Review by Deborah Locke
Many of you reading this now have heard but maybe not identified a bird call so ethereal, so lovely that it has been described as the finest sound in nature.
A children’s book, “How the Birds Got Their Songs” (Minnesota Historical Society Press 2024) tells how the small hermit thrush outmaneuvered the grand and powerful eagle and was gifted from the Creator with the most beautiful bird song on earth.
The story was passed down through generations to author Travis Zimmerman and artist Sam Zimmerman, each a descendant of the Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa. Travis Zimmerman is the site manager at the Mille Lacs Indian Museum and Trading Post on the Mille Lacs Reservation. And Sam Zimmerman is an artist with a studio in Duluth. The two pooled their talent to produce this sweet story that explains the way the Great Spirit challenged all the birds of the world to find their voices. The finest songs would be won by those birds that flew closest to the sun.
Of course, the mighty eagle presumed that it would win this competition. However, the wily little hermit thrush hitched a ride on the back of the eagle as it flew above the earth. The eagle grew weary and turned back; the hermit thrush, with its reserve of energy, flew upward and received its prize: a lovely lyrical sound that seemed to float on air.
Variations of this story are told in other Native nations such as the Oneida and Mohawk. The Zimmerman’s Ojibwe-inspired tale includes an Ojibwe language translation on each page. The illustrations are bold, certain to capture the attention of young children.
If you’ve been in a wooded area, it is likely that you have heard this melodic bird already. A quick Internet search will reveal the sound of the hermit thrush, a search worth the effort. For a brief lesson, check out “The Unworldly Song of the Hermit Thrush” from Leslie the Bird Nerd on YouTube.
If there’s a child in your life, treat them and yourself to “How the Birds Got Their Songs.”
The language translations were done by Marcus Ammesmaki, an Ojibwe language teacher in Hayward, Wisconsin.
How the Birds Got Their Songs
Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2024
Hardcover with printed dust jacket
32 pages, Ages 3 to 7
$17.95
