The Call of the Wild by Jack London

Buck, a strong and loyal St. Bernard mix, meets a world outside the comfy Santa Clara valley home when he was captured and abused, to be sold into the deleterious, but adventurous, Klondike Gold Rush in Yukon in 1897. There he gets sold into the team of a French Canadian man named François and his ally to become one of his sled dogs. For the new world Buck have been introduced to his it’s danger; also its glory as Buck has a taste of the wild. The dogs work has "seemed the supreme expression of their being, and all that they lived for and the only thing in which they took delight"; the dogs' loyalty that clashes with their wild nature expresses the theme of the book.

Much to Buck's surprise, he and his team come across conflicts during the journey, while conflicts occur between themselves. With every mile the dogs run together, their sense of value and pride strengthens. Driven by a desire to become the leader of the pack, experienced and worthy, Buck challenges his foe, the current leader of the pack, Spitz, to duel until death. As the new champion, Buck leads the pack with the ambition and control of a natural Figure of authority. Did his reign of comfort in his new life last? Did his life remain as it is?

Buck's life changes when he and his pack is sold to new masters when they arrived at a new post. The masters were far more different then his of before, these treated the dogs with far less consideration. The sled dogs were weak and pushed far past their ability, as they were sick, crippled, and underfed due to the lack of income. Yet with the multiple deaths and the small chance of survival, Buck's spirit clings on. Would Buck survive the challenges he will face? Does life become better?

London does an extraordinary in his novel, published in 1903, with his realistic descriptions of the gold rush and the behavior of dogs. I enjoyed the fact that the story is in the point of view of Buck himself, with his personality and thoughts of his encounters. This book would be a book for those who enjoy ready historical fiction and novels revolving the adventures of dogs. The emotions and the pain that the dogs felt were described poetically and in depth to such accuracy and sense, such that the Jack London has mastered that leaves a lasting Impression on the reader. The Call of the Wild has a conflict and theme that follows on the reality of how animals are treated and the influence of the wild.