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Aesop's Fables
Collects sixteen of Aesop's fables, including "The Boy Who Cried Wolf," "The Dancing Camel," and "The Hare and the Tortoise."
- GenresChildrens
94 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2005
4 people are currently reading
36 people want to read
About the author
Anna Milbourne
226 books49 followersGrowing up in North West England and in Germany, Anna wrote plays about talking animals, and stories about naughty children, and drew on every available surface. After school, she did an Art Foundation course, then a degree in German Literature & Philosophy at Oxford University. In 1998 she found her perfect job at Usborne in London, writing about everything from curious penguins to trips to the Moon. Usborne.com
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
April 9, 2019
Aesop’s Fables are a collection of fables originally told by an Ancient Greek named Aesop, this book contains 16 fables that were rewritten and published by Anna Milbourne in 2005. I think this book would be great for all grades 3-6 and beyond, as the lessons that can be learned from these fables are important for all students.
The first idea that comes to mind for use in the classroom is to teach students morals through interesting and clever stories. This may seem silly and unnecessary, but I think the morals of these stories will stick with the students much longer when conveyed through a story. My second idea fits with the first, I think that the comprehension strategy of making inferences can be taught through these stories. They can read the stories and infer what message the author was trying to send. Finally, I think these stories would pair well with a unit on ancient Greece and their societies and values (and the importance of storytelling), since that is when and where these stories originated.
This book was a WOW book for me because this book had a lot of classic fables that I heard a lot growing up, and some that I had never heard before. I love fables because they are great ways to teach important lessons through metaphor. I think that, even for adults, lessons are learned a lot better through stories than they are by being told because they make more sense in context and it is easier to remember them!
The first idea that comes to mind for use in the classroom is to teach students morals through interesting and clever stories. This may seem silly and unnecessary, but I think the morals of these stories will stick with the students much longer when conveyed through a story. My second idea fits with the first, I think that the comprehension strategy of making inferences can be taught through these stories. They can read the stories and infer what message the author was trying to send. Finally, I think these stories would pair well with a unit on ancient Greece and their societies and values (and the importance of storytelling), since that is when and where these stories originated.
This book was a WOW book for me because this book had a lot of classic fables that I heard a lot growing up, and some that I had never heard before. I love fables because they are great ways to teach important lessons through metaphor. I think that, even for adults, lessons are learned a lot better through stories than they are by being told because they make more sense in context and it is easier to remember them!
June 6, 2019
My grandsons enjoyed me reading these stories to them...
November 2, 2018
Confession: For as much as I've studied history and literature, you would think I knew that Aesop was a Greek slave, right? But alas, I didn't remember, and reading this book uncovered why.
Certainly, the stories of Aesop are delightful and have a timeless quality about them, but this particular rendering, like most, is a mess. The problem is a lack of consistency.
Some stories contain references to the Greek gods ("King of the Birds", "How Bees Got Their Stings"). While parents may have some explaining to do, these original characterizations and story lines help a student to place the stories in their correct historical context. Other stories, however, feature things Aesop certainly knew nothing about. And these are not slight references. For example, "The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse", a family favorite (that I didn't know was of Greek origin!) narrates the story of a mouse that RIDES A TRAIN to the country, and then his cousin returns the favor and rides to the city. Trains, towns, dining rooms ("a crystal chandelier that shown like the sun...") and food (sandwiches? ice cream? cupcakes?) are all included in both the text and illustrations.
Speaking of the illustrations, they aren't any better than the text, and serve to promote the same confusion. Cutesy drawings are so far from the classic time period of the stories, its no wonder the stories are easily forgotten to be Greek. Some characters are robed as Greeks ("The King of the Birds"), while others wear modern clothing ("The Sun and the North Wind"). "The Boy who cried Wolf" opens with a cast of characters all dressed like 19th century AmerEuropeans. "The Honest Woodcutter" in, perhaps, the height of confusion, includes an illustration (pg. 65) of BOTH a Greek god, Hermes, and a man wearing overalls, a red plaid shirt, and boots!
This presentation of Aesop is typical of literature for young children, and if it's sanitized nursery tales you are seeking, I suppose this presentation by Usborne will do (though you are probably paying an unnecessary premium for the Usborne name). But I for one would love to find an accounting of Aesop's fables for children that contains an introduction explaining how pioneering these stories were in the art of literature. Illustrations that give a feel for classic Greek expression would be wonderful. And maybe then, we would all remember that these stories arose from the world of the ancient Greeks, some time after Homer's work. If you find something like that, let me know, because I'd love to replace ours before we cycle through this period of history again.
Certainly, the stories of Aesop are delightful and have a timeless quality about them, but this particular rendering, like most, is a mess. The problem is a lack of consistency.
Some stories contain references to the Greek gods ("King of the Birds", "How Bees Got Their Stings"). While parents may have some explaining to do, these original characterizations and story lines help a student to place the stories in their correct historical context. Other stories, however, feature things Aesop certainly knew nothing about. And these are not slight references. For example, "The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse", a family favorite (that I didn't know was of Greek origin!) narrates the story of a mouse that RIDES A TRAIN to the country, and then his cousin returns the favor and rides to the city. Trains, towns, dining rooms ("a crystal chandelier that shown like the sun...") and food (sandwiches? ice cream? cupcakes?) are all included in both the text and illustrations.
Speaking of the illustrations, they aren't any better than the text, and serve to promote the same confusion. Cutesy drawings are so far from the classic time period of the stories, its no wonder the stories are easily forgotten to be Greek. Some characters are robed as Greeks ("The King of the Birds"), while others wear modern clothing ("The Sun and the North Wind"). "The Boy who cried Wolf" opens with a cast of characters all dressed like 19th century AmerEuropeans. "The Honest Woodcutter" in, perhaps, the height of confusion, includes an illustration (pg. 65) of BOTH a Greek god, Hermes, and a man wearing overalls, a red plaid shirt, and boots!
This presentation of Aesop is typical of literature for young children, and if it's sanitized nursery tales you are seeking, I suppose this presentation by Usborne will do (though you are probably paying an unnecessary premium for the Usborne name). But I for one would love to find an accounting of Aesop's fables for children that contains an introduction explaining how pioneering these stories were in the art of literature. Illustrations that give a feel for classic Greek expression would be wonderful. And maybe then, we would all remember that these stories arose from the world of the ancient Greeks, some time after Homer's work. If you find something like that, let me know, because I'd love to replace ours before we cycle through this period of history again.
December 12, 2011
These familiar stories are told in a style and syntax that makes them interesting and accessible to children slightly younger than the 6 and up recommendation associated with this listing. My four year old enjoys them.
February 6, 2013
Aesop's Fables are tales that have morals for children to learn like the boy who cried wolf learned not to cry wolf when there wasn't actually a wolf around.
Written by Anna Milbourne
Illustrated by Linda Edwards
Written by Anna Milbourne
Illustrated by Linda Edwards
January 15, 2009
This book is fantastic! The content is fun to read (and listen to) and full of classic stories. This is one to own for sure! We have it and love it!
January 26, 2010
Good stories for bedtime reading! My husband and I took turns reading one (or part of one) story to our son every night before bed.
May 19, 2012
A retelling for children. Nicely written and illustrated.
Enjoyed it, though I've not read the original as yet.
Enjoyed it, though I've not read the original as yet.
December 18, 2014
Great illustrations make this book a nice resource for teaching fables.
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March 13, 20197904
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews