The Sanctuary · An Aesopic fable

The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse

Two small brown mice share grains, roots and acorns beside a leafy hedgerow.

A town mouse visited a cousin in the country. Lunch was wheat, roots and acorns, with cool water to drink.

The visitor ate little, but had much to say about the food at home. They spent a quiet night in the hedgerow. In the morning, the country mouse accepted an invitation to town.

Two mice pause beside pastry and cheese on a dining table, looking towards a closed door.

In a grand house, they found a table still laden with the remains of a feast: pastries, cheese and sweets.

Before the country mouse could taste a pastry, a cat began scratching at the door. Both mice hurried into hiding.

When they ventured out again, the servants arrived to clear the table, with the house dog behind them.

The country mouse turns towards the garden through an open doorway while the town mouse stays inside.

The country mouse went to collect a few belongings. The visit was over.

The food was wonderful, the mouse told the cousin, but the wheat and acorns at home would do. There, a meal could be eaten in peace.

Read as text

A town mouse visited a cousin in the country. Lunch was wheat, roots and acorns, with cool water to drink.

The visitor ate little, but had much to say about the food at home. They spent a quiet night in the hedgerow. In the morning, the country mouse accepted an invitation to town.

In a grand house, they found a table still laden with the remains of a feast: pastries, cheese and sweets.

Before the country mouse could taste a pastry, a cat began scratching at the door. Both mice hurried into hiding.

When they ventured out again, the servants arrived to clear the table, with the house dog behind them.

The country mouse went to collect a few belongings. The visit was over.

The food was wonderful, the mouse told the cousin, but the wheat and acorns at home would do. There, a meal could be eaten in peace.

About this story & sources

An Alrewaq retelling of an Aesopic fable, following The Aesop for Children (1919). The country mouse chooses a safer meal; the tale is not a general judgement on life in towns or the countryside. The wording and illustrations are Alrewaq’s adaptation.