Aesop's Fables by Aesop; Unabridged MP3 Audio Book; Narrator Mary Woods

Much of the richness of our language and moral education is owed to a Greek slave who was executed over two thousand years ago. Literally hundreds of metaphors, axioms, and ideas that are woven into the very fabric of Western culture—from “sour grapes” and “crying wolf” to “actions speak louder than words” and “honesty is the best policy”—all came from Aesop’s Fables.

An extraordinary storyteller who used cunning foxes, surly dogs, clever mice, and foolish humans to describe the reality of a harsh world, Aesop created narratives that are appealing, funny, politically astute, and profoundly true. And Aesop’s truth—often summed up in the pithy “moral of the story”—retains an awesome power to affect us, reaching us through both our intellects and our hearts.

Aesop was a Phrygian slave who probably lived from 620 to 560 BC. It is inferable from Aristotle’s mention of Aesop’s acting as a public defender that he was freed from slavery, possibly as a result of his wit. Plutarch stated that the Athenians erected a noble statue of him. Little is known about his life and many conflicting stories exist. It can be stated, however, that he was an extraordinary storyteller who conveyed his remarkable wisdom regarding human nature in appealing tales of cunning foxes, fearsome lions, clever mice and foolish humans. Over the centuries, Aesop’s Fables retain their power to reach our intellects and touch our hearts.