ALA Booklist (Mon Feb 01 00:00:00 CST 2016)

Quackers is a duck. He lives at the duck pond, he eats duckweed for lunch, and everyone he knows is a duck. So even though he feels like he doesn't fit in sometimes, that's definitely what he is . . . right? Of course, readers will see the problem right away: the soft, digitized watercolors indeed depict a peaceful scene at the duck pond, but Quackers, sitting on a lily-pad surrounded by white ducks, is unmistakably an orange cat. He's shown humorously doing duck activities until he meets another strange "duck": a cat named Mittens, who teaches Quackers how to chase mice ("More fun than swimming!"); drink milk ("Much tastier than duckweed!"); and clean himself ("This isn't quite as exciting"). But despite Quackers' joy at figuring out what he is, he's starting to miss the duck pond, too. This picture-book debut about a cat with a paw in two worlds is at times charming, at times laugh-out-loud funny, and its ugly-duckling case of mistaken identity will endear it to many.

Horn Book (Sat Apr 01 00:00:00 CDT 2017)

Even though he's different in many ways, Quackers knows he's a duck: he lives with other ducks and does ducky things. A new friend reveals the truth (hes a cat!), and Quackers ultimately embraces both new and old families. Readers will enjoy being in on the secret, and the expressive, limited-palette watercolor and digital illustrations subtly reinforce themes of identity and belonging.

School Library Journal (Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 CST 2016)

PreS-Gr 1 Quackers is a cat convinced that he is a duck because he lives at a pond where everyone he knows is clearly a duck. Still, he often feels out of place because he meows instead of quacking, doesn't care for the dinner options (particularly duckweed), and especially hates getting wet. When Quackers unexpectedly meets "a strange duck" named Mittens, he is overjoyed to befriend another creature who understands him, shares a common desire to chase mice, and drinks milk instead of (yucky) duckweed. When Mittens sets him straight about his identity, Quackers feels right at home with the other felines, until he misses his winged friends. Ultimately, he discovers that he is fully able to maintain a dual identity as both cat and duck, which makes him happiest of all. Wong's delightful blend of both digital and watercolor illustrations, featuring the sweet orange tabby who radically sticks out in the vast midst of identical white ducks, perfectly captures the sweet silliness of this story. The simplicity of the illustrations, encompassing little more than black dots for eyes, never detracts from the expressiveness of the main character. Children will appreciate Quackers's quirky dilemma, and the underlying message that friends do not have to be all the same will surely not be lost on young listeners. VERDICT A humorous picture book story about the value of friendship despite differences. Etta Anton, Yeshiva of Central Queens, NY