Reviews with content warning for Animal death - White Fang

Reviews tagging 'Animal death'

White Fang by Jack London

25 reviews

rtfansler's review against another edition

adventurous dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Started off really good, slow in the middle, and good at the end.
Many nature scenes are unrealistic and the author’s racism is evident.

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readingthroughthelists's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging informative tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

It is almost impossible not to compare White Fang with its companion novel Call of the Wild, and in such a comparison, the edge definitely goes to Call of the Wild.

Both books share similar themes even as they move their central canines on opposite trajectories: White Fang toward the power and domination of man, and Buck toward the brutal, unforgiving world of the wild. Both works meditate on the nature of power, the unforgiving attitude of the cold north, the way human morality breaks down in the face of the survival instinct, and the love that a good man can have on a mistreated animal.

But where Call of the Wild is tight and focused, White Fang meanders and becomes repetitive in places. I also found the ending surprisingly unsatisfying. Given the brutality present both in Call of the Wild and even earlier in White Fang, it seems almost “out of character” for everything to work out so tidily.

In my opinion, White Fang should have died defending Wheedon Scott--his unwavering loyalty to his “gods” resulting in the ultimate self-sacrifice, but his legacy still secured through Collie’s litter.

I also have many thoughts on the description and treatment of the “gods” throughout the novel, both Indigenous and white, but those will need some time and a re-read to properly parse out.

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spectreops's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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snackattackisback69's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I read this book when I was younger and found the first two thirds of the books hard to read due to the suffering White Fang endured. The last third of the book was much more heartwarming as he finally finds love and belonging in a cruel world.

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