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    Aesop's Fables - Illustrated by Arthur Rackham
    Aesop's Fables - Illustrated by Arthur Rackham
    Aesop's Fables - Illustrated by Arthur Rackham
    Ebook362 pages2 hours

    Aesop's Fables - Illustrated by Arthur Rackham

    By Aesop and Arthur Rackham

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    Containing the best of Aesop's fables, this text presents a variety of entertaining stories with thought-provoking morals – alongside Rackham's beautifully imaginative and humourous illustrations. Aesop was a slave and storyteller believed to have lived in ancient Greece between 620 and 560 BCE. Of diverse origins, the stories associated with Aesop's name have descended to modern times through a number of sources – and continue to be reinterpreted in both literary and artistic mediums.

    Aesop's fables are accompanied by a series of dazzling illustrations by Arthur Rackham (1867-1939). One of the most celebrated painters of the British Golden Age of Illustration (which encompassed the years from 1850 until the start of the First World War), Rackham's artistry is quite simply, unparalleled. Throughout his career, he developed a unique style, combining haunting humour with dream-like romance. Presented alongside the text, his illustrations further refine and elucidate Aesop's masterful storytelling.

    Pook Press celebrates the great ‘Golden Age of Illustration‘ in children’s literature – a period of unparalleled excellence in book illustration. We publish rare and vintage Golden Age illustrated books, in high-quality colour editions, so that the masterful artwork and story-telling can continue to delight both young and old.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRead Books Ltd.
    Release dateApr 16, 2013
    ISBN9781446545768
    Author

    Aesop

    Although the three hundred fables in his famous collection are attributed to Aesop, and his name is synonymous with the form, it seems unlikely he was in fact anything more than a legendary figure. While some historical accounts maintain he was a slave with a prodigious talent for story-telling who lived during the sixth century B.C., many believe it unlikely that this whole stock of fables can be attributed to one individual. What does seem clear though is that the fables began their life being orally transmitted before being put down in writing.

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    Reviews for Aesop's Fables - Illustrated by Arthur Rackham

    4/5

    21 ratings33 reviews

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    • 3/5
      Very, very simple anecdotes. Any fables that have been turned into lengthier morality tales such as "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" have been beefed up considerably.
    • 3/5
      Not the best book of fables in the whole wide world, but it does have its charm and its certainly brings back memories. There are lots of tales that I have heard before when I was a kid, several of them actually quite popular. However, this book goes straight to the point. You know the tale of the Turtle and the Hare, which has already been rewritten by several different authors, even having animated movies about it? Well, this book tells the story in half a page. Which isn't so bad, really. It's actually interesting to read those stories in a short format, with the emphasis on the story's lesson. A nice read for grown-ups, a good thing to give the children something to think about.
    • 4/5
      It would be a benefit to mankind if these morals were taught today. Instead, everything seems to be nonjudgmental. "Who are you to tell me I'm wrong?!!"
    • 4/5
      Some were great, some were dull (or even rather mean), and some were in-between. Overall, not super crazy about it, but glad to have read the collection of them.
    • 3/5
      Another reviewer said it best when stating that he enjoyed Aesop's Fables for the lessons rather than the storytelling. I was surprised to see how many of today's maxims originated from this collection of stories, and even moreso to hear that they had been penned in the 5th century BC. Definitely worth a read.
    • 5/5
      This was my first read through of Aesop's Fables in its entirety. Obviously I have encountered many of these fables before individually but was somewhat surprised by how dark they are. Aesop as a freedman was brilliant at seeing into the psyche of humankind. The Fables have held up well over the last 2500 years. I found it odd that the translator used the names of the Roman gods as opposed to the original greek gods.
    • 3/5
      I liked this one better than "Grimm's Fairy Tales" because A) they're all super short, great for reading a teeny bit at a time and B) the language is much more understandable. But like "Grimm's Fairy Tales", the stories get repetitive after a while. They're all moral lessons, and they fall under three categories: evil is its own ruin, be honest and don't lie, don't be vain/greedy/prideful. Consequences of failing to heed lessons A, B, and C will result in you being eaten by a tiger 90% of the time.
    • 5/5
      I enjoyed this chapter book because of the moral messages learned from each short fable and how I could remember a majority of these stories from my own childhood. The moral lessons learned from these stories stem from always telling the truth, the idea that slow and steady will win the race, and to not judge someone by their appearance. As a child I remembered reading a great majority of these and enjoyed being able to reinterpret what was being said. Although the version I read did not contain illustrations, I did enjoy how the words came to life on the page. As one reads these stories, they can be illustrated in the reader's mind. The big idea of this chapter book is to give a recorded source of the oral stories told so as to teach moral lessons to children and adults.
    • 4/5
      The Boy Who Cried Wolf is a great story for young children. It has a very important lesson which is not to lie. The boy "cried wolf" and said there was a wolf when there was not. Then, when there actually was no one believed him. This is important for young children to learn. I really loved this story because of the lesson. I also enjoyed it because it was interesting and made the reader want to keep reading. The story was also great because it was a good length. It was not too long so it was not boring, but it also was not too short. The last thing I liked was that the story was well written. From the writing, I could envision the boy and what was happening in the story. This was a great book!
    • 5/5
      I always loved reading these fables when I was a kid, and they certainly permeated their way through my childhood even up until now. While they may seem a little silly and/or difficult to understand, there is certainly a message to be taken away from all of them if you are willing to think outside of the box.
    • 4/5
      Summary:This book is a series of short, and a little weird, stories with a little bit of proverb advice at the end of each story.Personal Reaction:I think this is an outstanding set of fables and short stories. I found this to be very entertaining and a little bit of an eye-opener. Reading some of these stories to my children was entertaining to them and entertaining to me to watch their reactions. A lot of the proverb advice I had to explain a little deeper for my oldest to understand them, but all in all a very good and entertaining read.Classroom Extension:1. These stories can be intergraded in many fashion of ways. I think it would be ideal to use as a "brain-break" in between lessons.2. This book can be used as a good way to bring literature into the classroom and can be a good way to introduce fables, proverbs, and short stories.
    • 3/5
      I read this book over the course of maybe a year reading generally one fable a day. Like a lesson of the day. Some were great, some kind of goofy but I found overall the many lessons imparted as valid as most religious doctrine.Aesop himself is somewhat of a mysterious person of Greece much like Homer with only conjecture of who he was and how he put together this book of wisdom using the animated figures to deliver the message. In any event I found it intriguing to read them all and experience the lessons of such an ancient time that can have such relevance today.
    • 5/5
      This was the first time I ever read any of Aesop's Fables and I loved each little story. These nuggets of morality hidden within tiny stories truly makes one think about their actions towards themselves and toward others. It is an excellent book to read to your little ones in hopes of helping them understand decency towards others.

