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Summary
Summary
A delightful counting tale about a family of ducks from internationally bestselling picture book author Mem Fox and illustrator Judy Horacek. Count along with Mother Duck as her ducklings try to waddle across the bridge. When a sudden gust of wind sweeps one of Mother Duck's ducklings into the river, she doesn't know what to do. With four ducklings on the bridge and one below, Mother Duck is torn as to which way to go. Suddenly, a second duck falls and Mother Duck grows more panicked. Should she stay on the bridge or fly down to her ducklings in the river? As she paces and frantically quacks, the remaining ducklings playfully plop one by one into the river until all of the siblings are happily floating along. Now that all five ducklings are safely in the water, Mother Duck flies down to join in the fun, relieved to have all her ducklings together again. Mem introduces young readers to the basic math principles of addition and subtraction.
Author Notes
Mem Fox was born on March 5, 1946 in Melbourne, Australia. She attended a drama school in London. She returned to Australia where she was a college professor.
She writes children's books including Possum Magic, Night Noises, Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge, Time for Bed, Koala Lou, Wombat Divine, Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes, Hello Baby!, A Giraffe in the Bath (co-written with Olivia Rawson), Count Goats!, and The Little Dragon. She has also written several books for adults.
She has received numerous awards including the 1990 Dromkeen Medal for distinguished services to children's literature, a 1991 Advance Australia Award for her outstanding contribution to Australian literature, and a medal in the 1993 Australia Day Honours awards for services to the cultural life of Australia.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (5)
School Library Journal Review
PreS-K-A duck's walk across a bridge with her ducklings is interrupted by a gust of wind that brings about a chain reaction. The ducklings follow mom one by one until, just as the fifth one joins the group, a strong wind blows the little one into the river. "'Oh no!' quacked Mother Duck. What should I do? Where should I go, with four on the bridge and one below?'" As each duckling peers over the edge, it, too, falls into the water while Mother Duck repeats her lament, substituting different numbers as the amount of offspring on the bridge and below change. Finally, she dives into the water with her ducklings' encouragement. All the number words, used as each duckling joins the walk and when Mother Duck speaks, are printed in orange, making them highly visible on white ground. The cartoon illustrations depict the ducks with simple shapes outlined in black and are filled with humor. VERDICT With visual and written cues that facilitate counting and simple addition and subtraction practice, and repetitive rhyming text that invites participation, this offering is an outstanding choice for group sharing.-Marianne Saccardi, Children's Literature Consultant, Cambridge, MA © Copyright 2018. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publisher's Weekly Review
The team behind Where Is the Green Sheep? and other titles uses its creative alchemy to turn a simple counting story into a funny page-turner. A yellow mother duck is crossing a bridge with her five ducklings; the nicely distilled setting consists of an arc of gray stones with a mottled purple-blue stripe of water underneath. As soon as the family reaches the apex of the bridge, the ducklings start dropping down into the water one by one-some by choice, some by accident. They take to their new situation like, well, ducks to water, but Mother Duck is in a tizzy until her brood coaxes her off the bridge ("Go with the flow! Five, four, three... two, one, GO!") and into the water with them. The slightly scattered text ("Actually it was two little ducks. No, it was three little ducks. Wait! It was four little ducks") will draw in readers from the first page, and they'll admire how the toylike ducklings, despite their intense dot eyes and oversize orange bills and feet, exude a cool-as-a-cucumber attitude. Ages 3-5. (Jan.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Horn Book Review
When a mother duck waddles onto a bridge, her five ducklings follow her--until, one by one, they fall into the river below. She agonizes over the situation in a repeated refrain and eventually figures it out. Brief but dramatic text, with numbers highlighted in orange, reinforces arithmetical concepts. Bright primary-and-secondary-colors art is both minimal and hilarious. Preschoolers will hardly notice they're learning in this silly, cheerful counting book. (c) Copyright 2018. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Kirkus Review
A duck family encounters a surprise detour as they attempt to cross a bridge. One by one, Mother Duck and her five little ducklings come into view. As they waddle across the bridge, a gust of wind blows one duckling off and into the river below. Mother Duck exclaims, "What should I do? / Where should I go, / with four on the bridge / and one below?" The remaining ducklings follow in turn, and each time Mother Duck wonders how to respond, changing the numbers as appropriate. As each duck initially appears and when it moves from the bridge to the river, the number words are emphasized in orange print that stands out against white backgrounds and the otherwise black type. The combination of the visual and written elements depicting the ongoing addition and subtraction as the ducks change location makes for a powerful representation of these beginning numerical concepts. The repeated rhyming phrases encourage interactive reading and predicting what might happen next. Prolific children's author Fox has teamed up yet again with illustrator Horacek on this work, her collaborator on the effervescent Where Is the Green Sheep? (2004) and several other titles. The illustrations are deceptively simple, presenting the action of the story exactly as written with the use of bold lines, minimal colors, and ample negative space.Straightforward illustrations, a spirited refrain, and engaging number play add up to a delightful read. (Picture book. 2-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
This irresistible counting book opens with a mother duck walking across a bridge, closely followed by a little duck. Actually, it was two little ducks. / No, it was three little ducks. / Wait! It was four little ducks. / What? It was five little ducks. But wait . . . the wind sweeps the last duck into the river below. Splash! The duckling is soon floating, looking up at his family. Mother Duck dithers. Should she stay on the bridge or go below? One by one, the ducklings fall into the river, followed at last by their mother. Pleasing in simplicity, clarity, and a strong sense of design, Horacek's ink-and-watercolor illustrations enhance the story's humor while providing opportunities for children to practice counting up the ducklings as they make their entrances, counting down as they topple into the water, and maybe even making the connection that the set of ducklings atop the bridge decreases while the number in the river increases. Fox uses repetition, rhyme, and verbal patterns effectively, making this buoyant picture book a rewarding read-aloud choice.--Phelan, Carolyn Copyright 2017 Booklist
