The lot of man is ceaseless labor

The lot of man is ceaseless labor,
Or ceaseless idleness, which is still harder,
Or irregular labor, which is not pleasant.
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Reynard's Tale

Reynard's Tale: A Story of Love and Mischief by Ben Hatke

A take on the medieval Reynard, only more of a scamp, than a scoundrel. Despite the illustrations, meant for adults. Not only because of certain incidents, however discretely touched on, but because this is a tale about middle age and getting older.

Reynard gets summoned by the king. He flees. The king's men chase (and are horrible), and adventures ensue. Sometimes because Reynard is too fond of talk and drink to run when he should, sometimes because his past catches up with him, sometimes because the magic is not what it once was. To a surprising conclusion.

Beauty and the transformed-back Beast

I have read a number of complaints about the Beast turning back into a man at the end of the tale.

Most of them are simply contemptuous of the way he looks. Some, indeed, have obviously entirely reversed the moral of the tale, and are more turned on by the bestial form, and completely ignore the man inside it.

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