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Cover of Just so stories

Just so stories

by Rudyard Kipling (1865–1936)

  • Free to read
  • 2 hours to read
  • 15 chapters
  • Reading level: 6th grade

"Just So Stories" by Rudyard Kipling is a collection of origin stories published in 1902. These whimsical tales explain how animals acquired their distinctive features—from the leopard's spots to the elephant's trunk to the camel's hump. Beginning as bedtime stories told to his daughter that had to be recounted "just so," Kipling crafted fantastical accounts where magical beings and humans transform creatures through curious encounters. Illustrated by Kipling himself, these stories blend playful storytelling with imaginative explanations of the natural world.

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  • Short stories
  • Children's stories, English
  • Animals

Read the opening

By Rvdyard Kipling

Pictures by Joseph M. Gleeson

Doubleday Page & Company
1912

"Just So Stories," have also been copyrighted
separately as follows: How the Whale Got His Tiny
Throat. Copyright, 1897, by the Century Company.
How the Camel Got His Hump. Copyright, 1897, by
the Century Company. How the Rhinoceros Got His
Wrinkly Skin. Copyright, 1898, by the Century
Company. The Elephant's Child. Copyright, 1900, by
Rudyard Kipling; Copyright, 1900, by the Curtis
Publishing Company. The Beginning of the
Armadillos. Copyright, 1900, by Rudyard Kipling.
The Sing Song of Old Man Kangaroo. Copyright, 1900
by Rudyard Kipling. How the Leopard Got His Spots,
Copyright, 1901, by Rudyard Kipling. How the First
Letter Was Written. Copyright, 1901, by Rudyard
Kipling. The Cat That Walked by Himself,
Copyright, 1902, by Rudyard Kipling.

Keep reading Just so stories →

Contents

  1. By Rvdyard Kipling
  2. Page
  3. How the Whale Got His Throat
  4. How the Camel Got His Hump
  5. How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin
  6. How the Leopard Got His Spots
  7. The Elephant's Child
  8. The Sing-Song of Old Man Kangaroo
  9. The Beginning of the Armadillos
  10. How the First Letter Was Written
  11. How the Alphabet Was Made
  12. The Crab That Played with the Sea
  13. The Cat That Walked by Himself
  14. The Butterfly That Stamped
  15. The Country Life Press Garden City, N. Y

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About this edition

This free edition of Just so stories by Rudyard Kipling comes from Project Gutenberg eBook #32488, released 2010-05-23. It is in the public domain in the United States, so you can read it here in full at no cost, on any phone, tablet or computer. Genre: Short Stories, Children & Young Adult Reading, Mythology, Legends & Folklore, British Literature.

Other editions: eBook #2781 (most read).

Summary provided by Project Gutenberg (automatically generated).

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