Aesop's Fables - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1402752989 ISBN 13: 9781402752988

Publisher: Union Square Kids, 2009

Synopsis

One of the earliest volumes ever printed in English was Aesop’s Fables, and these delightful, instructive little parables have never gone out of style. Though originally meant for all ages, it is generally considered the first real book to have an audience of children. Noted author John Cech whose Classic Fairy Tale Collection has received wide critical acclaim retells some of these best-loved stories in his own inimitable way. Martin Jarrie (illustrator of the bestselling ABC USA) enhances the tales as never before with his unique folk-style art, making this anthology one of the most beautiful and necessary volumes for any child’s bookshelf.

 

The beloved fables here include:

-   The Fox and the Grapes-   The Ant and the Grasshopper

-   The Vain Crow

-   The Rooster and the Pearl

-   The City Mouse and the Country Mouse

-   The Tortoise and the Hare

-   The Lion and the Mouse

-   The Boy Who Went Swimming

-   The Sun and the Wind

-   The Monkey and the Camel

Plus: a note on Aesop

About this title

About the Author:

John Cech writes plays, poetry and fiction for both children and adults. He is also the Director of the Center for Children's Literature and Culture and served as a judge for The New York Times Best Illustrated Books of the Year, as well as the Boston Globe/Horn Book Awards. Martin Jarrie is an internationally recognised artist and illustrator. His playful, imaginative paintings have appeared in a variety of publications.

From School Library Journal:

Grade 2-5–Three dozen tales, compactly retold and boldly pictured, are spread across the wide pages of this large, slim collection. Cech uses restraint in embellishing or expanding the small tales, presenting them in traditional brief form with the moral stated at the end. The language is contemporary with just a few colloquialisms that will seem amusing or dissonant according to the reader's taste. Rooster was strutting his stuff in the barnyard.... The young men will fall all over themselves asking me to dance with them. Dog was having a great day. Appearing in facing pairs, each story is told in a column of text on the outer edge of the page. Deep-hued acrylic paintings filling the remainder of the space feature elongated, stylized figures of humans and toothy animals. Some of the plain-spoken lessons are a bit flat while others are more pungent. Work together and you'll be stronger. If you dance your own dance, you'll never be out of step. A page of small vignettes offers a visual key to each of the tales, and Cech concludes with the requisite note on Aesop and some history of the fables. With many more tales than usually contained in picture-book renderings, this attractive newcomer will be welcome in libraries needing more Aesop.–Margaret Bush, Simmons College, Boston
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About this edition

• Publisher: Union Square Kids
• Publication date: 2009
• ISBN 10: 1402752989
• ISBN 13: 9781402752988
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 40
• Illustrator: Jarrie Martin