THE SHEPHERD BOY

Aesop
A folktale from Greece
Retold by Joseph Jacobs

There was once a young shepherd boy who tended his sheep at the foot of a mountain near a dark forest. It was rather lonely for him all days, so he thought upon a plan by which he could get a little company and some excitement. He rushed down toward the village calling out, "Wolf, wolf," and the villagers came out to meet him, and some of them stopped with him for a considerable time. this pleased the boy so much that a few days afterwards he tried the same trick, and again the villagers came to his help. But shortly after this a wolf actually did come out from the forest, and began to worry the sheep, and the boy of course cried out, "wolf, wolf", still louder than before. But this time the villagers who had been fooled twice before, thought the boy was again deceiving him, and nobody stirred to come to his help. So the wolf made a good meal off the boys flock, and when the boy complained, the wise men of the village said:

" A liar will not be believed, even when he speaks the truth."

• A fable is a kind of folk tale told to teach a moral lesson. They are fun to read, and they also offer common sense about living our daily lives and making wise decisions.

Source: Introducing Literature