Feathers and Fools
Mem Fox, Deborah Halverson (Editor), Nicholas WiltonBooks.org participates in affiliate programs including Bookshop.org and the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. We may earn a commission from qualifying purchases made through links on this page, at no additional cost to you.
Overview
Long ago and far away, in a rambling garden beside a clear blue lake, two flocks of birds began to fear each other because of their differences. The fear grew, and soon the birds became enemies, hoarding great quantities of weapons to protect themselves—until panic struck and the chance for peace seemed lost forever.
A modern fable about some peacocks and swans who allow the fear of their differences to become so great that they end up destroying each other.
Synopsis
Long ago and far away, in a rambling garden beside a clear blue lake, two flocks of birds began to fear each other because of their differences. The fear grew, and soon the birds became enemies, hoarding great quantities of weapons to protect themselves--until panic struck and the chance for peace seemed lost forever.
This haunting modern fable reminds readers that with each generation comes renewed hope for understanding and lasting peace.
Publishers Weekly
PW said of this allegorical tale of war between swans and peacocks, "The text's pointed poetry will sink directly into children's hearts, while the mysteries [depicted in] the sophisticated acrylics offer possibilities for contemplation and discovery." Ages 6-9. (May) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|
Editorials
Publishers Weekly -
PW said of this allegorical tale of war between swans and peacocks, "The text's pointed poetry will sink directly into children's hearts, while the mysteries [depicted in] the sophisticated acrylics offer possibilities for contemplation and discovery." Ages 6-9. (May) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|School Library Journal
Gr 1-4An antiwar allegory. A pride of peacocks notices that a flock of nearby swans can both swim and fly, feats they themselves cannot do. They wonder if the swans will use their strength aggressively. Soon they convince themselves that they are in danger, and begin stockpiling armsonly to be used defensively, of course. The swans then gather their own weapons. Fear and tension increase until the war both groups have been preparing for breaks out, triggered by a nervous mistake. "Soon cries filled the air and blood darkened the earth." Two eggs survive, two chicks hatch, a swan and a peacock. They recognize one another as fellow birds, more alike than different, and stumble away to share the world. This allegory is alive with symbolic references and ideas. The pictures, however, are what lift the story out of the ordinary. Wilton's full-page acrylic paintings on the right are framed with primitive borders laid against a second border of solid black. The left-hand page displays brief text set on a background of geometric and natural forms in symbolic shapes (roses and thorns, snakes and fish) in colors that are shaded with darkness but nonetheless vivid. This tale will be an easy step-off to discussion of the late arms-race, perhaps helping to clarify thoughts, even to changing opinions. Fox clearly implies that war is the result of stupidity and unreasonable fear.Ruth Semrau, formerly at Lovejoy School, Allen, TXKirkus Reviews
The battle of the birds makes clear that the origins of a conflict may be absurd compared to the ravages of war.The peacocks and the swans share the same pond peacefully, until the differences between them create tension. When the peacocks note that swans can swim and fly, they irrationally fear that they might be forced to swim and fly, too, and prepare to defend themselves. The swans hear the peacocks' talk of fighting and become frightened enough to develop their own tools of war. When a swan flying overhead is mistaken for an aggressor, the war, once launched, lasts until every bird is dead. Fox (Sophie, 1994, etc.) offers an optimistic ending: The next generation of swan and peacock hatchlings note their similarities instead of differences. Wilton's first children's book shimmers with jewel tones, portraying both the elegant coloring of the peacocks and the misty, backlit shades of white in the swans' feathers. The obvious parallel to violence in the human world is fodder for classroom discussion, but the work is much more than its message. In its antique, folktale look, and in the descriptions of the birds' subtle shifts toward antagonism, the book turns Fox into a contemporary Aesop and aptly demonstrates that the roots of war can thrive in a pond of gossip.