Starred Review ALA Booklist

Starred Review One day, Duck gets an idea: I bet I could ride a bike. And as thought is father to action, he is soon teetering around the farm on a bicycle. He rides past the animals, each with its own thoughts about bike riding: the cow thinks it's silly; the sheep is sure Duck will hurt himself; Dog considers it a neat trick; the cat can't be bothered. On a more personal note, the horse is sure he's faster than the bike, and the goat would like to eat it. Then some kids park their bikes near the house, and the animals suddenly become a lot more interested in bike riding: they all jump on and take a spin around the yard. The double-page spread of the cow, pig, horse, et al., pedaling away (some looking particularly fetching in helmets) is worth the price of the book. In fact, this whole bright book is tons of fun. The oversize format nicely accommodates Shannon's sly art, which fills up the pages. Each animal has a distinctive expression that can be easily seen by kids in the back row at story hour--the perfect place to share this exuberant piece.

Horn Book

Rarely have the barnyard animals been reiterated in a picture book with such panache. Duck on a bike is silly, says Cow; unsafe, says Sheep; a show-off, declare the Pigs; while Dog admires the trick, and Cat wouldn't waste her time. Still, when a bunch of children leave their bikes temptingly riderless, the entire barnyard goes on a cycling spree. The exuberant fun really takes off in the crayon-bright paintings.

Kirkus Reviews

Grab your funny bone—Shannon ( The Shark God , 2001, etc.) rides again! Rather his Duck does, when one day on the farm, he gets a wild idea that he can ride a bike. After the first wobbles, Duck sails past Cow, Sheep, Dog, Cat, Horse, Chicken, Goat, Pig, and Mouse. The oversized animals' reactions range from "How silly" to "Show-off" to "Wish I could ride!" Then a bunch of kids come riding down the farm road and park their bikes beside the house and go inside. The next double spread shows the animals staring ahead with gleeful expressions, like a light bulb lighting up—and readers will know immediately what comes next. The scene of all the animals gaily pedaling bikes is hilarious. And when they put them back, no one knows that 11 farm animals had ever been on a bike. Brightly colored illustrations display a front row, big-screen point of view with bits of images running off the edges of the spread. The in-your-face perspective of the action punctuates the comedy and the page design is ingenious. Even the end page humorously poses the next challenge for Duck—a tractor. The body language of Duck on the bike looks nothing but plausible. A "quackerjack" of a terrific escapade. (Picture book. 5-8)

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

Shannon serves up a sunny blend of humor and action in this delightful tale of a Duck who spies a red bicycle one day and gets "a wild idea." Sure enough, in no time flat, he's tooling around the farmyard. A succession of his barnyard friends greet him politely enough, but their private responses range from scornful ("That's the silliest thing I've ever seen," from Cow) to boastful ("You're still not as fast as me," from Horse) to wistful ("I wish I could ride a bike just like Duck," from Mouse). Then a herd of kids rides down the road in a blur of dust; they park their bikes and head indoors. A wordless spread records the sublime moment when the animals all gather with identical wide-eyed looks and sly smiles. Readers can almost see what they're thinking, and sure enough, the next spread shows them all zipping around on bikes, with Duck in the lead. Shannon makes the most of awkward appendages on wheels and handlebars, and deftly balances clean compositions with just the right amount of detail. Varying perspectives—including the chicken's-eye-view of Duck's bike wheel looming large—provide plenty of good-natured dash. Add to all this the abundant opportunity for youngsters to chime in with barnyard responses ("M-o-o-o"; "Cluck! Cluck!"), and the result is one swell read-aloud, packed with freewheeling fun. Ages 3-up. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(Apr.)

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2 When Duck finds an unattended bike, he is sure that he can ride it. And so he does, a bit wobbly at first, but then with increasing confidence until he is soaring with no "hands." As he passes each barnyard animal, they return his greeting but have secret thoughts of their own, ranging from scorn to envy. When some children leave their bikes by the house, it isn't hard to guess what the animals will do. This delightful story will have youngsters chiming in on the repeated phrases and predicting, in no time, what will happen next, and the many animal sounds provide ample opportunities for role-playing. Shannon's brightly colored spreads are filled with humor. There are delicious close-ups of the animals as Duck pedals by them. Cow's huge head, turned in amazement toward his friend, fills a page. Cat nonchalantly grooms herself with an "I can't be bothered attitude" as Duck rides on. The animals' antics on the bikes are hilarious. Little Chicken rides a tricycle, the Pigs sport a bicycle built for two, Goat can't resist eating the basket as he rides, and tiny Mouse hitches a lift on Duck's handlebars. That would be grand finale enough, but then Duck spies a tractor. For a look at another unconventional barnyard adventure, pair this charming offering with Paul B. Johnson's The Cow Who Wouldn't Come Down (Orchard, 1993). Marianne Saccardi, Norwalk Community College, CT