3 h 8 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 3 h 8 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if your patients could bark, chatter, and quack—and tell you exactly what hurts?
In Puddleby-on-the-Marsh, Doctor John Dolittle fills his house and garden with animals. Then Polynesia, a wise grey parrot, teaches him their languages. In Hugh Lofting’s gentle adventure, the quiet physician gives up human patients and begins to listen to creatures who have feelings and opinions of their own.
When a swallow brings news of sick monkeys in Africa, Dolittle sets out to help. His ship is old and small, and his animal companions bring wit, worries, and hungry appetites aboard. With Chee-Chee longing for home and Polynesia offering guidance, the voyage carries this unlikely crew toward strange lands and trouble.
What you’ll discover
- A doctor who listens Meet a gentle man whose care for animals matters more to him than money.
- Lessons from a parrot Follow Polynesia as she opens the Doctor’s ears to the languages around him.
- A lively animal household Spend time with practical Dab-Dab, loyal Jip, and Gub-Gub, who always thinks about food.
- An unlikely sea crew Climb aboard a small, old ship with animals and one very absent-minded doctor.
- Kindness beyond human words Discover a story that treats animals as beings with feelings worth hearing and understanding.
Who will love it
Readers who enjoy warmhearted animal adventures, quick humour and sea voyages will love this book. It also delights those who like clever creatures and a gentle hero who treats every animal as a friend.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A kind doctor loses patients but keeps animals
- A parrot teaches the Doctor to speak animal
- A call from Africa brings shipwreck and a jungle king
- The sick monkeys recover and a rare gift is chosen
- Clever friends turn pirates into birdseed farmers
- A dog's nose and an owl's ears find a lost uncle
- Kindness, money and the skill of animals drive the story
- Warm humour and plain explanations shape the telling
Who’s who
- Doctor John DolittleA kind, shabby doctor of Puddleby-on-the-Marsh who learns animal languages and wants only to help sick creatures, whatever the cost to his purse.
- PolynesiaA very old, quick-witted parrot who teaches the Doctor animal language and uses her talent for mimicry to get her friends out of trouble.
- JipA proud, sharp-tongued dog with an astonishing nose who wants to prove he is cleverer than any bird.
- Dab-DabA sensible duck who runs the household, worries about money and bills, and scolds the Doctor for being too soft.
- Chee-CheeA monkey the Doctor rescues from an organ grinder who knows every jungle path and longs to see Africa again.
- Too-TooAn owl who is good at arithmetic and has such sharp ears that he can hear a hand move in a pocket.
- Gub-GubA greedy, easily frightened baby pig who is always thinking of his next meal and often gets in the way.
- Prince BumpoThe King's son, who reads fairy tales and dreams of becoming a white prince so the Sleeping Beauty will marry him.
Formats and delivery
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- On your phone, tablet or computer, once the book texts are online.
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- The same book in bigger, clearer type, once the book texts are online.
- Audiobook
- Read by Lucas Linden, complete. It opens once the recording is online.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 14 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
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- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
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The Story of Doctor Dolittle
by Hugh Lofting · 1920
A doctor who talks to animals sails to Africa with his pets and brings a two-headed creature home.
Easy read2–5 hours to readEnglish
Excellent
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In short
What would you do if your pets could tell you exactly where it hurts? In The Story of Doctor Dolittle, a kind doctor in the small English town of Puddleby-on-the-Marsh learns that animals have languages of their own, and his whole life changes.
The Story of Doctor Dolittle at a glance
- Reading time
- About 1 h 40 min1 h 20 min fast, 2 h slow
- Length
- 24,200 words21 chapters
- Pages
- 77 pages116 in large print
- Library level
- Easy short sentences, plain words
- First published
- 1920by Hugh Lofting
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A kind doctor loses patients but keeps animals
John Dolittle, a physician, lives in a small house at the edge of Puddleby-on-the-Marsh. His garden is large and his house is crowded. A hedgehog lives in the cellar, a squirrel in the linen closet, rabbits in the pantry and white mice in the piano. He loves best the owl Too-Too, the parrot Polynesia, the pig Gub-Gub, the dog Jip and the duck Dab-Dab.
His sister Sarah keeps house for him, and she is not pleased. One day an old lady with rheumatism sits down on the sleeping hedgehog and never comes back. Sarah warns him that none of the best people will have him as their doctor. The Doctor answers that he likes the animals better than the best people.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1920
- Language
- English
- Level
- Easy read
Cite this edition
Lofting, Hugh. The Story of Doctor Dolittle. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-story-of-doctor-dolittle.
Lofting, H. (2026). The story of Doctor Dolittle. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-story-of-doctor-dolittle (Original work published 1920)
Lofting, Hugh. The Story of Doctor Dolittle. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-story-of-doctor-dolittle.
@book{lofting2026story,
author = {Lofting, Hugh},
title = {The Story of Doctor Dolittle},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-story-of-doctor-dolittle},
note = {First published 1920}
}
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What is The Story of Doctor Dolittle about?
It tells of John Dolittle, a doctor in an English town who learns animal languages from his parrot Polynesia. He sails to Africa to cure sick monkeys, escapes a jungle king and pirates, and finds a rare two-headed animal along the way.
What is a pushmi-pullyu?
It is an imaginary animal with no tail and a head at each end. In the book it is very shy, cannot be sneaked up on, and speaks with one mouth while it eats with the other, to stay polite.
Who are the main animals in Doctor Dolittle?
The Doctor's closest friends are Polynesia the parrot, Jip the dog, Dab-Dab the duck, Gub-Gub the pig, Too-Too the owl and Chee-Chee the monkey. Each has a clear voice and a special skill that helps on the voyage.
The author
Hugh Lofting
1886–1947 · English children's author
Hugh Lofting (1886–1947) was a British author born in Maidenhead, England. He wrote the Doctor Dolittle books, beginning with The Story of Doctor Dolittle in 1920. The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle followed in 1922. He moved to the United States after the First World War and died in California.
More by Hugh Lofting
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