Aesop for Children

Rating:
Summary: Not quite what I was hoping for
Review: Although the stories are - for the most part - enjoyable, I found the prose a bit awkward and much of the vocabulary too flowery and grand for younger listeners. I got a lot of blank stares from my 6 year old as I read a few of them, and oftentimes found it necessary to reword the phrases into something simpler and easier for him to understand. Also, the morals aren't always clear. For example, "Do not be too hard to suit or you may have to be content with the worst or nothing at all". Quite a mouthful for a kindergartener to digest. Also, the moral "Do not try to ape your betters" from the Monkey and the Camel sent my son into hysterics. Like I said, it doesn't seem to really be written for the very young, unless you're prepared to stop every other sentence and define the oftentimes flowery and ill-placed vocabulary words for your child.

Rating:
Summary: Not quite what I was hoping for
Review: Although the stories are - for the most part - enjoyable, I found the prose a bit awkward and much of the vocabulary too flowery and grand for younger listeners. I got a lot of blank stares from my 6 year old as I read a few of them, and oftentimes found it necessary to reword the phrases into something simpler and easier for him to understand. Also, the morals aren't always clear. For example, "Do not be too hard to suit or you may have to be content with the worst or nothing at all". Quite a mouthful for a kindergartener to digest. Also, the moral "Do not try to ape your betters" from the Monkey and the Camel sent my son into hysterics. Like I said, it doesn't seem to really be written for the very young, unless you're prepared to stop every other sentence and define the oftentimes flowery and ill-placed vocabulary words for your child.

Rating:
Summary: Best Buy For Children!!
Review: My students loved this book. It's a definite hit. If you love fables and fairy tales this is a must! Also nice to add to your collection are: Grimm's complete fairy tales (Grimm), Great Children's stories (Richardson), The Butterfly (Singh). There are many other great children's books out there, but these were the ones I enjoyed the most. Oh, and I almost forgot the two classics that no children should ever be deprived of: The Little Prince (Exupery) and Charlotte's Web (White).

Rating:
Summary: The best money you'll spend for a book.
Review: This collection of some of the most memorable of Aesop's Fables is written in clear and elegant prose, beautifully illustrated, and perfect for pleasure reading and instruction. We use it as part of our homeschooling writing exercises. Our daughter reads a story, rewrites it in her own words, and illustrates it. We discuss the saying that attends each story and also the phrases that have become the common property of all people, for example, "a wolf in sheeps clothing". I cannot say enough good things about this book. At its low price this must be one of the best bargains on the planet. Enough said.

Rating:
Summary: The best money you'll spend for a book.
Review: This is my favorite version of Aesop. After comparing it to another version, I can say that it is a more complete collection, the fables are more fully developed with rich language, and the beautiful illustrations set it above the rest.

My nine-year-old son retold one of the fables we read from this book: "Once a dove saw an ant fall into a river. The ant was struggling for safety. So the dove took a piece of hay and swooped down and dropped the hay right by the ant so it could float to safety.

"Then a different day, the ant saw the same dove that saved the ant's life. A man was getting ready to throw a stone at the dove to kill it. Then the ant went up to his heel and stung the man. It made the man miss his aim. So the dove flew away."

For those of you who like to have your child retell or narrate a story he has heard, this book earns my top recommendation for a starting point. The stories are short enough to narrate easily and rich enough in language and content to inspire a good retelling by the child.