Little White Duck [Board book]

Bernard Zaritzky (Author, Contributor), Joan Paley (Illustrator)

Book Description

Grade Level: P and up

This beloved children's folk song is now in board book form, perfect for little hands to explore the colorful swamp. Bright, bold, dynamic illustrations bring the song to life, and children will have fun singing along. Readers can also quack, buzz, glug, and hiss along with the main characters, while learning the names of animals and colors along the way.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"I'm a little white duck
sitting in the water,
a little white duck
doing what he oughter."

Children have sung this silly song written by Walt Whippo and Bernard Zaritzky for half a century. Performers from Burl Ives to Danny Kaye to Raffi have recorded it over the years. And now, for the first time, the classic sing-along song about the duck that "quack, quack, quacks," the frog that "glug, glug, glugs," and the bug that "bzz, buzz, bzz's" has made its way into picture-book format. Joan Paley's gorgeous collages are full of vivacious color and three-dimensional pizzazz. Bold, brilliant greens and blues dominate, drawing the reader deeper and deeper into the happy little world of these water critters--happy, that is, until the little red snake comes along and scares off the duck and frog and eats the bug! But he's still glad to be "a little red snake playing in the water," so all's well that ends well. To soften the blow of the untimely demise of the little black bug, all four of the characters (duck, frog, bug, snake), plus the guitar-strumming mouse narrator, take a bow on the last page, so sensitive young readers will know it's all just play-acting. Musical notation is included. (Ages 2 to 7) --Emilie Coulter --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

Whether readers were first introduced to this classic 1950 kids' song by Danny Kaye, Burl Ives or Raffi, Paley's (What's That Sound, Woolly Bear?) full-bleed, double-spread collages will bring it vividly to life all over again (those who are making a first acquaintance will find the music included). Paley stages the song as a play. As a guitar-playing mouse narrates, a duck, a frog and a black bug are successively introduced as happily "doing what [they] oughter... in the water." Then along comes a little red snake who clears the room, so to speak, by scaring the duck and frog and eating the bug, leaving the song to conclude, "Boo! Hoo! Hoo!" But the book itself ends on an up beat, with the bug, along with the rest of the cast, taking a bow as the animal audience clamors, "Bravo." Working with cut paper, crayon, pastel and washes of watercolor, Paley creates spread after spread of bold, dramatically cropped tableaux; her strong, graphic lines and compositions are handsomely tempered by the rich, aquatic-inspired palette. Her frog is an especially appealing creation, gleefully stretching his spotted emerald body across the length of the page, and registering expressions that range from languor to alarm. Luminous and full of movement, this art will demand repeated viewings. Ages 4-8. (Apr.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Board book: 22 pages
• Publisher: LB Kids (January 26, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316733970
• ISBN-13: 978-0316733977
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.8 x 6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,333,506 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You can't help but sing along!, December 21, 2000

By 

Ruhama Kordatzky "librariane" (Burlington, WI United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Little White Duck (Hardcover)

This song was one I had learned in pre-school, and I was thrilled to see it as a beautifully illustrated picture book. The large, bold pictures will work well in a lap or in a storytime. The text does not hamper the pictures, but neither is it lost or hard to read.

A most enjoyable book!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lots of Fun, April 26, 2000

By 

Melissa D. Roemhildt - See all my reviews

This review is from: Little White Duck (Hardcover)

We love this book! The rhymes flow so nicely making it very easy to read - or sing, if you know the song! Also, the illustrations are wonderful! The bright colors really help keep my young daughters attention!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another favorite childhood song, July 4, 2006

By 

bhr "birdwoman" (Bryn Mawr, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Little White Duck (Hardcover)

Even if you don't know this song, the rhythm of the lyrics, the story, and the illustrations will keep your child's attention to the end.

The fact that it's been pc'd (everybody lives in the end because it was "just a play") is fine. It's less likely to be traumatic (as opposed to, say, Go Tell Aunt Rhody) for a small child.

Another keeper.

(*)>