from an adult perspective. It told the story of the animals of the woods, and the encroachment of man "He/Him", but not in a preachy manner. There is violence and death, but it is not overdone or glorified for a cause.Well written, nice dialogue and descriptions of forest and meadow life.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I suspect I'm not terribly unique in never having read Bambi and having my only knowledge of the story being the Disney film. Bambi is a short novel written by Felix Salten in the early 1920s and was widely popular when it was released. It even had a sequel (Bambi's Children).For those unfamiliar with the concept of the novel, Bambi is a book set in a forest and centered around the character of Bambi. It just happens that Bambi is a deer. We start the novel learning of Bambi's birth and then continue through the various stages of his life. Initially, the only characters are Bambi and his mother. Slowly, Bambi's circle of existence expands and he meets other animals and eventually even meets other deer, including a pair of other fawns born the same season as him.The story progresses at a leisurely pace, letting us grow slowly with young Bambi. We learn about the way of life in the forest, the way things are balanced, the various small dangers lurking about. We also see Bambi's innate curiosity when he discovers various topics that his mother is unwilling to expound to him. She teaches him that there is danger standing out in the open meadow in the middle of the day, but she isn't willing to go into detail about the threat of Man. She only tells him that they must only go to the meadow at night and that if they are ever in the meadow and she starts to run, that he must run as well and keep running no matter what.Bambi's natural curiosity continues to grow with each passing month. I really enjoy the way Salten portrays the childlike innocence of Bambi as he explores his world and asks many questions as he tries to understand the motivations and behaviors of the world around him. I also found it interesting the way Salten portrayed some of the instinctual behaviors of the animals and either explained them or didn't explain them but rather commented that they were just the way things were supposed to be.Naturally I found many points where the story diverged from the version portrayed in the Disney movie. There were many points of similarity and some familiar characters but I found the book more thoughtful and thought provoking than the film. Both had elements of humor and are definitely appropriate for children, especially for generating deeper conversations with kids, but the cartoon movie was naturally a bit more whimsical while the book had a little more seriousness even during playful sequences.There were two key differences from the movie that I especially appreciated.I liked the interactions with the additional fawns, in particular the interaction with the little deer named Gobo. I don't want to reveal spoilers, but I found Gobo to be a very interesting character as he shared his opinions and insights on Man. He provided an interesting counterpoint that sets Bambi thinking and creates later tension and intrigue amongst the animals.The difference that I most enjoyed between the movie and the novel was that the novel went into much more depth about the other bucks and in particular the Old Stag. In the movie, he is presented as a sort of wise, stoic creature who shows up briefly with words of knowledge. While this is certainly true in the book, he has a much larger presence and Bambi makes a distinct effort to learn more about and from the Old Stag. I really liked the way the book portrayed the animal relationship with their elders and the way the older deer, especially the old stag, interacted with the other deer.On the whole, this was a great read. With my only knowledge of Bambi being the Disney movie, this book was much different than I expected and I rather enjoyed that. Reading was a peaceful commune with nature that led me down thoughtful paths to ponder on later. Salten's other novels also seem to be explorations of the lives of animals and the natural world. He has one direct sequel to this book (Bambi's Children) as well as a number of stories in the same forest as Bambi (it's unclear to me if those stories are just excerpts from Bambi or if they are new tales). Salten's bibliography has a number of books that look interesting and varied. Bambi is an excellent place to start but I am interested in reading more.****4 out of 5 stars
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5this is an EXCELLENT book. it's a lot different and much darker than the disney movie(which i also love). there is a chapter with a seriously philosophical discussion between the last two leaves in the forest at the end of fall, which i have to say is one of coolest things i've ever read. ”
