Rating: 4 out of 5
As humans, it is natural to personify the objects and creatures we write about. This error is common, but of course unnatural — the wants and wishes of another creature are different to those of our own. Yet, we need a way to understand other animals. I think that Mr London reaches a veritable level with Buck.
For some reason I always expected Buck to take a back seat as soon as a “true” human was shown to the reader. Yet, the book worked a lot better just because the author did not take this step. The adventures of Buck are shown only through the eyes of this dog — and this method of writing works quite well.
Buck characterises the will of a noble character, and it is a pleasure to see how he reacts to the events around him, including the story of Mr Thornton. The wild forests of the Northwest only add another strength to this story.
