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  • The Complete Fables (Penguin Classics)
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The Complete Fables (Penguin Classics) New Ed Edition, Kindle Edition

by Aesop (Author), Robert Temple (Introduction), Olivia Temple (Translator) Format: Kindle Edition
4.5 out of 5 stars 611 ratings
4.1 on Goodreads
128,711 ratings

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Aesop was probably a prisoner of war, sold into slavery in the early sixth century BC, who represented his masters in court and negotiations, and relied on animal stories to put across his key points. All these fables, full of humour, insight and savage wit, as well as many fascinating glimpses of ordinary life, have now been brought together for the first time in this definitive and fully annotated modern edition.
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  1. ISBN-13
    978-0141915784
  2. Edition
    New Ed
  3. Publisher
    Penguin
  4. Accessibility
    Learn more
  5. Publication date
    May 29 2003
  6. Language
    English
  7. File size
    2.9 MB
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Product description

About the Author

Aesop probably lived in the middle part of the sixth century BC. A statement in Herodotus gives ground for thinking that he was a slave belonging to a citizen of Samos called Iadmon. Legend says that he was ugly and misshapen. There are many references to Aesop found in the Athenian writers: Aristophanes, Xenophon, Plato, Aristotle and others. It is not known whether he wrote down his Fables himself, nor indeed how many of them are correctly attributed to his invention.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B002RI9YH8
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Penguin
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 29 2003
  • Edition ‏ : ‎ New Ed
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2.9 MB
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 284 pages
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0141915784
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • 鶹 Rank: #251,717 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 out of 5 stars 611 ratings

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  1. Aesop

    Aesop

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    Aesop (/?i?s?p/ EE-sop; Ancient Greek: ?ҦئЦ?, Aispos; c. 620 - 564 BCE) was an Ancient Greek fabulist or story teller credited with a number of fables now collectively known as Aesop's Fables. Although his existence remains uncertain and no writings by him survive, numerous tales credited to him were gathered across the centuries and in many languages in a storytelling tradition that continues to this day. Many of the tales are characterized by animals and inanimate objects that speak, solve problems, and generally have human characteristics.

    Scattered details of Aesop's life can be found in ancient sources, including Aristotle, Herodotus, and Plutarch. An ancient literary work called The Aesop Romance tells an episodic, probably highly fictional version of his life, including the traditional description of him as a strikingly ugly slave (Ħ?˦?) who by his cleverness acquires freedom and becomes an adviser to kings and city-states. Older spellings of his name have included Esop(e) and Isope. Depictions of Aesop in popular culture over the last 2500 years have included several works of art and his appearance as a character in numerous books, films, plays, and television programs.

    Bio from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Photo of statue by user:shakko (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.

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  2. Robert K. G. Temple

    Robert K. G. Temple

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Top reviews from Canada

  • Jacobseguin
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great.
    Reviewed in Canada on August 3, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    Nice. Paper is a bit cheap feeling. But its a nice size.
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  • KTB
    5.0 out of 5 stars Not for children, but a good source & great book
    Reviewed in Canada on December 26, 2000
    I think perhaps some of the reviewers here are missing the point of this book. And please don't go read Ben E. Perry's book because it's just full of falsities. I know, I've read it. Here's the thing: the fables that I and many others have grown up with are really adaptations and distortions of the real fables. And as the author points out, those fables may have been attributed to Aesop but he didn't think all of them up. He had other sources he drew from. These fables are probably not best read to children but if you're going to use them to help teach morals then adapting them to your own purpose is fine. However, I read this edition for a scholarly purpose because I'm interested in the origins of fables and folk tales. It is a really good book for that purpose. Morality was not Aesop's thing, the morals were attached later. If you're into morality then try another book.
    4 people found this helpful
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  • nicholas diak
    4.0 out of 5 stars Great Book
    Reviewed in Canada on December 28, 2012
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    I read Aesop's Fables when I was a kid. That was over 50 yrs ago. I would of rather of had this in hardcover. Still as a softcover I am enjoying reading it. Brings back memories.
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  • Sheila
    4.0 out of 5 stars Very Moralistic.
    Reviewed in Canada on August 29, 2000
    I typed in Aesop's Fables into 鶹's search engine and there were 299 matches and none of them were quite the same as the book I have read. This edition comes closest but is not exactly it. Anyway this is my review.
    Aesop tells over 200 small stories. There are rarely over a page in length and each has a moral which is printed underneath but can usually be grasped before the story finishes. Included, of course are the famous stories, "The boy and the wolf", "the Tortoise and the Hare" but there are over a hundred less famous stories which have morals that are just as meaningful.
    This is a great book but not one I can recommend wholeheartedly. It is more like an encyclopedia of stories than a book itself. It would be impossible to just sit down and read these stories one by one to a child without sounding preachy. Instead it would be useful as a reference that a parent could use to explain a misdeed.
    One surprise of these stories is that our morals have not changed in the thousand years since Aesop wrote these. He often talks about oppresors and these are still very much influencing our daily lives.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Allen Loibner-Waitkus
    2.0 out of 5 stars Too many animals
    Reviewed in Canada on March 10, 2000
    Aesop's fables are interesting, but I wouldn't try to read too many of them at once. I am currently reading this edition of Aesop's fables. If I have to read any more animal stories, I may have to pick up a copy of "Final Exit." The author's notes, however, make this edition almost worth the time.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Andre M.
    4.0 out of 5 stars Aesop for academics
    Reviewed in Canada on January 15, 2002
    This is not an everyman's book of folklore, but good if you have an academic interest in he roots of some of the most famous stories in the world. This ain't what your first grade teacher told you folks, but it's interesting to say the least. One can compare this with the uncensored versions of Grimm's Fairy Tales in that these originals are quite brutal and "politically incorrect" in comparison to the children's versions that most of us are familiar with today...if you are a purist and /or a student of folklore, then this is for you.
    5 people found this helpful
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  • Jorge Perez
    5.0 out of 5 stars A good book overall, but some things to be considered in order to fully enjoy this book
    Reviewed in the United States on October 2, 2023
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    This version of Aesop's Fables is a good book to read. Lots of valuable information on life and how to apply the lessons from the morals stated in the book, after each story. I am happy to know that each fable was numbered, but no index is in this book. I was able to follow along with the writing style of the book. I was also looking to match up the title of one fable, "The Runaway Slave", but the title was changed to "The Jackdaw Who Escaped". This one is fable 164. The story is the same with the wording changed to remove references to slavery and escaping. I don't condone slavery or anything of the like, but the reason I brought this up is because things change as the moods of the times change, hence the re-wording of fable 164.

