From the 1890s to the 1920s the most popular writer in the English-speaking world was Rudyard Kipling. He won at the outset of his career the favorable attention of writers and critics, and in 1907 he received the first Nobel Prize in literature given to an author writing in the English language. He published hundreds of short stories and poems, four novels, and volumes of pamphlets, speeches, and journalism. Yet, of his vast body of work, his novel Kim (1901) and his other writing for children have kept Kipling popular. His children's books have remained in print while his tales for adults of ethics, aesthetics, and empire have gone out of fashion--though they are receiving renewed attention in the wake of recent critical interest in imperialism. The author loved children and enjoyed their company, and he probably would have been content to go down in history as the creator of...