Song of the Swallows

Leo Politi (1908-1996) was an American author and artist of Italian descent, best known for writing and illustrating around 20 children's picture books that celebrated Mexican-American and multicultural themes, such as Pedro, the Angel of Olvera Street (1946), Juanita (1948), and his Caldecott Medal-winning Song of the Swallows (1950). Born in Fresno, California, to Italian immigrant parents, he spent much of his childhood in Italy, studied art there, and later settled in Los Angeles, where he drew inspiration from Olvera Street and its traditions.