"[T]hey talked together about everything delightful"

John Lockwood Kipling (1837-1911)

1894

Illustration for "Sir Buzz" in Flora Annie Steel's Tales of the Punjab: Told by the People, facing p.9

Illustrating this collection of Indian folk tales for children, perhaps "the most attractive and unified of all his conventionally illustrated books" (James 373), was one of Kipling's projects after returning to England. In the opening tale, a lowly soldier's son falls in love with Princess Blossom, and all ends happily with the help of his diminutive servant Sir Buzz — a sort of genii, shown in the foreground. The details in the illustration, such as the intricately carved screen and elegant furniture, the soldier's worn shoes, and even the tiny gekko on the ledge to the left, add hugely to its charm.

Scanned image and text by Jacqueline Banerjee.

[You may use this image without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the person who scanned the image and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one. Click on the image to enlarge it, and mouse over the text for links.]