Aesop's Fables

Aesop's Fables
Louis Untermeyer ~ Alice and Martin Provensen ~ Golden, 1965

It's getting late here in Texas. I spent a better part of the day volunteering at the library and now my eyes and heart are weary with words. Into the evening, I'm reminded that along with dozens of versions of Noah's Ark, my little animal lover covets the fables of Aesop. And never have morality tales been brought to life with such wry and illustrative inflection than here. Lovingly adapted by Untermeyer and pictured by everyone's favorite kiddie couple, allegories abound from The Ass in the Lion's Skin to The Gnat on the Bull's Horn.

A Tortoise was not satisfied with his life. He wanted to stop being a Tortoise. "I'm tired of crawling along, inch by inch, foot after foot, getting nowhere in particular," he grumbled. "I want to be able to skim and dive and float in the air."

The eagle with the "ace" shirt. Classic.

A Crow had stolen a good-sized piece of cheese from a cottage window and had flown with it into a tall tree. A Fox, who had seen this happen, said to himself, "If I am smart, I will have cheese for supper tonight."

Indeed, he will.

A Boy who was employed to tend sheep was often bored with the task.

Jeez, what an understatement. Awesome, awesome, awesome.

That's a wrap for today, but remember:

Don't count your chickens until they're hatched.
Don't believe everything you hear.

And, most importantly...

It is sometimes safe to be insignificant.

Also by:
The Golden Treasury of Children's Literature
The Golden Book of Poems for the Very Young
A Child's Garden of Verses
Roses are Red. Are Violets Blue??
Funny Bunny
Fireside Book of Folk Songs
The Mother Goose Book
Animal Fair
Our Friends at Maple Hill Farm
My Little Hen

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