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A true classic! I will forever remember Chapter 8 as one of the best chapters ever written. The perfect story for all ages. I'll never look at deer the same way again.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Let's get Disney out of the way first. This book does feature a deer named Bambi, and his mother is shot by a hunter. There are no other similarities between the book and the animated Disney Classic. This is a "talking animal" story, in which apart from talking, the animals all largely behave the way real animals of their particular species behave. The villain is "man" simply referred to in the book as He, with a capital H, and there are several encounters with man - none of which are positive. Bambi is a fawn through about the first third of the story. Then a "young adult" for the next third, and a full scale Prince of the Deer for the final third.I would have enjoyed a bit more actual story to the book. Apart from the encounters with He, it felt largely like just witnessing scenes from a deer's life. (To be fair, since these deer mainly behave like real deer, a true plot might have destroyed the effect.) Maybe it hasn't aged well, or maybe it's just not the kind of tale I get into. I'm clearly in the minority of reviewers on this site.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5There are a number of ways of approaching Bambi, but one way it should not be seen is as a children's book; it was originally published in Austria in 1923 for adults - it was the Disney film that associated Bambi with children's fare. Bambi is considered by some critics to be the first "environmental novel" which is probably the most significant aspect. The descriptions of woodland life are some of the most sublimely beautiful I've ever read. It's also been called a political allegory on the treatment of Jews in Europe, and was banned in Nazi Germany (Salten was Jewish), which makes the novel even more powerful as you read along considering how history would unfold and who the author was. It would probably lessen the novel to call it a political allegory though it easily stands alongside Animal Farm; and it's more than just a beast fantasy even though it has echoes of Watership Down. It is all these things and also just a beautifully told story.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I'm really not completely sure how I feel about this book now that I've finished it. On one hand, it is well written and there are scenes that illustrate the beauty and innocence of nature so vividly that one is able to picture them even without the wonderful illustrations of this particular version. Yet, there is also much of this book that deals with the violent and grisly destruction that humans bring to the wildlife of the forest.How this became regarded as a children's story, I'm not really sure. The scenes of death throughout the book are graphic and horrifying and their is a true feeling of absolute terror at times that is truly palpable. To me, this book is being aimed directly at those who choose to kill and destroy for the pure thrill and feeling of power that they derive from it and is an attempt to illustrate the destruction that these kind of actions provoke. It's done through very powerful imagery and makes one very uncomfortable at times.Why Disney decided to make this into a mostly feel-good story, I'm not sure, but those unsuspecting children who decided to read the book that one of their favorite films was based upon were surely exposed to quite a shocking experience.I didn't hate it, but I can't really say that I enjoyed it all that much either.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This edited/abridged version of classic children's novel loses some of the harsh, dark charm but is beautifully illustrated.
Book preview
Bambi - Felix Salten
Chapter 1
He came into the world in the middle of a thicket, stood, swaying timidly on his thin legs, trembling mightily.
What a beautiful baby!
called out a magpie. It is so hard to gather food for the little ones and look after them so no danger comes to them, isn’t it?
But the mother did not answer. She continued to wash the newborn with her tongue. His small red back was still a bit tousled, sprinkled with fine white dots.
It was early summer, and a mix of voices rang throughout the forest–orioles, pigeons, blackbirds, pheasants, woodpeckers, and titmice. But the little one didn’t understand their songs and shrieks. He snuggled up to his mother to search for food.
Bambi,
whispered his mother. My little Bambi.
These were Bambi’s first days, and he loved to ask his mother questions.
Who does this path belong to?
he said.
Us.
Just us?
No,
said his mother, we deer . . .
What is deer?
asked Bambi, and he laughed.
His mother looked at him and laughed, too. You are a deer, and I am a deer. That is what deer is. Do you understand?
Bambi sprung into the air with joy. Yes, I understood that! I am a little deer and you are a big deer.
Chapter 2
Bambi and his mother stood before a meadow. He longed to jump out into it, but his mother stood still and checked the wind, breathing slowly.
It is safe,
she finally said. But keep an eye on me constantly. If you see that I turn back, then you must run from here as fast as you can. I will find you. And if you see that I . . . that I fall to the ground . . . you cannot stop for me, do you understand? Run like the wind, back into the woods. Do you promise me this?
Yes,
said Bambi, quietly.
Good,
said Bambi’s mother. Then she looked jovially at him and called, Come out!
Bambi leaped out into the meadow. He