Song of the Swallows (1950 Caldecott Medal Winner by Leo Politi)

Song of the Swallows (1950 Caldecott Medal Winner by Leo Politi)

I've mentioned that many of the older Caldecott winners have difficulty deciding how long they should be. That is a problem for Song of the Swallows. This book is too long to fit in with modern ideas about book length for younger readers. The story isn't too bad, but it does drag if you are trying to read it to a class.

The story is rather simple even though it is long. The story follows the non adventures of a young boy that is waiting for the swallows to return and signal the start of spring. This all starts when the bell ringer at Mission San Juan Capistrano tells Juan the story of how the swallows manage to find their way from South America to California every spring.

Juan goes home and creates his own small garden in hopes of attracting a family of swallows to nest near his house. This is successful, and Juan sings the song of the swallows. (You can find the tune and words in the back of the book.)

While the story isn't terrible, it dragged for me as a reader. Maybe I'm just too conditioned for modern stories, but there it is. You might enjoy the story, and make use of the Spanish dialogue in your classroom. It will also be a great story if you are talking about migration.