Review Blog

Apr 13 2012

Siddhartha and the swan by Andrew Fusek Peters

Ill. by Miss Swanne. Bloomsbury Books, 2012. ISBN 9781 4081 3947 9.
(Ages: 6+) Indian Folk Tales. Another in the series, Stories from World Religions, this tale of Siddharth and the swan has similarities to other tales about swans in other cultures. The swan is shot by an arrow and nursed back to health by the prince. His cousin who shot the swan claims it as his prize but an old man says no, the swan is still alive and so must be allowed to live. It is nursed by Siddhartha and eventually flies off over the mountains watched by Siddhartha and his cousin, now in agreement with his cousin's wishes. Years after, Siddhartha grows up to be the Buddha and teaches all people to be kind and thoughtful towards all living creatures. This is a story for our time, not only telling a rounded tale of being kind to animals, but also acquainting students with some of the philosophies of Buddhism.
Fran Knight