Collected Tales: Fables and Parables in Search of a Moral contains 230-plus contemporary satirical fables, parables, revisions of myths, and passing observations on the present state of homo sapiens. The tales focus on psychological, social, political, spiritual, aesthetic, and philosophical themes, but the "moral" of each one is left to the reader to decide.
Among the tales in the present book:
- Aesop runs afoul of the good citizens of Delphi
- a barnacle weighs the moral pros and cons of letting go
- a bear attracts quite a following in faith-based wrestling
- two troops of lowland buffoons square off on a patch of ground where the halls of Congress now stand
- a booby and a loon host a talk-radio show
- a chicken and an egg nearly come to blows over which of them should go first
- the Chimera has a difficult time filling out the compatibility profile for an online matchmaking service
- an ophthalmologist has some good news and some bad news for a dragonfly
- a free spirit stubs its toe
- a fruit fly becomes obsessed with genealogy
- a gazelle finds itself in a state of suspended animation
- a gene falls victim to identity theft
- a hawk has trouble maintaining eye contact
- the Hydra notices that its many heads are growing smaller and disappearing
- Icarus goes for a swim
- a film crew sets out to document the march of the pundits
- reports come in that a misanthrope has been spotted on the outskirts of town
- a molehill comes to worry that it might not reach its full potential
- a mosquito lands a job waiting tables
- a nightcrawler is tracked down by the thought police
- an old goat nearly overdoses on ED pills
- the great god Pan roles over and declares, "I ain't dead yet, folks"
- Pavlov's dogs nearly die of acute dehydration
- the phoenix considers having itself embalmed
- a poodle takes up ballroom dancing
- a porcupine goes in for body piercing in a big way
- a possum comes to realize how difficult it is to appear dim
- Prometheus investigates the merits of canned heat
- a robot takes its pet human for a walk in the park as usual
- a rhinoceros notices it has a bruise
- a rubber chicken begins to fret that it lacks gravitas
- a sardine feels kind of lonesome
- a satyr sets himself up as a life coach
- a scorpion experiences a moment of compassion
- a selfie fails to recognize itself
- the Seven Deadly Sins form a support group to buck up their faltering spirits
- a shark suffers from bleeding gums
- a sheep rents a wolf suit
- Sisyphus is arrested as a public nuisance
- Spirit and Flesh are directed to undergo relationship counseling
- a swan considers becoming an ugly duckling
- a termite applies for a highly regarded grant to carry on with its work
- topiary animals take the shears to themselves
- a unicorn loses its horn trying to make a career change
- vampire bats come out of their caves by the millions to discharge their civic duty
- a vulture learns to feel good about itself
- a wacko falls off the ceiling and right into the soup at a political banquet
- a weak ego signs up for the trial offer of a popular home gym
- a pack of wolves wins a Department of Defense contract in the billions to howl at the moon
- a xenophobe turns up in the nation's blood supply
- a zebra finds itself in a herd of black horses and white horses
- a zeitgeist has to admit being perplexed about what it was supposed to be
Collected Tales includes material contained in Maneater Meditations.
