The Jungle Tales of Tarzan is the sixth book in the Tarzan series but chronologically it currently takes place during the first Tarzan novel, Tarzan of the Apes. This book consists of twelve short stories that deal with Tarzan's days before meeting J... Read more

The Jungle Tales of Tarzan is the sixth book in the Tarzan series but chronologically it currently takes place during the first Tarzan novel, Tarzan of the Apes. This book consists of twelve short stories that deal with Tarzan's days before meeting Jane but after the death of his foster mother Kala. These twelve short stories ran monthly in Blue Book magazine before eventually be published in book form in 1919, and though each chapter can be considered as individual stories they as a collection are connected with one major theme, Tarzan realizing that though he is surrounded by numerous jungle residents he is in fact quite alone.It's in the opening story Tarzan's First Love that sticky topic of bestiality is danced around. Tarzan has been raised by apes since he was but an infant and so his views on beauty are a tad different from what most English Lords would have had. The young female ape Teeka catches Tarzan's eye for she is stunning, by ape standards, and Tarzan does his best to win her love. Clearly love is in the eye of the beholder and to Tarzan, this she-ape is everything one could want in a mate, but unfortunately, the feeling isn't currently mutual. Tarzan may have grown-up thinking the Great Apes of the Tribe of Kerchak bestial appearances are normal but that also means Tarzan's appearance is not the norm. Tarzan is a hairless ape and without even a decent set of fighting fangs. That Teeka would prefer fellow ape Taug over Tarzan is no surprise, but then when Tarzan saves Teeka, from the savage claws of Numa the lion, Teeka chooses Tarzan. Sadly fickle is the heart of a she-ape for when Tarzan roams off into the jungle to hunt he later returns to find Teeka grooming Taug. You can practically hear Tarzan's heartbreaking.The Jungle Tales of Tarzan give us a great glimpse into the youthful days of Tarzan and really shows us that this creation of Edgar Rice Burroughs was a lot more deep and complicated than many people thought. A man raised by apes would certainly have a different set of morals, and his personal code was something he developed over time. Tarzan is one cruel bastard, many of his practical jokes involve killing some hapless sap, but you can see in these stories the seed of the man that Jane will eventually meet and fall in love with. Less