New Stuff: Fables

I thought the idea of fairy tale legends living alongside regular New Yorkers quite intriguing, and I the covers of this series caught my eye.

Aesop: Androcles

Androcles

A slave named Androcles once escaped from his master and fled
to the forest. As he was wandering about there he came upon a
Lion lying down moaning and groaning. At first he turned to flee,
but finding that the Lion did not pursue him, he turned back and
went up to him. As he came near, the Lion put out his paw, which
was all swollen and bleeding, and Androcles found that a huge
thorn had got into it, and was causing all the pain. He pulled
out the thorn and bound up the paw of the Lion, who was soon able
to rise and lick the hand of Androcles like a dog. Then the Lion
took Androcles to his cave, and every day used to bring him meat
from which to live. But shortly afterwards both Androcles and the
Lion were captured, and the slave was sentenced to be thrown to
the Lion, after the latter had been kept without food for several
days. The Emperor and all his Court came to see the spectacle,
and Androcles was led out into the middle of the arena. Soon the
Lion was let loose from his den, and rushed bounding and roaring
towards his victim. But as soon as he came near to Androcles he
recognised his friend, and fawned upon him, and licked his hands
like a friendly dog. The Emperor, surprised at this, summoned
Androcles to him, who told him the whole story. Whereupon the
slave was pardoned and freed, and the Lion let loose to his native
forest.

Jean de La Fontaine: The Ant and the Cricket

The Ant and the Cricket

The careless cricket
Sang the summer away
Just to find herself
Poor and with nothing to eat
No fly, no bread
In the winter to have.

Hungry and whining
To the ant she went
Begging for something to have
Just out of kind heart
As to be able to eat
Till the good season comes:
Swearing by her faith
Next August she would refund
With interests and capital sum.

The frugal ant, who double thinks
Before anything she lends
-“How did you spend your summer away?”
Thus asks straight out.
And the cricket:-“My dear friend,
I did nothing but sang day and night”-
“Well done, my dear friend,
Now you can also dance”

Lev Tolstoj: The Hawk and the Czar

(art: Peter Helck)

The Hawk and the Czar

After the hunting, the czar overcome by thirst, went to a spring together with his beloved hawk. The water dripped very slowly, and he needed a great deal of patience to fill his cup; when, at last, the czar could take it to his lips, the hawk flapped his wings and spilled all the water. The czar took the cup to the spring and waited that it was filled up again, but once again the hawk made it fall down. A little bit irritated, the czar repeated the operation for the third time, and, again the incorrigible hawk prevented him from drinking.
-“ So you do it on purpose! - cried out the enraged czar and threw him against the rock, killing him. Then he went again to fill the cup when his servants arrived and shouted at him:
-“ Don't drink, don't drink Sir. A snake shed(poured) its poison in this water!
The czar did not drink looked at his dead hawk, and weeping said:” Too late I see how much that bird was worth.!”