When Tommy Stubbins finds a squirrel injured by a hawk, Matthew Mugg, the cat's meat man, informs him to get help from Doctor Dolittle, who can speak the language of animals. The Doctor is away on a voyage, but when he returns, he attends to the squirrel. Tommy is introduced to some of the strange animals in Doolittle's care, and begins his studies with Doolittle, or rather with Polynesia who teaches Tommy the language of animals.

Hugh Lofting (1886-1947) was a British author 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. Not wishing to write to his children about the brutality of the war, he wrote imaginative letters which later became the foundation of the successful series of novels for children.