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Faced with the failure of his physician's clinic, Doctor John Dolittle turns to the animal world and, with the help of his parrot Polynesia, learns to speak their language. As news of his veterinary practice spreads, Dolittle is recruited to cure animals around the world.
The Story of Doctor Dolittle is a children's novel by Hugh Lofting.
About the author
Hugh Lofting (1886-1947) was an English writer, soldier, and civil engineer. Born in Berkshire, England, Lofting was raised in a family with Irish and English parentage. Educated at Mount St Mary's College, Lofting matriculated at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he studied civil engineering between 1905 and 1906. After working for several years as a civil engineer, Lofting enlisted in the Irish Guards in order to fight in the Great War. Horrified by his experience in combat, Lofting wrote creative letters home to his wife and children that originated his legendary character Doctor Dolittle, a physician with the unique ability to speak with animals. Gravely wounded in France, Lofting returned home briefly before moving with his family to Connecticut. In 1920, he published
The Story of Doctor Dolittle, the first in a series of fifteen novels and short story collections for children that have inspired numerous adaptations for theater, film, and television. In addition to these novels, Lofting published several other works for children-including picture books and poems-as well as
Victory for the Slain (1942), a long antiwar poem and his only work written for adult readers.
