ALA Booklist (Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 CST 2018)

Written in rhymed couplets, this tale opens with a family story: an egg rolls out of its nest and into a pond. Mother duck dives down, retrieves the egg, and returns it to its nest. Later hatched from that egg, our narrator has been afraid of the water ever since. The pale yellow duckling's mother, brothers, and neighbors offer encouragement. After practicing in a shallow puddle for a day and night, the duckling says, "The pond is waiting there below. / It's whispering, Come on! Let's go.' / But even though I'm well prepared, / I'm really, really, really scared." Nevertheless, the duckling ventures into the pond and rejoices to find that swimming comes naturally to ducks. Told with a storyteller's flair, the unpretentious but precisely worded tale flows along steadily, easy to read aloud and pleasing in its expression of feelings familiar to young children. The delicate mixed-media illustrations, created with muted colors and understated patterns, perfectly capture the duckling's fear, tentative attempts to overcome it, and final triumph. A beguiling picture book.

Kirkus Reviews

This gentle tale about overcoming fear will comfort and encourage many a reluctant kid (or duck), which represents a fairly wide young audience: what child isn't reluctant about something, at some point?Told in rhyming first-person narrative, this duckling's story starts when, as an egg, the duck-to-be rolls out of the nest and into the water, where the mother duck must come to the rescue. Now hatched, the young duck is hesitant to swim, and "a landlocked duck is very sad." Encouraged by three brothers (the duck in question's gender is not specified), friend Big Frog, and Owl, "who's very wise," the fearful young waterfowl first practices in a puddle and eventually prevails in deeper water, although with an individual take: swimming backward. Notably, the mother duck does not verbally encourage, try to teach, or chide her baby; she remains a steadfast comfort during puddle practice and lets the duckling struggle and achieve. Hillenbrand's softly colored, mixed-media illustrations portray the pond setting in a wash of natural colors: pale yellow, soft green, and watery blue, enhancing the comforting message. The duckling itself is reminiscent of Olivier Dunrea's Gossie and Gertie, with an innocent expression and oversized bill and an overall endearing look.This is definitely a "message" book, but any message in such effective hands will reach its intended audience where they are. (Picture book. 3-6)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

As an egg, the narrator of this charming story from Bunting (Thunder Horse) and Hillenbrand (Share, Big Bear, Share!) was rescued by its mother after rolling into a pond; now, the duckling is afraid of the water. From shore, it gloomily watches its brothers paddle by: -I cannot swim, and that is bad,/ A landlocked duck is very sad.- Encouraged by a bullfrog (-Just slide in fast; don-t even think./ You-re a duck, and ducks don-t sink-), the duckling practices in a puddle before mustering the courage to dive in. As family and friends cheer, the elated duck concludes that -I was wrong to ever think/ a well-made duck like me could sink.- Bunting-s singsong rhymes don-t skip a beat as the duck-s trepidation turns into triumph. Hillenbrand is just as successful at capturing the duck-s growing confidence, setting the action in a gauzy, dappled wetland whose soft colors and cast of supportive animals contribute to an atmosphere of security. It-s an endearing allegorical tale whose messages about practice and taking things at one-s own speed will buoy the spirits of children facing new challenges. Ages 3-7. (Mar.)

School Library Journal (Thu Feb 01 00:00:00 CST 2018)

PreS-Gr 1When Duck was still an egg, he rolled out of the nest and into the pond. His frightened mother quickly saved him, but now that he's hatched into a duck, he's afraid to go into the water. With encouragement from his mom, brothers, and his friends Big Frog and Owl, Duck decides to use a puddle to practice swimming. There he splashes bravely day and night until, feeling scared but prepared, he dives into the pond! All the animals are delighted to see him come to the realization that as a duck, he's "perfectly designed" for swimming. "I do the backstroke. There are cheers/so loud they almost hurt my ears./The other ducks shout, "Way to go!"/as I'm backstroking to and fro." Any child hesitant to try something new will recognize themselves in the story of this young duck. Hillebrand's mixed media images beautifully depict the natural setting and enhance the delightful rhyming text. Simple, expressive animals of sizeable proportions are displayed against pastel backgrounds. VERDICT Rhyming text, a cheerful ending, and artwork well suited to sharing with a crowd make this a good choice for storytime. Recommended for most picture book collections. Gaye Hinchliff, King County Library System, WA