What is the moral of The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse?

A plain life in safety is better than a rich life full of fear. An old English version puts it as: better beans and bacon in peace than cakes and ale in fear.

Who wrote The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse?

It is one of Aesop's Fables, traditionally credited to Aesop, a storyteller said to have lived in ancient Greece around the sixth century BCE. The Roman poet Horace told it in his Satires, and Beatrix Potter retold it in 1918 as The Tale of Johnny Town-Mouse; this version is a VoiceSmiths retelling.

What age is The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse for?

It suits children from about 4 to 9. Younger children love the chase with the broom and the cat, and older children can talk about what really makes a good home.

Back to the theater

Fable · 声匠改编 · 3:35

The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse

A country mouse visits his posh cousin's town house: cakes, cheese, a cook with a broom and a hungry cat. Aesop's fable of peace over plenty, retold.

Narrator

Barley, the Country Mouse

Reginald, the Town Mouse

The Cook

The Cat

0:000:00

Other languages · 2 languages

🇨🇳 中文 🇺🇸 English

About this story

The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse is one of Aesop's Fables; the Roman poet Horace retold it in his Satires, and Beatrix Potter later turned it into The Tale of Johnny Town-Mouse. This VoiceSmiths retelling follows plain, cheerful Barley and his posh cousin Reginald from a cosy burrow to a midnight feast with a broom-waving cook and a purring cat, as a full-cast audio story.

What it teaches

A simple life lived in peace can be richer than a grand one lived in fear. What makes a home good is feeling safe and happy there, not how fancy the dinner is.

Suits

Ages 4–9

Tips for telling it

Give the two mice very different voices, one posh and one homely, so children can tell them apart.
Ask children which home they would choose and why; there is no wrong answer.
Talk about the things that make your own home feel safe and cosy.

Questions people ask

What is the moral of The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse?: A plain life in safety is better than a rich life full of fear. An old English version puts it as: better beans and bacon in peace than cakes and ale in fear.
Who wrote The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse?: It is one of Aesop's Fables, traditionally credited to Aesop, a storyteller said to have lived in ancient Greece around the sixth century BCE. The Roman poet Horace told it in his Satires, and Beatrix Potter retold it in 1918 as The Tale of Johnny Town-Mouse; this version is a VoiceSmiths retelling.
What age is The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse for?: It suits children from about 4 to 9. Younger children love the chase with the broom and the cat, and older children can talk about what really makes a good home.

Theater

🇺🇸🇨🇳🇯🇵🇰🇷🇪🇸🇧🇷🇮🇩7 languagesShort drama3:36

Reborn at My Engagement Party

声匠原创

Pushed down the stairs by her fiancé and her sister, Shen Qingci wakes up at her own engagement party. She exposes them both, then he whispers in her ear: did you come back too?

5 voices

🇺🇸🇨🇳2 languagesClassic5:00

Borrowing Arrows with Straw Boats

Romance of the Three Kingdoms · Luo Guanzhong (original) · VoiceSmiths adaptation · 1522

Zhou Yu sets a trap: 100,000 arrows in ten days. Kongming asks for three, waits for fog, and lets Cao Cao pay. Same cast as the Chinese episode.

6 voices

🇺🇸🇨🇳2 languagesFable3:33

The North Wind and the Sun

声匠改编

The boastful North Wind and the gentle Sun bet on who can make a traveler take off his cloak. Aesop's fable of why warmth wins where force fails, retold.

5 voices