Doctor Dolittle's Post Office
Encyclopedia
Doctor Dolittle's Post Office is the third of Hugh Lofting
's Doctor Dolittle
books. Set on the West Coast of Africa
, the book follows the episodic format of most other books in the series. In the beginning of the book, Doctor Dolittle helps to capture a slaver trader's ship, then organizes the postal service of a small African kingdom. Over the course of later chapters, he discovers a hidden island populated by prehistoric creatures, meets the oldest living creature on Earth, gets thrown into another African jail, invents animal alphabets, defeats at least two armies, and each of the animals in the Dolittle family tells a personal story. The postal program grows into a worldwide postal and publishing service for the benefit of animals everywhere.
The final segment of the story tells the story of the Doctor's journey to meet Mudface the Turtle, the oldest living creature on Earth, who relates the story of the Great Flood to the Doctor in the final chapters of the book. The extended version of the tale itself is presented in a later volume of the series, Doctor Dolittle and the Secret Lake
.
Hugh Lofting
Hugh John Lofting was a British author, trained as a civil engineer, who created the character of Doctor Dolittle — one of the classics of children's literature.-Personal life:...
's Doctor Dolittle
Doctor Dolittle
Doctor John Dolittle is the central character of a series of children's books by Hugh Lofting starting with the 1920 The Story of Doctor Dolittle. He is a doctor who shuns human patients in favour of animals, with whom he can speak in their own languages...
books. Set on the West Coast of Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, the book follows the episodic format of most other books in the series. In the beginning of the book, Doctor Dolittle helps to capture a slaver trader's ship, then organizes the postal service of a small African kingdom. Over the course of later chapters, he discovers a hidden island populated by prehistoric creatures, meets the oldest living creature on Earth, gets thrown into another African jail, invents animal alphabets, defeats at least two armies, and each of the animals in the Dolittle family tells a personal story. The postal program grows into a worldwide postal and publishing service for the benefit of animals everywhere.
Analysis
Like other Lofting books, the stories told are extremely charming. The level of good cheer in the stories is as high as any in the Dolittle canon.The final segment of the story tells the story of the Doctor's journey to meet Mudface the Turtle, the oldest living creature on Earth, who relates the story of the Great Flood to the Doctor in the final chapters of the book. The extended version of the tale itself is presented in a later volume of the series, Doctor Dolittle and the Secret Lake
Doctor Dolittle and the Secret Lake
Doctor Dolittle and the Secret Lake is a Doctor Dolittle book written by Hugh Lofting. The book was published posthumously in 1948, 15 years after its predecessor. Fittingly, it is the longest book in the series, and the tone is the darkest; between the books was World War II, during which Lofting...
.