The Call of the Wild, Week 4

Welcome to the final discussion of The Call of the Wild.

What did you think of this last section? Did you enjoy the ending? Did you feel like it was how you would have ended the story? Did you wish for anything to be different? 

This last section begins with Buck working under the new, ill-prepared owners. It's surprising that the dogs were able to survive for as long as they did. Is it bad to say that I wasn't sad when they fell through the ice at the end of chapter 5? I was sad that the dogs were lost, but I wasn't sad that the people were lost. They were horrible. They treated the dogs horribly and weren't responsible enough to have dogs. 

I really enjoyed reading chapter 6! Finally a break in the brutality of the novel! I loved reading about the way that Thornton and Buck interacted with each other, and I loved that Buck was finally able to love and play. Buck definitely seems to be a kind of dog that I wouldn't want to run into in a dark alley. I couldn't believe the way he fought so ferociously to protect Thornton. Did you suspect that Buck would be able to carry that heavy sled all by himself? I really can't imagine it. Buck seems to be a mythic character capable of anything. His ability to take down that moose near the end of the book seemed mythic. He was sure patient to keep following the moose and waiting for it to fall and die. 

What do you think would have happened to Buck if Thornton hadn't died? Do you think he would eventually headed the call to be completely wild, or would he have kept coming back to Thornton? I feel like he would have kept going back and forth. He was so crazy with grief when Thornton died. That definitely killed the remaining humanity in Buck. He turned completely wild after that. Do you think he had a pleasant life? The end of the book seems to hint that he was fruitful and was a successful wild dog. I hope he was happy. 

Do you think you would enjoy reading another book like this? I didn't enjoy the violence, but I didn't mind that the main character was a dog. If you'd like to check out books and movies that are similar to The Call of the Wild, check out this list I created. Make sure to let me know if you check out anything on the list. 

Are you curious about how the movie version and the book compare? Check out this article that explains the differences between the book and the movie. After that, check out this site that's selling first edition copies of The Call of the Wild. Is the price more than you expected? 

Finally, before you go, check out this article to find out how Jack London worked to end animal cruelty in entertainment. I thought it was really interesting that he cared about this issue. 

I hope you enjoyed the end of the book. Thanks for following along this month--I hope you'll leave a comment to let me know what you thought of the book. Join us again next month as we read The Good Lord Bird by James McBride. I hope to hear from you in the comments section!