      I would recommend this book to others.
    • 3/5


      Enjoyed the ones I was familiar with, many of them seemed repetitious. Overall a book everyone should and usually are familiar with.
    • 3/5


      Enjoyed the ones I was familiar with, many of them seemed repetitious. Overall a book everyone should and usually are familiar with.
    • 4/5
      Yet another I should reread, although so many of the fables are so familiar. Who could forget the fox and the grapes? The lessons in Aesop are still worthwhile today.
    • 1/5
      Nothing in it is true - though some argue that it has 'truths' (of a sort). I gave it one star...
    • 4/5
      Collections of these short tales with a moral were among the very first works--after the Bible--to be published on the printing press. It's amazing how many catch phrases come from these fables: Honesty is the best policy. Don't count your chickens before they've hatched. Look before you leap. Aesop himself, like Homer, may never have existed in history. Tradition makes him a slave in Asia Minor, possibly of Ethiopian descent, born in 620 and eventually freed for his cleverness becomes a counselor to kings and companion to philosophers. Herodotus, Aristophanes, Plato, Aristotle, Plutarch, Horace all mentioned Aesop and his tales, and the earliest surviving collection is from the first century. They're been used by orators and in primers ever since, and definitely should be read in the interest of cultural legacy. They're short. One of the most famous ones is only three lines:Driven by hunger, a fox tried to reach some grapes hanging high on the vine but was unable to, although he leaped with all his strength. As he went away, the fox remarked, 'Oh, you aren't even ripe yet! I don't need any sour grapes.' People who speak disparagingly of things that they cannot attain would do well to apply this story to themselves.To be honest, I tend to think these are best read by children, preferably in an illustrated edition. There's really no authoritative canon for the fables, the two primary collections from antiquity consist of only a few hundred tales. A lot of translations use antiquated language, or put the pithy tales into rather elaborated verse, or cut the moral, so you might want to scan various editions before deciding which to get. They're worth knowing, if only to be able to recognize where so many familiar stories and phrases come from.
    • 4/5
      This book contains 82 of Aesop's fables. Many of these short stories with a moral of the story at the end, I have never heard before. Many, many of these early stories have morals that I never knew the origin of - A stitch in time saves nine, honesty is the best policy. These moral little sayings have withstood the test of time.
    • 5/5
      A collection of the greatest stories with a moral attribute ever. Attributed by Aristotle as the best. Transformed into verse by Socrates, these stories captured the imagination of the greatest thinkers in human history, and continue to do so today. No child stands to be harmed by learning these tales, in fact, and argument could be made for the opposite effect. The most highly recommended literature for children by indisputable sources.
    • 5/5
      Dad used to read these to us when we were children.
    • 3/5
      Read this for the "1001" books and they're good little stories with great moral messages, but I found it hard to read them straight thru as a whole book. A few of the stories I even got a bit confused on because I kept mixing them up with others that were similar. I thought a few times "didn't I just read this this one?" But it was a good read and a keeper, and at least I finished it!
    • 3/5
      Various fables by Aesop are presented in a collection.The book would be useful in discussing morals and fables with kids.
    • 5/5
      I like Aesop's fables because of the simple stories that relate back to a moral. I don’t like some of the stories' because of the cruelness of some of them. These stories have been retold many times but still possess the same stories with the morals being connected.
    • 4/5
      Every few years I enjoy rereading Aesop’s Fables. When I come across a different edition with wonderful, new-to-me illustrations, I just can’t help myself. The morals of the Fables are occasionally contradictory, that’s where they’re most interesting in fact. For example, some tales seem to indicate that opposites attract and can help one another; in other instances alike things are attracted to one another and those things that are different are dangerous and can cause them harm; still, one has to fight the urge, because they are so amusing, to agree with all of Aesop’s “lessons” on all points. The best thing you can get from it as a child is that the world can be a contradictory place and that the best thing to do is ask questions about the truth of any given assertion or act. Aesop, if he did exist, seems like he could probably move from being a skeptic to being paranoid pretty easily. It’s good to read the tales with a dose of good humor.
    • 4/5
      This collection of fables is great for children. There are a lot of good ones but there are definitely some that are lacking. Some of the fables even contradict others ones. But as a classic, every one should read it at least once. There are many lines worth quoting.
    • 4/5
      The Tortoise and the Hare, the Grasshopper and the Ant, and dozens more of the delightful creatures that have been entertaining and instructing people for thousands of years. The storyteller Aesop lived in Ancient Greece, far away from us in time and distance. But his clever little stories have as much meaning for us today as they did when he first told them so long ago...
    • 5/5
      Who does not like Aesop's Fables? Come on.
    • 4/5
      Quick and short are the ancient greek moralistic tales. This is a beautifully illustrated collection of a few of them. I read "The Wolf and The Crane". The story of a greedy wolf who overeats and starts choking on a bone. He then begs the animals to help him saying he'll do anything for it. A crane does, sticking her long beak down and drawing out the bone. She then asks for her reward and he states that she should be grateful for him not biting her head off when she stuck it down his throat. The moral: he who live on expectations are sure to be disappointed.
    • 3/5
      The translated or retold stories are straight-forward, but the editor often chose to use English proverbs as his "Applications", some of which were not particularly applicable; it seems redundant to use an idiomatic phrase to explain a fable.

