Book Review: How the Birds Got Their Songs
By Alex Hebert
Personally, I always enjoy books that incorporate a teaching.
How the Birds Got Their Songs (Gaa-pi-onji mino’amaazowaad ingiweg bebaamaashiwaad) by Travis Zimmerman from Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa doesn’t disappoint. The children’s book is illustrated by artist and educator Sam Zimmerman/Zhaawanoogiizhik, and has Anishinaabemowin translations by Marcus Ammesmaki/Aanikanootaagewin, a Kindergarten/Grade 1 teacher at Waadookaadading Ojibwe Language Institute in Hayward, Wisconsin.
The story has been passed down through generations of the Zimmerman family and carries traditional knowledge from the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. The story also invites readers to learn about the gift of birdsong.
As most stories go, it starts with Mother Earth being very young and the Great Spirit that walked among the two-legged, four-legged, those that swam, crawled, and flew. The Great Spirit gives all the birds their own special song. The eagle had a visitor on his flight towards the sun and didn’t notice. While the Great Spirit was talking, the tiny hermit thrush had snuggled into eagle’s feathers to take a nap.
I liked how the Great Spirit created competition among the birds to see which one could earn its perfect song. Eagle, of course, was the boldest one thinking that he would earn the loveliest song.
The author asks the reader to make predictions about this story. Can you guess which bird flew the highest? Do you know which bird has the prettiest song? It really engaged the reader throughout the book by doing this – it was thought-provoking.
The illustrations are nice, and the animals and birds look a bit like spirits. The Great Spirit is a human figure who walks among the creatures on Mother Earth. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in an easy yet captivating read.
Travis Zimmerman, illustrated by Sam Zimmerman, How the Birds Got Their Songs. Minnesota Historical Society Press: St. Paul, 2024.
ISBN: 9781681342856