Written by classic English author Rudyard Kipling, Just So Stories is considered not only a quintessential children's book, but one of Kipling's best works. Just So Stories is a collection of origin stories, fictional tales that explain why animals have certain characteristics and other themes akin to that. Kipling's book features stories such as "How the Whale Got His Throat," or why large whales eat small prey, and "How the Alphabet Was Made," which details a young girl and her father inventing an alphabet. Beautifully written and packed-full of illustrations, Just So Stories is the perfect combination of education and fun to get kids to love reading. This edition (ISBN: 9781645940166) is carefully reconstructed from the original edition, which was published in 1902 and was illustrated by Rudyard Kipling, himself. Even the cover of this edition reflects the first edition of "Just So Stories." Some very minor updates were required due to modern printing methods, but in the main, this is the closest the reader can get to the original edition just as Kipling wrote it, without having an actual first edition book in one's hand. This attractive hard cover edition is a perfect gift and will be coveted by libraries. Anyone trying to capture the magic and innocence of childhood will be charmed by this close reproduction of a century's old classic.