Aesop's Fables: A New Revised Edition

by AESOP (c. 620 BCE - 564)

12 - The Hunter and the Wolf; The Astronomer; The Bulls and the Frogs; The Thief and His Mother; The Man and His Two Wives; The Heifer, the Goat, the Sheep and the Lion; The Camel and the Travelers; The Swan and the Goose; The Dolphins and the Sprat; The Shepherd and the Sea; The Bees, the Drones, and the Wasp; The Wolf, the Goat and the Kid; The Fox and the Hedgehog; The Brazier and His Dog; The Wild Ass and the Lion; The father and His Two Daughters; The Fir Tree and the Bramble; The Fox and the Monkey; The Farmer and His Sons; The Cat and the Birds; The Stag, the Wolf and the Sheep;

Aesop's Fables: A New Revised Edition

Remember the story of the Ant and the Grasshopper? the Fox and the Sour Grapes? The Boy who Cried Wolf? These wonderful tales and hundreds more have been passed down to us over the centuries. The man credited with writing them, Aesop, was an Ancient Greek slave born about 620 B.C. Aesop is known as a fabulist or story teller credited with a number of fables shining glaringly true light on our human foibles now collectively known as Aesop's Fables. Although no writings by him survive, numerous tales credited to him were gathered across the centuries and in many languages in a storytelling tradition that continues to this day. Many of the tales are characterized by animals and inanimate objects that speak, solve problems, and generally have human characteristics. Scattered details of Aesop's life can be found in ancient sources, including Aristotle, Herodotus, and Plutarch. An ancient literary work called The Aesop Romance tells an episodic, probably highly fictional version of his life, including the traditional description of him as a strikingly ugly slave who by his cleverness acquires freedom and becomes an adviser to kings and city-states. A later tradition depicts Aesop as a black Ethiopian. But whatever his history, the fables depict truths about human behavior, our strengths and weakness that have remained true for 2500 years. (Summary from Wikipedia and Phil Chenevert)