Rikki-Tikki Tavi

Rikki-Tikki-Tavi

by Rudyard Kipling

audiobook: 40 minutes

narrated by Sumeet Bharati

*** About the Short Story ***

This story is from Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book.  It tells of a young mongoose named Rikki-Tikki who comes to live in the home of a man, his wife, and their young son.  Rikki-Tikki, like others of his kind, is very curious and very brave.  When he finds deadly snakes living in the garden and planning to attack the human family, he sets out to kill the snakes and save the family.


*** Why I Listened To It ***

This was available as a free download from Audible.com a while back.  Recently Kiddo and I listened to a creepy story and Kiddo needed something to lighten the mood before he went to bed.  I remembered that I had this on my phone so we listened to it while eating snack together.


*** My Thoughts ***

Does anyone else remember the cartoon based on this?  I just LOVED it!

Anyway, it was a real treat for me to revisit this story with Kiddo.  It is an exciting story, albeit a bit brutal (it IS nature after all, and nature isn't always nice) and I remember really enjoying it when I was young.

For once, a story that I loved as a child stood up to the test of time and I still enjoyed it as an adult.  I've never read or listened to all of The Jungle Book (though I am, of course, familiar with the Disney movie, and Cub Scouting draws heavily on imagery from the book) but I might have to do that now ...


*** Kiddo's Thoughts ***

Let me tell you, Kiddo was hooked on this story from the very start.  I had to keep reminding him to finish his snack, to pay attention to eating, because he was so caught up in the story that he just sat at the table staring into space, listening with all his might.


As soon as the book ended I sent Kiddo off to brush his teeth and get ready for bed.  A few minutes later, over the sound of running water and brushing teeth, here's the conversation we had:

Kiddo: "Mom, can I have a mongoose for a pet?"
Me: "Maybe if we lived in India."
Kiddo: "Oh. Because I'd really like one to cuddle up with."
Me: "Sorry Kiddo."

After he got in bed and snuggled in I heard him calling me from his room:

Kiddo: "Mom, do they make stuffed mongooses? You know, like regular stuffed animals?"
Me: "I'm sure they do, but I don't think I've ever seen one.  Would you like me to look for one for you?"
Kiddo: "Yeah! I really want one."
Me: "Ok, I'll see what I can do."

Unfortunately all I found was this one, which although cute is also ridiculously expensive.  Anyone know where I can find a reasonably priced stuffed mongoose toy that I could give Kiddo for Christmas?!



*** Your Thoughts ***

Did you read this story or see the movie as a child?  What did you think of it?  How does it compare to the other stories in The Jungle Book?