Martin J. Day

A dog who gets hold of the wrong end of the stick; a horse who beats the odds; a wasp who discovers a sting in the tail. This is the stuff of The Animal Parables....

A wasp is drawn to a colony of bees and discovers a sting in the tail. This is a story about both the stronghold of incorrect belief and the power of identification within community.

The mackerel carries injuries and is angry and bitter. But these injuries never heal because blood-sucking lampreys are attracted to the wounds. When he is hooked by a fisherman he finds out how he can be free of the blood suckers....

The donkey has always felt less significant than the self-important racehorses, until a purebred white horse comes and tells him he is to race... This is a story about both the power of sacrificial love and the strength found in a name.

The dog enjoys a carefree start to life but soon finds himself being trained about good and bad behaviour. When he is sold, he finds that his new master is very different to the trainer....

The Mynah bird longs to be special like the other animals, but he is just a dull black bird. A snake suggests that he would be more popular if he tried to be like more the other animals, and so the Mynah bird tries doing impressions....

The Caterpillar sees eating as her only joy and purpose in life, but it becomes an addiction robbing her of her joy. A dragonfly heaps shame on, but a butterfly sees something deeper in her. This is a story about both the roots of shame in addiction and transformation though suffering....

The Frog is a fine swimmer, so good that he attracts the admiration of the local tadpoles, who beg him to teach them how to swim. But teaching is all he ever does - the tadpoles never learn, and he himself finds he no longer has the time to do the swimming he loves....

The crab has taken many knocks in his life and has developed protective armour. When he meets a transparent prawn, he sees a different way to live... This is a story about the self-protecting nature and false identity of the flesh.