Leonardo's Fables and Jests:
Retold by Edgar Herbert Brice-Smythe

Through this collection, readers will enjoy the lighter side of da Vinci and see that not only was he a master artist and inventor, but an original storyteller who entertained his patrons during court festivities by sharing stories, jests, riddles, and magic tricks.

Now in Paperback!
E & E Publishing ~ December, 2003 ~ 6 x 9 inches ~ 48 Pages ~ $14.95 ~ ISBN 0-9719898-9-3
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eBook
Adobe eBook Reader ~ 36 Pages ~ Printable ~ $8.95 ~ ISBN 0-9719898-7-7
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From the Author's Note: While writing the acclaimed multimedia CD, Leonardo The Inventor 2.0, I did extensive research into the life, work and writings of Leonardo da Vinci. I learned that Leonardo entertained his patrons during court festivities by telling stories and “jests,” or jokes. I was thrilled to discover that he had written them in his notebooks. No doubt, 500 years ago, Leonardo’s language and style were fresh, but I doubted that today’s reader would appreciate the stories and jests in their original, rather archaic, form. To me, these writings were diamonds-in-the-rough, whose brilliance could be revealed by retelling them in today’s vernacular. And so, in order to bring these immortal ideas to the attention of today’s audience, that is exactly what I have done. Probably Leonardo’s most memorable story idea was recorded as only a sentence fragment, but the idea was so compelling that I felt I must expand it into a complete story so that others could fully appreciate it. This is the story-behind-the-story of “The Sheet of Paper” in this collection. Leonardo also amused his patrons with riddles and magic tricks, and a sampling of these – retold in the vernacular – is included in this collection, too. Until now, this “lighter side” of Leonardo has been unappreciated by the general public. I hope that through this collection, you will enjoy another facet of Leonardo’s genius. For not only was he a master Artist and Inventor, but an original Storyteller, as well. Read on…! Contents: Author’s Note Introduction The Mouse The Razor The Trick The Sheet of Paper The Stone The Friars Riddles Answers The Spider The River The Priest and the Painter The Privet and the Songbird The Patch of Snow Wake-up Call How to Do a Magic Trick A Story From the Book: The Mouse - A Fable A little mouse was hiding in his hole, shaking with fear. Outside stood a mean, hungry weasel. “Go away!” the mouse squeaked. “Leave me alone!” he pleaded. “Never!” the weasel said. “You have to come out sometime. I am very patient. I will wait.” Then a cat came by and suddenly pounced on the weasel and ate him up. The mouse came out of his hole and danced for joy. “Thank Heaven!” he cried. “I’m free!” The mouse was so busy celebrating that he didn’t see the cat until she pounced again. A Review of the eBook Edition by Sarah Leonard, eBook Reviews Weekly http://www.ebook-reviews.net/ Curiousity about Leonardo da Vinci, piqued by reading Dan Brown's "Da Vinci Code", compelled me to pick up this eBook selection, "Leonardo's Fables and Jests: Retold by Edgar Herbert Brice-Smythe". Readers need not make a major time commitment in order to benefit from this selection, which consists of eight fables, four jests, a set of riddles, and a mathematical magic trick, presented in thirty-four easy-to-read pages. [The paperback edition has 46 pages.] Mr. Brice-Smythe, also the author of the Multimedia CD, "Leonardo the Inventor 2.0", has not only retold stories and jests of Leonardo da Vinci that he came across in his research for the CD, he has taken the liberty of updating them to today's vernacular. In one instance, as he explains in the preface to this collection, he has taken a mere shred of an idea, a sentence fragment, and extrapolated it into story form. [….] Mr. Brice-Smythe without a doubt meets his stated goal, of giving us a completely new outlook on the genius of Leonardo da Vinci through his (da Vinci's) "lighter side". Like the collections of Aesop and Poggio, who precede da Vinci, the fables and jests may be original or more likely, a collection of both original and gathered tales and anecdotes that appealed to the Renaissance scribe. These small 'gems of thought' are often overlooked in the everyday; ideas we would otherwise trivialize are magnified not so much in the telling, but in our taking the time to read and enjoy them. The selections call to us in a familiar voice, using techniques such as simile, analogy, metaphor, and especially personification. Of course there are some fables, such as "The Mouse", "The Spider", and "The Privet and the Songbird" that are reminiscent of Aesop, and fit our more traditional concept of the fable form in their primary use of animals to deliver a concept. Other fables involve objects from nature: a rock, a river, a stone. A book of fables would be incomplete without these. However, my favorites are those where inanimate objects are personified. These include "The Razor" and "The Sheet of Paper". In the former, a barber's razor decides his brilliance warrants him too good for menial work and he hides away. Disuse then destroys the implement's finer qualities—a good lesson for all. The plot of the latter fable follows along similar, yet subtly different lines, drawing us in as a "sheet of paper stretches himself out, proud of his pristine, pearly white- ness". While the tales are slightly redundant, Mr. Brice-Smythe skillfully avoids being trite and repetitive by masterful use of descriptive terms that appeal to the human senses. For instance, the paper becomes "marred with blotches of awful inky blackness" and later "flutters with relief". The razor blade refers to the "beards of rough peasants". It is almost like poetry. The set of riddles and the four jests also have universal appeal in their presentation. A big man with red hair does not just respond. No, he "pooh-poohs"! Later, his face is "redder than his hair". Likewise, man wearing blue "crows". "The Friars - A Jest" does not even require imaginative descriptions. It relates only a simple series of events and interactions and yet is hilar- iously successful. While all the selections are too good not to be shared, two are explicitly meant for doing so. These are the set of eight rid- dles with universal appeal, and the concluding selection "How to Do a Magic Trick" not only will entertain your acquaintances and family, but also inspire you to formulate an algebraic proof, and perhaps, even, use algebra to devise your own similar tricks. It is an apt conclusion then, to inspire readers to explore their own thoughts and predicaments in a new light. In the end, it matters not whether the ideas were da Vinci's originals, or how much might of any original content is altered through the kaleidoscope of translation, artistic license and time. What matters is that Leonardo took the time to enscribe the ideas in his notebook, that Mr. Brice-Smythe took the time to transcribe them, and that we take the time to enjoy them; to bor- row from the theme of "The Razor", brilliance is maintained through use and re-use in an ordinary, everyday fashion, rather than by isolatory preservation.

Order from Ingram or Baker & Taylor (Libraries & Bookstores) LEONARDO'S FABLES AND JESTS is a print-on-demand paperback from Lightning Source and is available from Ingram and Baker & Taylor. When the title is listed by the wholesaler as out of stock, please backorder. Ingram fills most backorders within two to three days. E & E Publishing ~ December, 2003 ~ 6 x 9 inches ~ 48 Pages ~ $14.95 ~ ISBN 0-9719898-9-3