Dr. Dolittle remembered

Coming in a close second, a very close one, to the Oz books are the Dr. Dolittle series. I have been totally enthralled by all things Puddleby (the town that Dr. Dolittle calls "home") since I read the first one over four decades ago. The first collection of books I seriously tracked were older (including a first edition) copies of all of the titles. My desktop design and photography business is cheerfully labeled "DoLittle Designs." (Very fitting, since I "do little" with it quite a lot of the time)

I really wish that the Eddie Murphy movies had never been filmed. They totally ruined the original idea of Dr. Dolittle (perfectly casted in the 1967 film version starring Rex Harrison) in the minds of anyone who hadn't read the books or seen the original movie yet. Dr. Dolittle was portrayed in the books as a man definitely ahead of his time. He walked that fine line between realizing that animals are sentient...and still not becoming a vegetarian. He was a pacifist, but when the time called for it, he had a deadly aim with a gun.

The first book, The Story of Dr. Dolittle was introduced in 1920 and the last in the series (Dr. Dolittle's Puddleby Adventures) was published after Hugh Lofting's death, in 1952. All in all fourteen books featuring the loveable pudgy physician reached the shelves of hungry-minded children (and adults) around the world. They are as entertaining and interesting today as they were almost a hundred years ago. Truly timeless, no matter your age there's nothing quite like escaping into the world where two-headed Pushmi-Pullyus exist and a grumpy white duck named Dab-Dab has a job as the clinic receptionist for the amazing and amusing Dr. Dolittle.

The books were actually published a bit out of chronological order but since each one stands alone, it doesn't really matter. (To keep things in order, read the 5th book after the first one)

1) The Story of Doctor Dolittle (1920)
2) The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle (1922)
3) Doctor Dolittle's Post Office -- (1923)
4) Doctor Dolittle's Circus -- (1924)
5) Doctor Dolittle's Zoo -- (1925)
6) Doctor Dolittle's Caravan -- (1926)
7) Doctor Dolittle's Garden -- (1927)
8) Doctor Dolittle in the Moon -- (1928)
9) Gub-Gub's Book, An Encyclopaedia of Food -- (1932)
10) Doctor Dolittle's Return -- (1933)
11) Doctor Dolittle's Birthday Book -- (1936)
12) Doctor Dolittle and the Secret Lake -- (1948)
13) Doctor Dolittle and the Green Canary -- (1950)
14) Doctor Dolittle's Puddleby Adventures -- (1952)

To learn more about all things "Dolittle" check out The Puddleby Page.

To order The Story of Dr. Dolittle free for your Kindle, click HERE.