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Audiobook editionPaperback · 6 × 9 in · 76 pagesHardcover · 6 × 9 in · 76 pagesAbout this book
A fast hare boasts, a hungry fox schemes, and a tiny mouse has more to offer than anyone expects.
In Æsop's Fables in Words of One Syllable, Mary Godolphin retells the tales credited to Aesop in plain words for young readers. Animals talk, argue and want their own way. The hare trusts his speed; the tortoise keeps steady. Each short tale brings a choice into focus and ends with a clear lesson.
The collection includes the hare and the tortoise, the fox and the grapes, the fox and the crow, and the lion and the mouse. You also meet a shepherd boy who plays a joke on his village. Behind these small scenes lie questions about pride, trust, flattery and the strength we can overlook.
What you’ll discover
- Pride meets a test Watch the boastful hare face a slow walker who refuses to lose his temper.
- The pull of wanting Follow a hungry fox whose wish for grapes puts desire at the heart of the tale.
- Words that hide a trap Meet the fox and the crow in a tale that warns against flattery.
- Strength in small creatures Discover why the tiny mouse deserves attention alongside the powerful king of beasts.
- Small tales, clear lessons Find brief, plain stories that help beginning readers think about how people act.
Who will love it
Readers who love short tales with animals, quick morals and a saying to share aloud. Parents, teachers, storytellers and lovers of proverbs will find a tale for almost every mood.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Trust is built in small moments
- Good plans need someone to act
- Know when to bend or unite
- Small choices can steer a life
- Keep hope grounded in what exists
- The weak need more than reason
- Friendship is proved through costly action
- Brief scenes leave room for judgment
- Carry the pictures into daily life
Who’s who
- The FoxA sly schemer in many tales who wants a meal or a way out, and who is sometimes tricked in turn.
- The WolfA hungry, bullying hunter who wants a meal and often needs a clever excuse, a flatterer's help or a trick to get one.
- The LambA gentle young sheep who meets a wolf at a brook and tries to argue with good sense.
- The CrowA vain bird with a piece of cheese who wants to be admired for her voice.
- The Shepherd BoyA bored boy who minds a flock and shouts that a wolf is coming, just for fun.
- The AssA plain, hard-working donkey who is often foolish, proud, stubborn or envious, and who wants an easier life.
- Smooth NeckThe king of the wild doves, who leads his flock to lift a hunter's net and find help.
- Gold FurThe wise and kind king of the mice, who gnaws through the net to set the doves loose.
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Æsop's Fables in Words of One Syllable in 25 languages, side by side, paragraph by paragraph, once the book texts are online: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Æsop's Fables in Words of One Syllable
A fox seeks grapes, a crow drops her cheese, and a wolf invents a reason to eat a lamb.
Easy readUnder 2 hours to read20 languages
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“Might beats right.”
In short
A shepherd boy shouts that a wolf is coming, just for fun. The men in the fields run to help, and each time they find only a joke.
Æsop's Fables in Words of One Syllable at a glance
- Reading time
- About 1 h 5 min55 min fast, 1 h 20 min slow
- Length
- 15,800 words
- Library level
- Easy short sentences, plain words
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
The first tales teach trust, pride and contentment
The book opens with a boy who minds sheep and likes to shout that a wolf is near. The men in the fields run to help, only to find a joke. After a few rounds, they decide the next cry will go unanswered. Then a real wolf arrives, the boy screams in terror, and no one comes.
The wolf is not the villain here. The harm comes from a habit the boy built himself, one small prank at a time. A liar is hard to believe even when he speaks the truth.
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A fox seeks grapes, a crow drops her cheese, and a wolf invents a reason to eat a lamb.
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Details
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 1 h 25 min
- Level
- Easy read
- Paperback
- 76 pages · 6 × 9 in
- Hardcover
- 76 pages · 6 × 9 in
- Large print paperback
- 110 pages · 6 × 9 in
- Large print hardcover
- 110 pages · 6 × 9 in
- Delivery and returns
- Printed when you order. Usually here in 12 to 14 days.Arrives Wed 2 Dec to Tue 8 Decto United States, printed for you at cost
For Christmas, order by Thu 12 Nov
Cite this edition
Godolphin, Mary, and Aesop. Æsop's Fables in Words of One Syllable. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/aesops-fables-in-words-of-one-syllable.
Godolphin, M., & Aesop. (2026). Æsop's fables in words of one syllable. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/aesops-fables-in-words-of-one-syllable
Godolphin, Mary, and Aesop. Æsop's Fables in Words of One Syllable. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/aesops-fables-in-words-of-one-syllable.
@book{godolphin2026sops,
author = {Godolphin, Mary and Aesop},
title = {Æsop's Fables in Words of One Syllable},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/aesops-fables-in-words-of-one-syllable}
}
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What is Æsop's Fables about?
It is a collection of short tales, many featuring animals, built around problems such as hunger, pride, greed or a quarrel, and often closing with sayings about trust, friendship, power and wit.
What is the moral of The Boy and the Wolf?
A shepherd boy cries wolf for fun until nobody believes him, even when a real wolf comes. The lesson is that even a truthful statement is hard to believe when it comes from someone known for lying.
What does sour grapes mean in The Fox and the Grapes?
A fox cannot reach grapes on a wall, so he says they are sour. The phrase now means scorning what you cannot have, and the moral says to want what you can have.
The author
Mary Godolphin
1668–1743 · English children's writer
Peerage person ID=372933.
“Might beats right.”
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