Aesop’s inaugural podcast series offers freshly penned fables that may provide catalysts for conversation, contemplation and quietude. Written by some of the most thought-provoking authors of today, each of these bedtime stories for adults adopts the ancient fable form to elucidate morals for modern times. Season one includes fantastical tales by Mieko Kawakami, Rivers Solomon, Akwaeke Emezi, Amelia Abraham and Lydia Millet. Future Fables is created in partnership with Literary Hub. The theme music was composed by Dean Blunt; episodes were mixed, designed and mastered by Hannah Webster at Unit; and each tale is read by Gabriel Santos from Aesop.
'Sleep is All Hers' by Mieko Kawakami
Mieko Kawakami’s Future Fable invites us to reconsider common fears, while underlining the preciousness of friendship.
Mieko Kawakami was recently shortlisted for the International Booker Prize for her novel Heaven (2009), translated by David Boyd, who also translated this fable. Her latest novel is All the Lovers in the Night.
The theme music for the series was composed by Dean Blunt; episodes were mixed, designed and mastered by Hannah Webster at Unit; and each tale is read by Gabriel Santos from Aesop.
10/25/2022 • 7 minutes, 1 second
'The Pack' by Rivers Solomon
In Solomon’s Future Fable, we join a pack of wolves to discover the importance of community.
Rivers Solomon is an award-winning author, self-proclaimed gender malcontent and keen bird watcher, whose novel An Unkindness of Ghosts featured in the Aesop Queer Library last year. Their most recent novel Sorrowland was released in 2021.
10/18/2022 • 8 minutes, 13 seconds
'The Butterfly Man' by Lydia Millet
Lydia Millet’s Future Fable explores the nature of change through the tale of a slightly stubborn insect.
Lydia Millet is a prolific author of over 13 books, whose collection of short stories Love in Infant Monkeys (2010) was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. Her most recent novel, Dinosaurs, was published 11 Oct 2022.
Artwork by Chioma Ebinama
10/11/2022 • 6 minutes, 13 seconds
'The River Cat's Brother' by Akwaeke Emezi
Emezi's Future Fable highlights the importance of accepting help from others.
Akwaeke Emezi has won a plethora of prestigious awards, and have been featured on the cover of TIME Magazine as a 2021 Next Generation Leader. Their most recent novel, You Made a Fool of Death With Your Beauty, was released in 2022.
Artwork by Chioma Ebinama
