Aesop's Fables

This timeless collection brings together three hundred of the most enduringly popular of Aesop’s fables in a volume that will delight young and old readers alike. Here are all the age-old favourites – the wily fox, the vain peacock, the predatory cat and the steady tortoise – just as endearingly vivid and relevant now as they were for their very first audience. This elegant Macmillan Collector’s Library edition of Aesop’s Fables features illustrations by Arthur Rackham, the leading decorative illustrator of the Edwardian period, which have been beautifully and sensitively coloured by Barbara Frith. With an afterword by publisher and editor Anna South. Designed to appeal to the booklover, the Macmillan Collector’s Library is a series of beautiful gift editions of much loved classic titles. Macmillan Collector’s Library are books to love and treasure.

Author Biography

Although the three hundred fables in this 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 BC, many believe it unlikely that this whole stock of fables can be attributed to one individual. However, what does seem clear is that the fables began their life as word-of-mouth stories long before being put down in writing.