Genre: Realistic Fiction
Age: 4-6
Summary: The main character is a young girl (middle school) that is very concerned with herself. She constantly wants to be prettier and to have a better life. Her little brother is mentally retarded and gets made fun of often. The main character protects her brother from the verbal abuse of outsiders. After taking him to see the swans, he sneaks off at night to find them on his own. He gets lost, causing the entire community to come together to search for him. The main character learns a valuable lesson and learns how to focus more on important things than her physical appearance. This book is eye opening for children to read about mental retardation. ( )

It is nearing the end of the summer and Sara has been largely responsible for her brother Charlie all summer. While he looks like an ordinary young boy, Charlie actually has some mental problems which developed when he was very young. One afternoon, Sara takes Charlie to see the swans on a local lake. Later that evening, while everyone is asleep, Charlie goes out on his own to find the swans. Due to the darkness and his being alone, Charlie becomes disoriented and lost in the woods. Word gets out that Charlie is missing and it causes uproar in the town as everyone lends a hand in the search for Charlie. ( )

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.
(retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:58:23 -0400)

Personal Review:

Betsy Byars gives a very small slice of a girl's life, just a few days, but in that time you come to learn and identify with the many questions pounding in her head. A quick step back in time that will entertain generations for years to come. Every reader will learn the importance of family bonds. ( )

Realistic fiction novel for intermediate grade levels. This book is about Sara and her family and a very important summer for Sara. We get to know Sara very well as we see almost every aspect of her life and get to see her grow up a lot through the book. Her brother has autism and their relationship changes a lot in this time as she comes to be more accepting and appreciative of her brother. ( )

The Summer of the Swans by Betsy Byars is a Newbery Medal winner and is about a young girl, Sarah, who has a beautiful older sister and a brother who has special needs. She feels stuck and would like to take off just like the swans that come to the lake. During this time of her awkward stage of her life, her brother Charlie goes missing. He has wondered away from home and is lost. Everyone in town is out looking for him, including Sarah and a boy whom she dislikes. In the end, they find Charlie and Sarah finds out that the boy is really nice and maybe her life is not so bad after all.

I enjoyed reading this book. It kind of reminded me of how I felt sometimes when I was about the same age as Sarah. This book is simple yet very effective. The reader can place his or herself in the character’s shoes.

I would use this book as a read aloud to my students when there might be a situation that arises in the classroom or school that involves a special needs child. This would also be good to have available to young girls to read. this book could also be used for writing prompts like how would you feel if you were lost.