author
Hugh Lofting
1886–1947
Best known for creating Doctor Dolittle, this English-born American writer turned letters from the First World War into one of children’s literature’s most enduring series. He brought a gentle sense of humor, adventure, and sympathy for animals to stories that have lasted for generations.
6 Audiobooks
The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle
by Hugh Lofting
Doctor Dolittle's Post Office
by Hugh Lofting
The Story of Doctor Dolittle
by Hugh Lofting
The Story of Mrs. Tubbs
by Hugh Lofting
Doctor Dolittle in the Moon
by Hugh Lofting
About the author
Born in Maidenhead, Berkshire, on January 14, 1886, Hugh Lofting trained as a civil engineer before becoming a writer. He later settled in the United States and is remembered above all for creating Doctor Dolittle, the doctor who learns to speak with animals.
The idea for Doctor Dolittle grew out of illustrated letters Lofting sent to his children while serving in the British Army during the First World War. Those stories became The Story of Doctor Dolittle in 1920, followed by a long-running series that made him a major figure in children’s books.
Lofting was also an illustrator of his own work, and his drawings helped shape the warm, whimsical world of the Dolittle books. In 1923 he received the Newbery Medal for The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle. He died in Santa Monica, California, on September 26, 1947.