Which fictional doctor is the central character in a series of books by Hugh Lofting?
Hugh Lofting Hugh Lofting Hugh John Lofting (14 January 1886 – 26 September 1947) was a British author, trained as a civil engineer, who created the character of Doctor Dolittle, one of the classics of children's literature. Doctor Dolittle first appeared in the author's illustrated letters to his children, written from the trenches while serving in the British Army during World War I. Lofting was born in Maidenhead, Berkshire in January 1886 to parents of English and Irish ancestry. His eldest brother was Hilary Lofting, who later became a novelist in Australia, having emigrated there in 1915. Hugh Lofting was educated at
Hugh Lofting was married three times and had three children, one of whom, his son Christopher, is the executor of his literary estate. Lofting commented, "For years it was a constant source of shock to me to find my writings amongst 'juveniles'. It does not bother me any more now, but I still feel there should be a category of 'seniles' to offset the epithet." Hugh 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 children, written from the trenches during the War