Aesop 
Aesop’s Fables 

Among the oldest stories of human civilization, Aesop’s fables are a collection of extended proverbs with moral messages attributed to the Greek slave Aesop, who lived in the 5th century B.C. Children will delight in these basic human truths represented by talking animals and plants, and adults will marvel at the plainspoken language of these ancient tales. This translation by Vernon Jones and with Arthur Rackham’s timeless illustrations, include such stories as The Hare and the Tortoise, The Fox and the Grapes, and The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse.

About the author

Aesop is thought to have lived from 620 to 560 B.C. Legend depicts him as a slave with a gift for talking his way out of trouble or punishment, often reciting his fables to illustrate an injustice or human folly. Mentioned by other classical writers such as Herodotus and Aristotle, he is believed to have died after being thrown off a cliff in punishment for stealing a precious goblet.