Le lièvre et la tortue

Abstract

This is one of six books in a series. This is the sixth and last, and so we have, at least for now, completed the set. The pamphlet offers delightful cartoons, starting with the front-cover picture of both a casual hare in a sporty shirt and baseball cap, with two balls in his hands and also a tortoise in a straw hat struggling to carry a box of groceries. First the fable is told in its entirety, with helpful vocabulary at the page bottom. Then we start putting the story into a context for today by taking a few lines at a time and giving these lines a two-page spread. The context is departure for vacation, with Diego the hare loading a sports car and Suzette the tortoise, his cousin, waving from her mobile home, which is propelled by a motorbike. Now that is a clever present-day adaptation of a tortoise's shell occasioned by La Fontaine's finish for the fable! They discover that they are going to the same place and they agree on a wager and route to get there. While Suzette sets out immediately, Diego spends time regaling his pals at a bar. Diego even offers a dinner and takes a siesta. Diego then borrows a child's tricycle to mock his competitor in front of people at the bar. He even stops to watch – or perhaps to play? – a game of bocce ball. His frantic last-minute effort has him being greeted at their destination by Suzette ready to raise a glass to him. As in the other booklets of this series, the story is followed by reflections and factual observations on the two animals.