It's Quacking Time! [Hardcover]

Martin Waddell (Author), Jill Barton (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 3 and up | Grade Level: P and up

Martin Waddell and Jill Barton team up for a ducky celebration of springtime, family, and miraculous new arrivals.

"Did you come in an egg?" Duckling gasped.
"All ducks do," Grandpa said.

Mommy Duck has laid a pale blue egg among the rushes, and soon it will be quacking time at the lake. Duckling has never seen a duck egg before and finds it very hard to believe that a baby duck could fit inside. But now all the family is gathering—Auntie and Cousin and Grandpa—and the excitement is high as they wait for a tap-tap-tap and a CRACK! and, finally, a tiny beak and a head poking out. Little listeners will be more than eager to join in their final chorus: "Quack-quack! Quack-quack-quack!"

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

PreS-K. Waddell and Barton, whose previous book was A Pig in a Pond (1992), now turn their attention to ducks. Mommy Duck lays an egg, and Duckling is surprised on two fronts: he learns that there's a baby duck in the egg, and that he was once in an egg himself. Grandpa, aunt, and cousin come to look over the egg, and each adds a little more information to Duckling's knowledge of his egg days. How did he ever fit into an egg? "You were much smaller then." In the last few spreads, children see the new egg rolling and cracking, and when the baby finally emerges, "it's quacking time at the lake." The story is slight and a bit repetitive, as is the art, which uses an almost identical landscape in each spread. Ducks from Barton's familiar Baby Duck series are taken down a notch here to seem, well, more ducklike, but they are still endearing. The brevity of the text, which is filled with plenty of quacking, makes this a good choice for story hours. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"It's Quacking Time! is a familiar story made gloriously exuberant in both words and pictures." The Guardian" --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 3 and up
  
• Hardcover: 32 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick (February 3, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0763627380
• ISBN-13: 978-0763627386
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 0.4 x 11 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,419,842 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Martin Waddell is the Hans Christian Andersen Medal winner 2004 and two-time Smarties Prize winner. Among his many books for children are the Little Bear and Farmer Duck series. Martin lives in Newcastle in County Down.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great if you're expecting a new sibling, December 1, 2005

By 

Sarah Peters (Cincinnati, OH United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: It's Quacking Time! (Hardcover)

This book is a great introduction to talk about a new addition to your family. My daughter and I read this book constantly while I was pregnant. Even though ducks come from eggs, Ducklings questions and statements very much resemble things my daughter said about my pregnancy. The drawings are cute and the story is easy for even a 2 year old to follow.

5.0 out of 5 stars So cute!, January 18, 2007

By 

Antje Schwartz (suffern, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: It's Quacking Time! (Hardcover)

We found this book in the library right before our second child was born. It was perfect to introduce our daughter positively to having a second little one in the family. But we loved the book for itself as well. The illustrations are adorable, they endorse the text perfectly. The book is great for animated reading and when we get to the page where "it is quacking time" we all quack like crazy. Wonderful!

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun book!, January 11, 2007

By 

L. Haines (so, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: It's Quacking Time! (Hardcover)

This is a great book for any child expecting a sibling. My son loved (and still loves) reading this book before we had our second child. Now, we give it as a gift for families with a new baby coming. Also, the pages are nice and thick for a non-board book, making them less easy for little hands to tear.