Ducks Run Amok!

by J. E. Morris, J. E. Morris (Illustrator)

Overview

Ducks take over one turtle's pond in this hilarious rhyming tale!

When a flock of ducks arrives at an unsuspecting turtle's pond, the turtle is mistaken for a green duck and can't seem to convince anyone otherwise. Can the turtle find a way to take back the pond and get some peace and quiet once more?

The charming illustrations, simple text, and comic-like panels by J. E. Morris, author-illustrator of the Maud the Koala and Flubby books, make this a unique format with a narrative style perfect for storytime and progressing readers. Exciting, easy-to-read books are the stepping stone a young reader needs to bridge the gap between being a beginner and being fluent.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780593222904
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	03/02/2021
Pages:	32
Product dimensions:	4.90(w) x 7.40(h) x 0.20(d)
Lexile:	AD410L (what's this?)
Age Range:	5 - 7 Years

About the Author

J. E. Morris (she/her) is an author and illustrator of numerous stories for children, including the Maud the Koala books and the Flubby books. She is also the author-illustrator of May I Please Have a Cookie? and Please Write Back! featuring Alfie the Alligator, as well as the Steve and Wessley Scholastic Reader series.

Editorial Reviews

2020-12-25
A flock of flying ducks descends for a splash-filled break—to the complete surprise and dismay of a turtle peacefully swimming alone in the pond.

A fast-paced rhyming text describes the scene in omniscient narration, which is supplemented by speech bubbles to relate the afflicted turtle’s reactions. “A flock of ducks / flies in a row. / They look and see / a pond below.” As they alight, the startled turtle asks, “Who are you guys?” As the ducks grow more and more rowdy in their aquatic antics, the incensed turtle exclaims, “Hey! Cut it out!” Another two groups of ducks arrive, the first set the members of the rock-’n’-roll band the Screaming Ducks and the next the crew of a food truck amusingly called Freddy Drake’s Pies and Cakes. Now “all kinds of ducks / are on the scene. / Old ducks, young ducks, / even green.” All the ducks are of the white, domestic variety; the green refers to the vexed turtle, who protests several times, “I am not a duck.” Cartoon drawings with thick, black outlines add details to the zaniness, which eventually evolves into a pie-throwing spectacle that completely frustrates the poor turtle and forces everyone to “DUCK!” A thorough cleanup ensues under the turtle’s watchful eyes before, much to his relief, everyone leaves…but then a Camp Muckaduck school bus pulls up and disgorges a (multiracial) slew of human children. (This book was reviewed digitally with 9-by-13-inch double-page spreads viewed at 75% of actual size.)

Seasoned beginning readers will enjoy the silliness and empathize with the turtle’s wildly invasive predicament. (Early reader. 6-8)

Kirkus Reviews