The Kempton-Wace Letters
Worth buying if: You enjoy Jack London's argumentative voice and moral provocations.
Skip it if: You prefer plot-driven novels rather than idea-driven letter exchanges.
Exact edition: Edition shown · ISBN-13 9781528712385. The Amazon link uses this ISBN, so the product page should open to the edition shown here.
If this page helped you decide, purchasing through the Amazon button above supports UPB Books at no extra cost to you and helps us continue improving the site. Thanks for visiting today.
Check Amazon for the current price and availability of this exact edition.
Affiliate disclosure: purchases made through links on this site may earn us a commission at no additional cost to you.
Summary
The Kempton-Wace Letters collects a fictional exchange of letters between Kempton, a sentimental idealist, and Wace, a cold intellectual, as they debate marriage, heredity, and the role of emotion across 159 pages of provocative argumentation.
Why this book now
Jack London's rarely reprinted debate piece resurfaces from Read & Co. Books to remind readers of early 20th-century arguments about science, romance, and social ideas still sparki.
30-second preview
Two quick cards, fifteen seconds each.
Card 1 of 2
Best for readers who...
Good fit if you want...
- You enjoy Jack London's argumentative voice and moral provocations.
- You relish epistolary form and prolonged philosophical debates about marriage and heredity.
- When you like moral complexity, the author stays focused on texture and place.
- You prefer plot-driven novels rather than idea-driven letter exchanges.
- You dislike polemical essays or direct debates about gender and science.
Decided it fits?
Exact edition: Edition shown · ISBN-13 9781528712385
Worth buying if: You enjoy Jack London's argumentative voice and moral provocations.
Skip it if: You prefer plot-driven novels rather than idea-driven letter exchanges.
Check Amazon for the current price and availability of this exact edition.
Reader guide
Cues to help you decide faster.
Reading commitment
Light Short sit-downs
At 159 pages, this concise epistolary work is a brisk two- to four-hour read best taken slowly to savor each argumentative turn.
What stands out here
This Read & Co. Books edition highlights Jack London's original epistolary structure and preserves the historical voice of the Kempton–Wace exchange.
Best way to approach it
Read as a series of oppositional essays—pause after key letters to weigh each character's claims and follow how London stages ethical and scientific disputes.
Was this page helpful?
Quick thumbs only. No login.
Loading feedback…
Exact edition: ISBN-13 9781528712385
Check Amazon for the current price and availability of this exact edition.