Top ten orphans in children's literature

Katherine Rundell grew up in Africa and Europe and was elected a Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford. She is the author of Girl Savage and Rooftoppers.

At the Guardian, Rundell named her top ten orphans in children's literature. One entry on the list:

Mowgli, The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling

Mowgli's parents are eaten by a tiger, and he is taken in by a family of wise and friendly wolves. Freed from restraints of civilisation, he is allowed to consort with haughty panthers and anxious bears. The Disney film is fantastic, but the book – which is earnest and witty by turns - is even better.

Read about the other orphans on the list.

The Jungle Book is among President Kennedy's favorite books as a child.

--Marshal Zeringue