White Fang
by Jack London · first published 1905
54% recommend46% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Adventure novel set in the Klondike gold rush, praised for vivid, descriptive writing and for capturing the spirit of American expansion into the West; a good pick for fans of animal-centered wilderness stories.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
The story of a wolf/dog cross, who is raised by Indians, and becomes a deadly fighter.
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Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
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…it, suck it up and do it. And that about sums it up. 2.5/5 (message is decent and he does offer some tips) Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke - Liked it, but unsure that I'll continue. 3.5/5. White Fang by Jack London - Enjoyable and descriptive. Had to power through, though. 3.5/5 Treasure Island by RLS - Absolutely loved it. Now I need to power through the 800ish episodes of One Piece. 4/5 King Arthur…
on “Ask HN: Books you read in 2018?” ↗White Fang by Jack London is excellent. Also the original Jungle Book stories by Rudyard Kipling are beautiful as well, if a little colonial in places. My favourite when I was little was Rikki-Tikki-Tavi. Both are…
on “Ship's cat” ↗I really rate Jack London as the great American novelist. I like the lessor known Sea Wolf the best of his but White Fang and The Call of the Wild really capture a sense of adventure and the history and vibe of that period of American expansion into the West.
on “The Great Gatsby: Misunderstood Novel” ↗"White Fang", http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_London Klondike "like" experience, forges determination.
on “Ask HN: Best book you read in 2010 and briefly why” ↗Should have read White Fang by Jack London instead.
on “Virtual Reality Aimed at the Elderly Finds New Fans” ↗I really enjoyed both The Call of the Wild and White Fang by Jack London.
on “Ask HN: What are your favorite classic books?” ↗…was hooked, and I read the whole series by third grade. I had trouble finding a couple of them, which held me up. I got into many other books those years. My Friend Flicka, Black Beauty. The Hobbit. White Fang, Hatchet. The Forest Runners. Where the Red Fern Grows. Still some of my favorites on that list. They really shaped my life, actually.
on “Ask HN: What did you read in 2025?” ↗What's wrong with having UBI for 2 years and then suddenly having it cut off? Jack London, the famous homeless / hobo writer of "Call of the Wild" and "White Fang", was only able to write his first book because of the support of community libraries and random strangers who gave him a bed occasionally. Eventually, he was able to pull himself out of poverty and become…
on “Basic Income caused crime to drop by 40% and strengthened workforce?” ↗…Zulus, began to abandon his racist beliefs, gave up sex, and invented satyagraha. London: got arrested for being a Socialist, and wrote The Call of the Wild, The Unparalleled Invasion, To Build a Fire, White Fang, and The Sea-Wolf, all of which are still read today. Darrow: represented Debs in the Pullman Strike case, once successfully and once unsuccessfully; helped organize the Populist Party; successfully…
on “Winning Isn't Normal” ↗…Classic childrens book and 100 brand new pennies in a handcherchief - for years I tried to track down one of the books describing wolves crowding round a dying explorers fire - which turned out to be White Fang by Jack London.
on “"Twelfth Night Till Candlemas" – A 40-year book-quest” ↗Right. The myth actually originates from Social Darwinism - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_Darwinism which was what influenced Jack London's thinking (see "The Call of the Wild", "White Fang" etc.) but at the same time he was also a Socialist (see "The Iron Heel", "The People of the Abyss" etc.) See his "views" section here - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_London#Views
on “The Alpha Myth: How captive wolves led us astray” ↗"White Fang" and "Call of the Wild" are Jack London's best known novels, not his best novels IMHO. I prefer "Martin Eden" and "the Iron Heel", and am a bit mystified as to how his entire literary career has been…
on “Gold Fever Cold and the True Adventures of Jack London in the Wild” ↗…took him in and fed him. Eventually Jack London writes Call of the Wild and becomes stupidly rich. Was Jack London the famous author, living off of all the money (writing less popular stories, like White Fang) more valuable because of all the money he made? Was Jack London the hobo less valuable because he didn't write the bestseller Call to the Wild yet? Or maybe, the entire concept of valuing people off…
on “You Are Not Your Job” ↗…Eldredge A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison Unfuk Yourself by Gary John Bishop The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho Iron John by Robert Bly The Call of the Wild and White Fang by Jack London Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson Modern Romance by Aziz Ansari White Teeth by Zadie Smith Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus by John Gray Moby…
on “Show HN: I've compiled a list of the top books for men according to 56 blogs” ↗