Summer of the Swans by Betsy Byars, Ted Coconis (Illustrator)

From the Publisher

Sara's life has always flowed smoothly, like the gliding swans on the lake, until her little brother Charlie disappears. Then Sara is forced to see her life in a whole new way.

Publishers Weekly

Play Day is approaching, but Cat Kinsey, the fastest runner at school, won't be participating in the races because her old-fashioned, bull-headed father won't allow her to wear pants even while playing sports. Cat is so busy being angry at her family that she doesn't have time to think about bigger problems-the Depression, for instance-until circumstances involve her with a family of ``Okies'' who work on a nearby farm. Cat's gripes seem small compared with the obstacles facing the Perkinses, who have lost both their land and their house to dust storms. Now, camping out in an old Studebaker, the Perkinses work long hours just to make enough money for food. Cat can offer the family little besides sympathy until the youngest Perkins, Samantha, catches pneumonia and Cat, running the most important race of her life, fetches a doctor in the nick of time. Snyder (The Egypt Game) gracefully demonstrates the strength and pride of the Perkins family. With equal skill, she relates how Cat's initial repugnance of ``Okies'' evolves into enormous compassion-which extends to her own family as well. This tender historical novel is as moving as it is insightful. Ages 8-12. (Nov.)

Children's Literature

This story features another independent, feisty girl, Catherine Kensey, aka Cat. Set in California during the Depression, Cat, 11, is the fastest runner in her school. Refusing to run in the Play Day Races because her father, a strict conservative, will not allow her to buy slacks, she believes her class will lose. It is the new boy, an Okie, who wins the race barefooted. He doesn't care what others think. Slowly Zane and Cat begin an uneasy friendship. She is appalled by the shanty town where his family live but it is his sister, Sammy, 5, who affects Cat deeply and forces her to dramatic action. Cat learns how quickly people's economic status can change. Snyder never preaches but allows the children to take action and grow as people. 1996 (orig.

School Library Journal

Gr 4-7A solitary girl joins forces with a boy who is ostracized because his family are "Okies," racing for medical help against weather elements, prejudice, and time when his little sister is stricken with pneumonia. Expertly paced, with a vivid sense of life during the Great Depression. (Nov. 1994)

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