Reading list
Aesop's fables in English: the 16 most famous
The fables everyone half remembers, in V. S. Vernon Jones's 1912 translation: each about a hundred words, with its moral at the end. Many of our sayings come from them: sour grapes, crying wolf, a dog in the manger.
16 stories, all free to read
They are short enough for a first story in English, and each is marked with its reading level. They are in order from the easiest. The whole book has 284 of them.
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1. The Hare and the Tortoise
by Aesop · from Fables
Slow and steady wins the race. The most famous fable there is, in about 150 words.
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2. The Shepherd’s Boy and the Wolf
by Aesop · from Fables
A boy cries "Wolf!" for fun, until the day it is true. The fable behind the saying.
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3. The Grasshopper and the Ants
by Aesop · from Fables
A grasshopper sings all summer and asks the ants for food in winter. Work today for tomorrow.
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4. The Fox and the Crow
by Aesop · from Fables
A fox flatters a crow into singing, and the cheese falls. Never trust a flatterer.
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5. The Goose That Laid the Golden Eggs
by Aesop · from Fables
A man's goose lays a golden egg every day, and he wants them all at once. Greed loses everything.
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6. The Dog and the Shadow
by Aesop · from Fables
A dog with a bone sees a bigger one in the water. Greed again, in under 100 words.
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7. The Lion and the Mouse
by Aesop · from Fables
A lion spares a mouse, and the mouse later frees him from a net. No kindness is wasted.
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8. The Milkmaid and Her Pail
by Aesop · from Fables
A girl counts her chickens before they hatch, and spills the milk. The fable behind the saying.
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9. The Dog in the Manger
by Aesop · from Fables
A dog will not let the ox eat the hay he cannot eat himself. The fable behind the saying.
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10. The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse
by Aesop · from Fables
A plain meal in peace, or a feast in fear? Two cousins visit each other.
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11. Father and Sons
by Aesop · from Fables
A father shows his quarrelling sons that a bundle of sticks will not break. Unity is strength.
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12. The Crow and the Pitcher
by Aesop · from Fables
A thirsty crow drops stones into a pitcher until the water rises. The story of the thirsty crow, as Aesop told it.
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13. The North Wind and the Sun
by Aesop · from Fables
The wind and the sun try to make a traveller take off his coat. Kindness works better than force.
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14. The Fox and the Grapes
by Aesop · from Fables
A fox cannot reach the grapes and decides they are sour anyway. Where "sour grapes" comes from.
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15. The Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing
by Aesop · from Fables
A wolf hides in a sheepskin to get among the flock. Where the saying comes from.
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16. The Mice in Council
by Aesop · from Fables
The mice decide to hang a bell on the cat. Who will do it? Easier said than done.
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Every book on this list is free in Doomreader: open one and it reads as short posts you scroll, with your place kept and its best pages a tap away. You can listen to any of them free too, read aloud by your device.