Doctor Dolittle by Hugh LoftingChildren's fiction about an English Doctor who talks to the animals.This collection presents the following 7 novels -Doctor Dolittle - 01 - The Story of Doctor DolittleDoctor Dolittle - 02 - The Voyages of Doctor DolittleDoctor Dolittle - 04 - Doctor Dolittle's CircusDoctor Dolittle - 07 - Doctor Dolittle's GardenDoctor Dolittle - 08 - Doctor Dolittle in the MoonDoctor Dolittle - 09 - Doctor Dolittle's ReturnDoctor Dolittle - 11 - Doctor Dolittle and the Green CanaryLofting is underrated as a writer - his choice of words and narrative is very enjoyable, smart, and without pretension or condescension. Remarkable.Lofting, Hugh  (1886-1947)Complete bibliography - 1. The Story of Doctor Dolittle (1920) 2. The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle (1922) 3. Doctor Dolittle's Post Office (1923) 4. Doctor Dolittle's Circus (1924) 5. Doctor Dolittle's Zoo (1925) 6. Doctor Dolittle's Caravan (1926) 7. Doctor Dolittle's Garden (1927) 8. Doctor Dolittle in the Moon (1928) 9. Doctor Dolittle's Return (1933)10. Doctor Dolittle and the Secret Lake† (1948)11. Doctor Dolittle and the Green Canary (1950)12. Doctor Dolittle's Puddleby Adventures (1952) †Copyrighted 1923, but not published until 1948Hugh Lofting's character Doctor John Dolittle, an English physician from Puddleby-on-the-Marsh in the West Country, who could speak to animals, first saw light in the author's illustrated letters to his children, written from the trenches during the War of 1914-18, when actual news, he later said, was either too horrible or too dull.The stories are set in early Victorian England in the 1820s-1840s (The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle gives a date of 1839). He lived in Connecticut, USA whilst writing most of the series.The Story of Doctor Dolittle (1920) began the series, and later won the Lewis Carroll Shelf Award (in 1958). The sequel, The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle (1922), won Lofting the prestigious Newbery Medal. Seven more books followed, and after Lofting's death three more volumes appeared, composed of previously unpublished pieces.The internal chronology of the books differs from the publishing order. The first book is followed by Doctor Dolittle's Post Office (1923), Doctor Dolittle's Circus (1924) and Doctor Dolittle's Caravan (1926). Only then follows the second book, The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle (1922), continued by Doctor Dolittle's Zoo (1925). After that, the publishing order is restored: Doctor Dolittle's Garden (1927) is followed by Doctor Dolittle in the Moon (1928) and Doctor Dolittle's Return (1933), ending with Doctor Dolittle and the Secret Lake (1948).The main events of The Story of Doctor Dolittle take place in 1819 or 1820, although the events of the early chapters seem to be spread over several years. The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle begins in 1839. Backstory references indicate that Dr Dolittle travelled to the North Pole in April 1809, and already knew how to speak to some species of animals at that date, suggesting that the early chapters of The Story of Doctor Dolittle take place before that date. However, it is possible that the internal chronology is not consistent.Copyright ExpiredThe country of first publication of this work was the United Kingdom, and the author was a citizen of the United Kingdom and Colonies: hence, under the provisions of the Berne Copyright Convention 1886, the applicable copyright protection is the copyright period of the United Kingdom, which must be applied in all countries which are signatories to the Convention.Accordingly, the works are now out-of-copyright because they were first published in the UK between 1923 and 1950, and their author died in 1947.1.  The period of the author's copyright under UK copyright law, namely the lifetime of the author plus 70 years, has expired -· Copyright Act 1956, s.2(3) :  www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Eliz2/4-5/74/section/2/enacted· Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, s.12(2) (as amended) :  www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/48/section/122.  The period of the publisher's copyright under UK copyright law, namely the term of 25 years from the date of first publication, has also expired -· Copyright Act 1956, s.15(2) :  www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1956/74/section/15· Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, s.15 :  www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1988/48/section/15