The Trumpet of the Swan
First edition
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| Author | E. B. White |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | Edward Frascino Fred Marcellino (2000 edition) |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Children's novel |
| Publisher |
Harper & Row (US) Hamish Hamilton (UK) |
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Publication date
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1970 |
| Media type | Print (hardback and paperback) |
| ISBN | |
The Trumpet of the Swan is a children's novel by E.B. White published in 1970. It tells the story of Louis (pronounced "LOO-ee" by the author in the audiobook), a trumpeter swan born without a voice and trying to overcome it by learning to play a trumpet, always trying to impress a beautiful swan named Serena.
In Canada in the spring of 1968, the cob, the name for an adult male swan, and the pen, the name for an adult female swan, both members of the swan species trumpeter swan build their summer nest on a small island in a pond. Sam Beaver, an 11-year-old boy on a camping trip with his father, observes them, and saves the female from being attacked by a fox. The swans begin to trust him, and Sam gets to see their five eggs hatch. All of the cygnets chirp at Sam in greeting, except for the youngest, who can make no sound and pulls his shoelace instead.
The cygnets' parents are increasingly concerned about their youngest son, Louis, who turns out to be mute. They worry that when he grows up, he will not be able to find a mate if he cannot trumpet like all the other swans. Louis's father promises to find a way for him to communicate. At the end of summer, the swan family flies to the winter refuge, Red Rock Lakes in Montana. Louis decides he should learn to read and write in order to communicate, and flies away from the refuge. Because Sam Beaver lives nearby, he happily takes his swan friend to school with him the next morning. Louis turns out to be a natural at reading and writing, and Sam buys him a portable blackboard and chalk so he can communicate.
Unfortunately, because the other swans cannot read, Louis is still lonely when he returns to the Red Rock Lakes. He falls in love with a young swan, Serena, but cannot attract her attention. Louis's father flies to a music store in Billings, Montana, crashes through the window, and steals a brass trumpet on a cord to give to his son. Louis feels guilty about his father's theft, but accepts the instrument. Serena has migrated north, so Louis returns to Sam's ranch. Sam suggests that Louis get a job so he can pay the store for the trumpet and the damaged window, and Louis finds a position as camp bugler at Camp Kookooskoos, the boys' camp Sam attends.
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