A young boy, Sam Beaver, travels to the wilds of
Canada to camp with his father. While
there, he discovers a trumpeter swan nest.
He returns later that summer to see the young baby swans, and discovers
one of them is mute. Their friendship
begins and young Louis learns how to adapt to his world first by attending
school and learning how to write, and later becoming a trumpet player in order
to communicate with other swans while making beautiful music.
My almost ten-year-old son Daniel and I read this book
together for the Kewaunee Youth Book Club.
I read this when I was around Daniel’s age and I only remembered some of
the story. It was a joy to reread it and Daniel loved the story. He really loved when Louis went to camp and
continued to have adventures. He also
loved Louis’s father, the Old Cobb, who liked to wax on in in very elaborate
descriptions about items. He thought he
was pretty funny. My 12-year old son has just started reading it for book club,
but is not enthused about it since his brother liked it.
Daniel and I loved how the tale was partially set in
the wild and discussed the trumpeter swan.
Daniel is very curious about trumpeter swans now and really wants to see
one. We had to look them up when we
finished the book and see where they are located in the U.S. and look at
pictures. We may be able to see one here
in Wisconsin, but searching online lead me to the WK Kellogg Bird
Sanctuary. It is not far from where I
grew up in Southwest Michigan and I went there as a kid. They have provided a sanctuary for trumpeter
swans in Michigan. We have a new place
to visit next time we are visiting my parents in Michigan. Daniel is ready to go now especially when we
read you get to feed the birds with buckets of corn.
I loved how the overall theme of the book was on a
swan who was born with a disability, but through his own hard work and help
from family and friends he was able to find ways to live a fulfilling life with
his disability. Even though Louis had a
disability, he was a wonderful bird who had a great life and provided a lot of
joy to a lot of people.
The drawings by Edward Frascino were delightful and
added to the story.
Favorite Quotes:
“Remember that the world is full of youngsters who
have some sort of handicap that they must overcome. You apparently have a speech defect. I am sure you will overcome it, in time. There may even be some slight advantage, at
your age, in not being able to say anything.
It compels you to be a good listener.
The world is full of talkers, but it is rare to find anyone who
listens.”
“It scared him to be different. He couldn’t understand why he had come into
the world without a voice.”
“Darkness settled on woods and fields and marsh. A loon called its wild night cry. As Louis relaxed and prepared for sleep. All his thoughts were of how lucky he had
been to solve his problems with music, and how pleasant it was to look forward
to another night of sleep and another day tomorrow, and the fresh morning, and
the light that returns with the day.”
Overall, The Trumpet of the Swan is a wonderful tale
that is enjoyable to both child and adult.
I loved the overall theme of overcoming adversity.
Book Source: The
Kewaunee Public Library – Thank-you!
Thank you for the review.
ReplyDeleteYour welcome! Still trying to get Kile to read it before book club on Monday. I found my old copy and it was a gift to me on my 10th birthday from my Great Grandpa and Grandma Kile.
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