Customer Reviews

Aesop's Fables (Oxford World's Classics)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This translation of Aesop's fables (600 of them!) contains detailed references for people interested in finding out more about the Greek and Latin originals. And contrary to the comments of jennal24, the gender of the animals in this translation follows the gender of the animal names in Latin and Greek - since the fox (alopeks) is feminine in Greek, that's why monkey is a "she". there's nothing feminist about this: it's just grammar. too bad jenna124 has no idea what s/he is talking about. anyway, if you want to find out about the hundreds of Greek and Latin fables and need an English translation, this is a great place to begin. none of the other books of Aesop's fables in English contains as complete a selection of fables as this Oxford World's Classics version.

Perhaps there are versions of Aesop that readers would enjoy more, and there are plenty of editions that come with engaging illustrations, but if a reader wants to get as close as possible to Aesop's Greek, this is the edition to buy. All of the prior great translators of Aesop have been British--Caxton, L'Estrange, Ogilby, Croxall, Clarke, James, Townsend, Jacobs, and Jones--and of these only Jacobs was a serious Aesop scholar. Laura Gibbs is a scholar as well as a translator; she bases her translations on the best editions; she includes more fables (to show historical variation, some fables appear twice); she provides a better introduction and much better notes than competing editions. Gibbs's volume also has the best index of any Aesop in English. This is an edition worthy of the Oxford imprint, and the first thorough translation of Aesop by an American since Lloyd Daly's AESOP WITHOUT MORALS (1961, now out of print). To experience the immensity and complexity of Aesop, try this.

Excellent reference for for the novice story teller. This book is cheat sheet for the complete Aesop's fables and also gives you the take home message. I grew up hearing Aesop and wanted my kids to have the same experience. This is definitely not for reading to the kids verbatim. I highly recommend it for the storyteller parent.

I have loved Aesop's Fables for many years. This edition (Kindle) is the best I've read. Not only did the editor/author cross-reference and arrange the fables in easy form, reading them on the Kindle makes the reference experience excellent.

Some other reviews disagree with the analysis the book gives to many of the fables. The purpose of the Fables has for thousands of years been for the reader to decide what lessons to take from them. That has not changed. That this edition includes summaries and conclusions that were added and debated over millennia ADDS to its value. I don't think audiences have forgotten to think for themselves as other reviewers claim.

Aesop's Fables have provided intellectual fodder for generations and still does not disappoint. It is a great way to introduce kids to critical thinking and debate.

My only slight critique is it needs a detailed table of contents, but the Kindle's search capabilities makes up for it.

The major advantage of this translation is it is a large collection. Other unexpurgated translations only have about half. I also appreciate Gibbs' readable style and her arrangement of the fables into subject matter. I knocked off one star mainly because these are not the best stories I've read, but they are interesting in a certain way.

Although, I haven't finish reading all of the fables, however, the ones that I have read are enobling for educators and any serious literature reader. I reccomend the Oxford classic of Asop's Fables for anyone who love reading great literature.

We may never really know the true identity of Aesop the Man. But his legacy lives on in these fables,
the morals of which can still find relevance in today's society.
For those of you, whom are easily offended some of the fables bring up racial differences that may upset you.
In particular fable 361:~ The Black man in the river, but then you would be merely taking things out of context of the time in which it was written.
I found fable 136:~ The man and his daughter particularly sad and unpleasant, but it does remind you of the bad side of Human Nature.
These fables express what being Human is all about, the bad and the good.
I never tire of re-reading this book, and I think you won't either.

Aesop's fables short tales in which animals act almost as if they were human , rounded off with a good 'moral' are the first instance of , and perhaps the most memorable of the fable form in literature. Only Orwell it seems to me in ' Animal Farm' does something far surpassing the original.
But Aesop is a classic , and one often used as first literature for children. I have never found the morals very deep or profound or the stories the most moving in the world, but this does not change the fact that they are part of Western mankind's fundamental vocabulary in literature and story.

I'm sorry but referencing Rumi? I don't think you ever even read it. Judging from the interpretation that this silly Aesop fable has anything at all to do with of - The Mouse and The Frog, Rumi's Mathnawi , the author completely misses the point and takes a very lazy view of the meaning of this great poetic work. The Mouse and The Frog is a powerful LOVE STORY not a tale of ~revenge presented by this author. READ THE ORIGINALS YOURSELVES, PEOPLE!

I was hoping to be able to share these fables with my boys. While reading I found that I had to edit on the fly. Some are not kid friendly. So when you're reading about Mr. Duck and you see that he gets eaten by the lion, you could understand my dilemma. Perhaps this is a good exercise for improvisational reading.

Some of the tales are downright puzzling as well. If the moral of the story is saying "Huh?!?" then many tales accomplish that objective.

I would prefer a book that's edited for 21st Century taste and with appropriate fables for kids. I'm sure the book is faithful to the original literature but that's not what I was looking for here.