12 h 3 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
A boy who belongs in every crowd must find where he truly belongs.
Kimball O'Hara grows up an orphan on the streets of Lahore, quick-witted and at home in its bazaars. When he meets the Teshoo Lama, an old Tibetan monk seeking a sacred river, he joins him as a disciple. Together they take the Grand Trunk Road through a country crowded with strangers and possibilities.
But Kim also carries a message for Mahbub Ali, a horse dealer who secretly serves the British. That errand draws him toward the Great Game, a struggle of agents, maps and disguise between Britain and Russia. In Rudyard Kipling's adventure, the lama's spiritual search runs beside imperial intrigue, while Kim faces questions of loyalty and belonging.
What you’ll discover
- A hero living by wit Follow a curious street boy whose gift for blending in opens doors to adventure.
- The road through India Travel among trains, bazaars, soldiers and holy men, with fresh encounters at every stop.
- Secrets beneath an errand Watch a simple message pull Kim toward a world of informers and hidden loyalties.
- A lama's searching faith Walk beside the Teshoo Lama as he seeks a river he believes can end suffering.
- The question of belonging Explore Kim's divided loyalties as his Irish origins meet the Indian world that raises him.
Is it for you?
This book suits readers who love a road story, a vivid foreign setting, or a young hero who lives by his wits. It also rewards anyone curious about the British Empire in India. You may find it less suited if you want a fast plot with little description.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A street boy rules the cannon
- A holy man needs a disciple
- A message hidden in a boy's errand
- Soldiers discover who Kim really is
- School teaches Kim to be a sahib
- The Great Game needs a boy who can pass
- Kim is torn between two loyalties
- Faith, empire and the many Indias
- A road novel told with colour and speed
Who’s who
- KimKimball O'Hara, an orphan of Irish blood raised in the bazaars of Lahore, quick, curious and at home in every crowd, who longs for adventure.
- The Teshoo LamaAn old Tibetan monk who leaves his monastery to find the River of the Arrow, which he believes will free him from suffering.
- Mahbub AliAn Afghan horse dealer with a red beard who trades across northern India and secretly works as an agent for the British.
- Colonel CreightonA senior officer in the British secret service who recognises Kim's talent and wants to shape it for the Great Game.
- Lurgan SahibA dealer in jewels and curiosities at Simla who trains Kim in memory, observation and the art of disguise.
- Hurree BabuA talkative Bengali agent who loves long English words and dreams of a place in the Royal Society, yet is shrewd and brave.
- The Woman of KuluA sharp-tongued, kind widow from the hills who befriends the lama and treats Kim like a grandson.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 12 h 3 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 14 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
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Language: English
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 9
A street boy rules the cannon
The novel opens in Lahore, in front of the museum the locals call the Wonder House. Kim sits on top of the great bronze gun called Zam-Zammah, against the rules of the city. He is a thin, sunburned boy of about thirteen. He looks like any poor native child, but he is the son of an Irish soldier.
His father, Kimball O'Hara, served in an Irish regiment and later worked on the railway. After the death of his wife, the man fell into drink and opium and then died. He left his son a leather amulet case holding three papers. Kim has been told to keep them safe because one day they will bring him good fortune. A woman who sells opium has raised him in a loose way, and Kim has grown up in the bazaar.
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The author
Rudyard Kipling
1865–1936 · English novelist and poet
Rudyard Kipling (1865–1936) was an English writer and poet born in Bombay, India. He lived in India, England and the United States. He wrote The Jungle Book (1894), The Second Jungle Book (1895), Kim (1901) and Just So Stories (1902). He died in London in 1936.
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What is the book Kim about?
Kim is about an orphan boy in British India who becomes the disciple of a Tibetan lama seeking a sacred river. At the same time he is trained as a spy in the Great Game between Britain and Russia.
What is the Great Game in Kim?
The Great Game is the name given to the quiet rivalry between Britain and Russia for influence in Central Asia. In the novel it means the spying, mapping and secret messages used to watch the northern frontier.
Is Kim a true story?
No, Kim is a work of fiction, published in 1901. Kipling drew on his own youth in Lahore and on real places and customs, but the characters and plot are invented.
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