    I also noticed that some fables go by different names in this book, although we may know it by a certain name. What we call "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" is titled the "The Joking Shepherd" in this book. The other well known fables have the same title by which most people know them as. I did enjoy reading the "The Hen That Laid The Golden Eggs" though it's more known as "The Goose That Laid The Golden Eggs".

    I have to mention the footnote written in fable 4 requires a little warning into how the author of the book wrote the commentary on comparing gods to Catholic saints, because it is an inaccurate statement. In no way can it be compared praying for the help of a saint, as to praying to a god for a certain cause and then to compare them to each other for which one is the greater one. There's no comparison from opposing gods invented for different reasons, to that of Catholic saints who all worship the same God, and who's overall mission is that of following the Lord Jesus Christ. This is where the confusion must stop in order to overcome this misapplication of religious disparity.

    The disparity of the gods should be more taken as the differences between two opposing figures who's cause is for different reasons and can't come to an agreement amongst themselves. This is how it is supposed to be applied when referencing ancient deities, regardless of some random similarities between religions.

    All in all, I do enjoy browsing through the various fables in the book. Each fable has it's own reason for being there. The lessons are valuable to be applied to one's personal life for all ages, from young to old. These are perennial lessons that don't change with the times, regardless of what we do in history. This book, like the Bible, is useful as a blueprint for how to lead our lives, and how to live in peace with one another. May you all enjoy a pleasant read from this book.
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  • Ulrich von Bek
    1.0 out of 5 stars Great Fables, but an AWFUL printing by Penguin - No Index or TOC - Virtually Unusable!
    Reviewed in Australia on March 17, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    This is a book of 358 fables... and Penguin have been so lazy that there is NO INDEX, and there is NO TABLE OF CONTENTS. So if you want to find "The Tortoise and the Hare" as I just did, you would have to flick through 257 pages manually scanning for it!

    Aesop assigned character types to his animal designations which makes it easy to find fables covering a particular theme. That is, unless some penny pinching publisher comes along and publishes the fables like a novel - with no index and no table of contents.

    I'm appalled that the once great Penguin Publishing could fall this low.
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  • wetenswaardigheid
    5.0 out of 5 stars ڥ󥮥?֥åΥեȤʴ󤭤
    Reviewed in Japan on June 27, 2017
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    Aesop's Fables (Dover Children's Thrift Classics)
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    Aesop's Fables (Oxford World's Classics)
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  • RS
    3.0 out of 5 stars No Index
    Reviewed in the Netherlands on November 26, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Good luck trying to find the fable you are looking for without wading through over 200 pages of over 300 fables.
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  • Chris Worth
    5.0 out of 5 stars The fables aren't just for kids
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 21, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    This review is of the Penguin Classics edition, on Kindle.

    This complete works - 358 fables, most less than a page long - is simply written and nicely annotated, including a "This fable means..." summary for your kids. But the stories themselves resonate much more deeply, being about timeless themes of honour and jealousy, and are worth reading even if you're alone as an adult. After all, these ancient Greeks shaped the way many of us in the West think today.

    Problems: on Kindle, the table of contents is nonexistent. A persistent problem with texts converted to Kindle; it seems to happen in around a third of Penguin Classics. More attention to detail would be welcome here, especially since the Kindle versions aren't cheap.
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