Saturday, March 20, 2010

Authors donate tales to modern version of Kipling's Just So Stories

William Boyd, Hanif Kureishi and Michael Morpurgo to contribute to anthology of animal stories, inspired by Rudyard Kipling's Just So Stories, intended to raise money for endangered species
by: Alison Flood

More than 100 years, oh Best Beloved, after Rudyard Kipling published his Just So Stories, authors including William Boyd, Hanif Kureishi and Michael Morpurgo are contributing to an anthology inspired by Kipling's classic children's book which will raise money for endangered species.

The Just When Stories, also featuring contributions from award-winning Australian illustrator Shaun Tan and Canadian writer Karen Connelly, winner of the Orange prize for new writers, will see the authors writing a short story about an animal of their choice. Boyd, author of Restless and Ordinary Thunderstorms, has tackled the chimpanzee, Kureishi has taken on the ladybird and former children's laureate Morpurgo has written about a boy who finds a turtle.

Kipling's story collection — including How the Rhinoceros Got His Skin, How the Whale Got His Throat, How the Leopard Got His Spots and The Cat that Walked By Himself — was first published in 1902. "Three to four of the animals which Kipling wrote about are now highly endangered, so it seemed like a really nice fit to look at his stories again," said the Just When project's instigator Tamara Gray, a campaigner against illegal trade in endangered species since 1990. "The first person I approached was William Boyd, and he said it was a great idea and that he'd do it. I thought, if I can get him, I'm going to be able to do this."

The authors, who have donated their stories to the anthology, were not asked to write in the style of Kipling, said Gray. "We haven't asked them to replicate how Kipling wrote - it's just a nod to him, looking again at the animals and letting them choosing what to write about," she said. All profits from the sale of the book will be donated to WildAid and the David Shepherd Wildlife Foundation, said Gray. The book will be published by Beautiful Books in August, along with an audiobook read by actors including David Tennant and Romola Garai.

Boyd called the project "a wonderful cause and a wonderful opportunity to help". Author Lauren St John, who contributed the story Tiger Tiger to the anthology, said that she believes "it is the sacred duty of anyone who loves and cares for animals to do whatever they can to help in the fight to save endangered species". Nury Vittachi, who is donating the story The Legend of Earthseasky, said that "while scientists can help endangered species in practical ways, I was thrilled that authors can play a small part too, by capturing some of the magic and wonder of the animal kingdom".

from: The Guardian

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