Fables d'esope

by John Cech

Une souris et un lion peuvent-ils tre amis Qu'arrive-t-il quand la main d'un petit garon reste coince dans un bocal de noisettes Qui va gagner la course, le livre agile ou la tortue lente mais rgulire Redcouvrez les fables les plus connues du clbre conteur sope, actualises par Martin Jarrie. Ses images stylises soulignent la modernit et la pertinence de ces textes classiques qui, non sans malice, transmettent, qui veut bien y prter attention, de vritables leons de vie.

Genres: Picture Books

48 pages, Hardcover

First published March 3, 2009

Reviews

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thirty-six of the classic fables commonly attributed to Aesop are collected in this new picture-book anthology from John Cech, a professor of children's literature at the University of Florida in Gainesville. Here are many old favorites, from The Ant and the Grasshopper to The City Mouse and the Country Mouse, as well as some less well-known selections, like The Boy Who Went Swimming and The Bald Knight. Each fable is presented, in concise form, on a single page, with an accompanying illustration by Martin Jarrie.

Although this new collection was well-formatted and well-illustrated, my intensive Aesop project earlier in the year exposed me to so many wonderful fable collections, that I found myself only moderately impressed by Cech's book. Some of his adaptations felt a little too concise, and while I liked Jarrie's stylized illustrations, I have seen other Aesop titles - that done by Jerry Pinkney, for instance, or Milo Winter - whose artwork I truly loved. It's engaging enough, this new Aesop's Fables won't be going on any of my "best of" lists.

[Ashley Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

A simple collection of classic folktales.

[Brooke Brodsky · Rating 3 out of 5]

This compilation of Aesop's Fables is retold by John Cech and illustrated by Martin Jarrie. It is a compilation of 39 of his stories, each one is accompanied by a beautiful illustration. I rated it only 2 stars because each story was only one or two short paragraphs long, and there was almost no detail at all - the stories are told very simply, with short sentences and very little dialogue. Each story ends with a short explanation of the lesson that the story is trying to teach. On the one hand, it is good for a classroom to use this type of story telling technique because the teacher can spend less time reading the story and more time discussing the message that the story teaches. On the other hand, with out more detail, the story is not rich and lacks depth. I was disappointed that some of my favorites (such as The Monkey and the Camel) were SO short that it was easily forgettable. I did like that the illustrations featured expressions on the characters, I found that it made the story come to life in a way that the words could not.

[Monica Jung · Rating 5 out of 5]

FABLE - THE CAT AND THE MICE

MOTIF - cat and mice

Cech, John. Aesop's Fables. New York: Sterling, 2009.

Target Audience - Kindergarten to Grade 12

This story is about how three mice figure out how to stop the cat from sneaking up on them. The solution was to tie a bell around the cat's neck so they would have a warning of the cat's presence. The problem was that not one of the mice wanted to put the bell on the cat's neck. The lesson in the story is: Don't propose what you won't do.

I never met an Aesop's Fable I didn't like. Each has an important life lesson to share with the reader. The fables make you think as you relate the lesson to your own life. It is amazing to think that these fables still apply to life so many years after they were written/spoken.

[Tanja · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another lovely collection of Aesop fables. One short story per page, each story ending with the story's morale. Not everyone might necessarily agree with each of them, rather identify a different morale in individual stories, but that does not take away from the pleasure of reading through this collection. The art work is bright and cheerful and the author's note at the back of the book provides the reader with some additional information on the origin of these fables. I absolutely enjoyed it!

[Curtis Jensen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Retelling of classic fables, but told in a not very exciting way.

[Sarah Lane · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great version of Aesop's Fables with fun illustrations and the moral of each fable summarized at the bottom of the page.