BobQuasit reviewed The story of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting
Gentle, funny, charming, and censored
5 stars
"The Story of Doctor Dolittle" is the first book in the Doctor Dolittle series by Hugh Lofting. They began as a series of illustrated letters that he sent to his children from the trenches of World War I as a soldier.
The Doctor is a kind-hearted man, a doctor of humans (originally) whose lack of worldliness ends up losing him almost all of his human patients. His African parrot Polynesia decides to help him become an animal doctor instead—but a very special one, unique in fact, as she teaches him the languages of the animals. Things only get better from there.
In this first novel the character of the Doctor is established, along with many of his human and animal friends. He's asked to come to Africa by the animals there, to treat a disease that's killing them; once there he has more adventures.
Some of those adventures led to …
"The Story of Doctor Dolittle" is the first book in the Doctor Dolittle series by Hugh Lofting. They began as a series of illustrated letters that he sent to his children from the trenches of World War I as a soldier.
The Doctor is a kind-hearted man, a doctor of humans (originally) whose lack of worldliness ends up losing him almost all of his human patients. His African parrot Polynesia decides to help him become an animal doctor instead—but a very special one, unique in fact, as she teaches him the languages of the animals. Things only get better from there.
In this first novel the character of the Doctor is established, along with many of his human and animal friends. He's asked to come to Africa by the animals there, to treat a disease that's killing them; once there he has more adventures.
Some of those adventures led to criticism and censorship in the latter 20th century. The idea that an English doctor would be summoned to save the animals of Africa was seen as racist, another iteration of the Great White Hope; this was intolerable to some critics.
Far more offensive to some, however, was the section in which the Doctor and his animal family were captured by an African king - a human. Locked up in the king's dungeon, the Doctor is only able to escape by tricking the king's son, Prince Bumpo. The Prince wants to become white (sorry, but that's in the story), because he fell in love with a sleeping white woman who cried out when she woke and saw that he was black.
The Doctor dyes his face white (temporarily), but remarks that the whole thing is ridiculous; he says that the Prince has a good heart, which is all that should matter. The animals make disparaging remarks about the silliness of the white woman. Nonetheless, the publishing world would not forgive Lofting. Long after his death, with the assent of his estate, the book was rewritten VERY badly to replace that section with a threadbare hypnotism plot.
For years no published version of the book in the United States included the original text; just the bowdlerized version. And then the ironic gods of copyright laughed. For the book passed into the public domain—but NOT the rewritten text, only the original!
Let me get personal for a minute: I read this book when I was •very• young. Several times, in fact. I loved it; the gentle humor was perfect for me, and the adventures of the Doctor and his animals thrilled me without frightening me.
As for the racism of the Africa section, none of my brethren in the Klan have ever had any problem with it. KIDDING! I grew up without any racism, I hope, but in any case "The Story of Doctor Dolittle" certainly didn't make me a racist monster. What I took to heart was what the Doctor said about Prince Bumpo's heart, and that Prince Bumpo himself became a visiting member of the Dolittle family–unless he's been edited out of later books in the series as well, in the name of tolerance.
Obviously I have strong feelings about this. I won't apologize for them. I'll admit that some of the drawings of Africans in the book could be seen as offensive, but they did no harm to me as far as I know.
"So the swallow was brought in, all huddled and shivering; and although she was a little afraid at first, she soon got warmed up and sat on the edge of the mantelpiece and began to talk.
When she had finished the Doctor said,
“I would gladly go to Africa — especially in this bitter weather. But I’m afraid we haven’t money enough to buy the tickets. Get me the money-box, Chee-Chee.”
So the monkey climbed up and got it off the top shelf of the dresser.
There was nothing in it — not one single penny!
“I felt sure there was twopence left,” said the Doctor.
“There was” said the owl. “But you spent it on a rattle for that badger’s baby when he was teething.”
“Did I?” said the Doctor— “dear me, dear me! What a nuisance money is, to be sure!"
The Doctor's feelings towards money influenced me very much.
Anyway, the original, unexpurgated text and illustrations are available in a beautifully formatted ebooks, in all the major formats, at Standard Ebooks. The earlier books in the series are available, and more are entering the public domain regularly.
standardebooks.org/ebooks/hugh-lofting/the-story-of-doctor-dolittle
Happy reading! 🤓📖