Kim

Rudyard Kipling’s Kim tells the story of Kimball “Kim” O'Hara, an imperial orphan scavenging a hand-to-mouth existence in British India during the late 1890s. The novel functions as a fictionalization of Kipling’s own Indian childhood, but it is also a strong example of the adventure stories that became especially popular in the heyday of the British Empire. Kim has been noted for its detailed portrait of the people, culture, and varied religions of India.

 Kim was serialized in McClure's Magazine from December 1900 to October 1901 as well as in Cassell's Magazine from January to November 1901. It is ranked 34th on The Guardian’s list of the 100 best novels and 78th on Modern Library’s “100 Best” English-language novels of the 20th century. In 2003, the book was listed on the BBC's The Big Read poll of the UK's "best-loved novel.”

Doubleday, Page & Company of New York and Macmillan of London both published Rudyard Kipling’s Kim in October 1901, but the US edition was copyrighted two weeks earlier than the UK edition. Doubleday, Page & Company’s 460-page edition is bound in green ribbed cloth and has 10 illustrations. This first edition has sold for up to $500. Macmillan’s edition is bound in red cloth and has illustrations by HR Millar. Interestingly, this edition has sold for upwards of $25,000 (more than 50-times the value Doubleday, Page & Company’s).

In 2002, W. W. Norton & Company published a noted critical edition of Kim, which includes extensive notes, essays, maps and references.