Jean de La Fontaine was a French fabulist and one of the most widely read French poets of the 17th century. He is known above all for his Fables, which provided a model for subsequent fabulists across Europe and numerous alternative versions in France, as well as in French regional languages. June 8, 1621 – April 13, 1695; died at 73. Alive at the same time as Isaac Newton, Johann Sebastian Bach, René Descartes, Rembrandt, and Louis XIV of France. Wiki link