Fables Choisies, Mises en Vers

Paris: Desaint & Saillant, Durand. , 1755.. Bindings slightly worn, and uniform slight browning due to age, otherwise a very good copy. . Binding: Contemporary full brown calf, upper and lower boards with tooled border, spine with 6 raised bands, title on two, all edges in gilt. Pasted and free marbled endpapers. , Notes: One of the greatest French illustrated books. Jean de La Fontaine (1621–1695) was the most famous French fabulist and one of the most widely read French poets of the 17th century. He is known above all for his Fables, which provided a model for subsequent fabulists across Europe and numerous alternative versions in France, and in French regional languages. Divided into 12 books, there are 239 of the Fables, varying in length from a few lines to some hundred, those written later being as a rule longer than the earlier. Silvestre de Sacy has commented that they supply delights to three different ages: the child rejoices in the freshness and vividness of the story, the eager student of literature in the consummate art with which it is told, the experienced man of the world in the subtle reflections on character and life which it conveys. The book has therefore naturally become a standard French reader both at home and abroad. Bookplate of Robert Wade esq., and of College Episcopalis Sancti Edwardi, on verso of top cover.
Jean de La Fontaine collected fables from a wide variety of sources, both Western and Eastern, and adapted them into French free verse. They were issued under the general title of Fables in several volumes from 1668 to 1694 and are considered classics of French literature. Humorous, nuanced and ironical, they were originally aimed at adults but then entered the educational system and were required learning for school children.
, Size: Folio (415 x 280 mm). , Illustration: Illustrated with the frontispiece portrait of the author and a profusion of plates by Jean-Baptiste Oudry and numerous ornamental tail pieces. , Volume: 4 volumes. , References: Cohen, 548; Tchemerzine III, 874/75; Cohen-de Ricci, 548-550; Huntington Library, Great Books in Great Editions, 21; Ray, The Art of the French Illustrated Book, 5; HBS, 67332, Category: Book Children; Book Literature; Book Plate Books General;