Kim is the story of books namesake, a young boy who travels across India engaging with the religious, the rich, and the political amidst the backdrop of the British occupation of India. Kim is the orphaned son of an Irish soldier (Kimball O’hara is Kim’s full name) who grows up on the streets of Lahore surviving by begging and running errands. He lives in poverty, but it’s clear through his interactions on the street that he’s upbeat, quick-witted, and compassionate, which brings him to aid and befriend an old and naïve Tibetan monk. The monk is embarking on a spiritual journey to find the legendary River of the Arrow in India. Kim is enraptured by the journey the monk is on and recognizes that the old and clueless monk will quickly become lost and penniless, and he enrolls as the monk’s disciple to follow him on his adventure. Before they leave on their journey, a local merchant enlists Kim in delivering a message, a task that begins Kim’s involvement in the political intrigue of the “The Great Game”. Kim’s journey takes him across India and weaves between his travels with the monk and his adventures in espionage in The Great Game.
Kim is a lighthearted and endearing adventure story about friendship, compassion, and identity. Kipling paints a vivid picture of the sprawling continent of India and the clashing cultures within it. Kim travels from the lowest flood plains to the highest mountains and is consistently able to find kind and generous people both wealthy and poor who are willing to help him and his friends. Toward his friends he displays uncompromising loyalty and boundless love, which is returned in kind. Kim is also a story about adolescence and identity. Kim is known early on as the “Friend of all the World”, a moniker given to him on the streets of Lahore given that as the son of an Irishman he can speak English as well as many of the local languages. His parents died while he was young, so despite his heritage he is more of a child of India than he is a child of Britain. This dual heritage comes to a head as he ages throughout the narrative and requires him to come to peace with both of those aspects as he discovers what kind of man he’d like to be.
Kim is regarded by many to be a children’s story, and I know I would have enjoyed reading it had I discovered it as a kid, but it is definitely a story that any age can enjoy. While overall very enjoyable, and the 3.5/5 rating comes from finding myself having to get through some parts rather than wanting to get through them. However it is worth sticking with, both for the rich characters and the vibrant world of 19th century India as it is portrayed by Kipling. For those reasons, certainly recommend this book.
--Luke Melander
