Fables: A Caldecott Award Winner

Another book that I bought without knowing anything about it besides the author. The stories are all pretty quirky! I read them with my child, and it's too complicated to explain 'the moral of the story is...' to a toddler, so for some of them we just don't bother and enjoy them as funny little stories. Each is one page long, with accompanying illustration on the other side, so it's a quick read.

Middle elementary school. I cannot remember a single one of these fables, which is because Lobel created them. They are fun with unexpected twists and wonderful morals. Per usual, Lobel has superb, interesting, expressive, and fun illustrations. There is one illustration for each fable.

This is a collection of twenty short, simply written fables. Each is crafted to make a moral point, The author is droll and funny. Children can read this one or have it read to them and actually get the point. The adult reading the book can enjoy the tongue-in-cheek humor. Both adult and child can enjoy the wonderful illustrations. Now you might take note here. I suspect that those adults that take themselves too seriously may not appreciate this work as much as those that do not. The points the story makes could make some uncomfortable as it does point out the foibles that many of us have. I really did not have that problems as I am well aware of my flaws and certainly do not take myself all that seriously. This is a great book to read to the kids and certainly leaves room for much discussion.

This children's book consists of twenty original fables containing animal characters (just as in Aesop's fables) with a moral at the end of each: for example, "Knowledge will not always take the place of simple observation." The book won the 1981 Caldecott Medal for best illustration in a book for children.

My eight year old daughter came home from school with this book and proceeded to read many of the stories out loud (to me and to anyone else who would listen). The book has wonderful illustrations and each of the stories is brief and concise yet, entertaining. My daughter was eager to own the book and begged for me to buy it for her. At the end of each story is a one sentence 'moral' which helps focus the reader and helps her pay attention to the meaning of the fable.