    Book preview

    Aesop's Fables - Illustrated by Arthur Rackham - Aesop

    THE GOOSE THAT LAID THE GOLDEN EGGS

    A Man and his Wife had the good fortune to possess a Goose which laid a Golden Egg every day. Lucky though they were, they soon began to think they were not getting rich fast enough, and, imagining the bird must be made of gold inside, they decided to kill it in order to secure the whole store of precious metal at once. But when they cut it open they found it was just like any other goose. Thus, they neither got rich all at once, as they had hoped, nor enjoyed any longer the daily addition to their wealth.

    Much wants more and loses all.

    THE CAT AND THE MICE

    There was once a house that was overrun with Mice. A Cat heard of this, and said to herself, That’s the place for me, and off she went and took up her quarters in the house, and caught the Mice one by one and ate them. At last the Mice could stand it no longer, and they determined to take to their holes and stay there. That’s awkward, said the Cat to herself: the only thing to do is to coax them out by a trick. So she considered a while, and then climbed up the wall and let herself hang down by her hind legs from a peg, and pretended to be dead. By and by a Mouse peeped out and saw the Cat hanging there. Aha! it cried, you’re very clever, madam, no doubt: but you may turn yourself into a bag of meal hanging there, if you like, yet you won’t catch us coming anywhere near you.

    If you are wise you won’t be deceived by the innocent airs of those whom you have once found to be dangerous.

    THE MISCHIEVOUS DOG

    There was once a Dog who used to snap at people and bite them without any provocation, and who was a great nuisance to every one who came to his master’s house. So his master fastened a bell round his neck to warn people of his presence. The Dog was very proud of the bell, and strutted about tinkling it with immense satisfaction. But an old dog came up to him and said, The fewer airs you give yourself the better, my friend. You don’t think, do you, that your bell was given you as a reward of merit? On the contrary, it is a badge of disgrace.

    Notoriety is often mistaken for fame.

    THE CHARCOAL-BURNER AND THE FULLER

    There was once a Charcoal-burner who lived and worked by himself. A Fuller, however, happened to come and settle in the same neighbourhood; and the Charcoal-burner, having made his acquaintance and finding he was an agreeable sort of fellow, asked him if he would come and share his house: We shall get to know one another better that way, he said, and, beside, our household expenses will be diminished. The Fuller thanked him, but replied, I couldn’t think of it, sir: why, everything I take such pains to whiten would be blackened in no time by your charcoal.

    THE MICE IN COUNCIL

    Once upon a time all the Mice met together in Council, and discussed the best means of securing themselves against the attacks of the cat. After several suggestions had been debated, a Mouse of some standing and experience got up and said, I think I have hit upon a plan which will ensure our safety in the future, provided you approve and carry it out. It is that we should fasten a bell round the neck of our enemy the cat, which will by its tinkling warn us of her approach. This proposal was warmly applauded, and it had been already decided to adopt it, when an old Mouse got upon his feet and said, "I agree with you all that the plan before us is an admirable one: but may I ask who is going to bell the

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