The Call of the Wild

New York: The Macmillan Company, 1903. First edition. Fine/Very Good +. First printing, with "July, 1903" on the copyright page. A Fine copy in Very Good+ dust jacket. Complete, with the frontispiece and ten color plates. Publisher's pictorial green cloth stamped in color. Pinpoint burn mark to p. 135. A clean, fresh copy throughout. Dust jacket with subtle tissue reinforcement to verso at folds. Some faint white paint spatters to front panel. A very attractive example of London's beloved novel.

A Klondike Gold Rush adventure novel told from the point of view of the dog Buck, The Call of the Wild is also a consideration of the thin line that separates "civilized" creatures from their primal origins. Though he begins life as the pampered and much-loved pet of a California gentleman, Buck is stolen and forced into service as a sled dog in the Alaska Yukon. The lowest-ranking member of his pack, Buck faces abuse from his incompetent human owners as well as violence within his team as the dogs jockey for higher positions that aide their survival. Ultimately, Buck must relinquish his individualistic tameness to find his place as a trustworthy team leader and he must tap into the most primitive tendencies that lay dormant inside him. Fine in Very Good + dust jacket.