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 Eagle Song is about Danny (Dancing Eagle) who, because of his parents’ need to make a living, is displaced from his Iroquois reservation. In a struggle for acceptance by his Philadelphia classmates, Danny gains an identity that helps him adapt to his new life. Exactly how this takes place is of interest to a late primary to middle school-aged youngster.
The symbolism of the eagle is an important theme of this book. In addition, Eagle Song has many historical facts about the contribution of the Iroquois Nations to the colonies. Bruchac claims that the United States Constitution came from Benjamin Franklin’s understanding of the Iroquois way of clan government. On US minted quarters, each pine bough represents a colony; the eagle protects each of the thirteen pine boughs. This is like the Iroquois eagle, which symbolically holds five pine boughs, one for each of the five Iroquois nations.
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