Printings:

 

Swimmy was first published in 1963 by Pantheon in hardcover, selling for $3.50.  There are at least 6 printings of the First Edition by Pantheon, the 6th printed in 1968.  Random House, Pantheon, and Scholastic books published paperback versions in 1963.  The most recent English language printing of Swimmy has been in 2015, printed by Anderson Press.  Although Pantheon and Knopf combined publishing houses in 1960 and 1961, there are editions that have Knopf listed as the publisher in 1963.  Scholastic is the only publishing company to have begun with printing a Paperback copy in 1965, then coming out with a Hardcover in 1987.  Dobson books came out with a 1966 Hardback, followed by Abelard Books in 1968, Pinwheel Books and N. Kluwer in 1973, Dragonfly Books in 1987, Perfection Learning Corp. in 1991, Harcourt in 1999, and most recently Anderson Press in 2015. 

 

There have been 49 editions of Swimmy from 1963 to 2015 in 14 different languages: Arabic, Basque, Catalan, Chinese, Dutch, French, German, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Spanish, and Swedish.  Scholastic translated Swimmy into English Braille in 1989 and by Knopf in 1997, and Scholastic published a Japanese Braille edition in 1997.  Large Print editions have also been published by Knopf in 1987 and by Harcourt in 1999. 

 

Anthologization:

 

Due to the popularity of Leo Lionni’s books, Swimmy has been printed with other Lionni fables, the most common anthology being Fredericks’s Fables: A Leo Lionni Treasury of Favorite Stories (1985), with an introduction by Bruno Bettelheim, containing thirteen of Lionni stories, including Swimmy (1963), Frederick (1973), Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse (1974), A Color of His Own (1975), Fish is Fish (1974), In the Rabbitgarden (1975), The Biggest House in the World (1973), Geraldine, The Music Mouse (1979), Tico and the Golden Wings (1964), Cornelius (1994), Theodore and the Talking Mushroom (1971), The Greentail Mouse (1973), The Alphabet Tree (1968).  Knopf published a smaller edition, Frederick and His Friends (1989) that includes: Swimmy (1963), Frederick (1973), Fish is Fish (1974), and Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse (1974).  Knopf published a special anthology, Leo Lionni Favorites: Six Classic Stories (1994) including: Swimmy (1963), Tico and the Golden Wings (1964), Fish is Fish (1974), Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse (1973), The Biggest House in the World (1973), and Frederick (1973).  The most recent treasury is from Knopf titled Frederick’s Fables: A Treasury of 16 Favorite Leo Lionni Stories (1997) includes the thirteen titles in Pantheon’s treasury as well as the most recent Lionni fables: Matthew’s Dream (1991), Six Crows (1988), and An Extraordinary Egg (1994). 

 

Educational Purposes:

 

In 1999, Scholastic Professional Books published Teaching with Favorite Leo Lionni Books, providing an excellent way for teachers to incorporate specific themes such as friendship, self-esteem, and cooperation in the classroom.  Earlier educational study guides for Swimmy were published as early as 1987, and as recent as 2011.

 

Multimedia Productions:

 

In addition to purchasing the book, Pantheon produced an edition that included a recorded cassette tape and a VHS in 1968.  The VHS was not animated, instead it featured a slow, panned in zoom of the book with narration.  Video recordings were also used for hearing-impaired children.  The Atlanta School for the Deaf produced a VHS in 1996 that featured an individual using sign language, adjacent to the book, to read Five Lionni Classics.  In 2005, a DVD was released by Scholastic Video Collection animating Swimmy and more classic Leo Lionni stories.  Reviewers from Amazon note that the fish in Swimmy appear to “sparkle and are psychedelic-like…completely transformed with the animation.”

 

 

 

Swimmy has also been adapted to the theatre.  Many schools tend to rely on the just the book to dictate the script, but in 1964 Deutscher Theaterverl produced "Swimmy: ein Musikal."  There are no English scores or published counterparts. 

 

English Publications of Swimmy:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Foreign Language Publications of Swimmy, ordered by language:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Currently on Amazon.com, you can purchase the reissued, still in print, paperback version of Swimmy from Dragonfly Books for $7.99.  The Hardcover, First Edition edition of Swimmy from Knopf Books for Young Readers is selling for $14.04.  Collectible editions of Swimmy, 1963 Pantheon First Editions including dust jackets are being sold for as low as $17.50. 

 

Sales:

 

Swimmy is still in print.  It has been a continual best seller since its release in 1963, and is currently rated as #15 in Children’s Books about Marine Life Animals on Amazon.com, #16 in Children’s Books about Fish, and has the #7,456 Best Seller Ranking.

 

Sales by Year:

 

The exact number of sales per year is unknown. 

 

Total Copies Sold:

 

Unknown.

 

Awards:

 

Swimmy was awarded a1964 Caldecott Honor Award, noted as “a picture book for children” as distinguished from others created by an American author and illustrator in English.  It was one of ALA’s “Notable Children’s Books” in 1963, included in the Library Association’s Top Selections of 1963, and is #83 in the National Education Association’s Teachers’ Top 100 Books for Children.   

 

Advertisements:

 

In all the advertisements for Swimmy, the book is advertised along with other Leo Lionni books.  The May 21, 1989 advertisement is of Lionni’s anthology, Frederick and His Friends (1985).  It includes a selection of four paperbacks of the books and an additional audiocassette filled with narration and original music.  The May 17, 1987 advertisement depicts the new paperback editions of Lionni’s classic books.  They are advertised together, alluding to buying them as a set, but it states each book is $2.95 each.  The advertisement also highlights the Caldecott Honor Books with an asterisk.  The most recent advertisement from May 20, 1990, is a salute to Lionni from Alfred A. Knopf on his 80th birthday.  It appears to be a birthday card, filled with characters from Lionni’s books and providing images of 10 books on the bottom of the page.  The transcription is:

           

“Celebrate the joyous occasion with Frederick the mouse, Swimmy the fish, Cornelius the crocodile, and Leo Lionni’s other colorful storybook friends! This internationally acclaimed artist has delighted children everywhere with eiwitty fables that “enrich the child’s imaginative existence and give deeper meaning to the child’s life”—Bruno Bettelheim. What happier way to say “Happy Birthday” than by sharing his unique gifts now with the children you love?”