Customer Reviews

The Ugly Duckling (Caldecott Honor Book)

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Like most parents, you want your child's home library to include standard fairy tales. Jerry Pinkney's "The Ugly Duckling" combines incredibly detailed ilustrations with a nice balance of both strong and muted colors AND a wonderful re-telling of the generations-old standard tale. In this verson, however, people are woven into the story in a way that I haven't seen before, and I like that very much. It's easy to see why this book was selected as a 1999 Caldecott Honor Book. Pinkney's a very gifted illustrator, and he really has to be given credit for his well-constructed text as well as the gorgeous pictures. Authors who write and then illustrate their own stories are somewhat rare, and as an adult, I appreciate the incredible mix of talent and hard work this represents. My children, of course, just love the pictures; they'll grow to appreciate good writing as they get older.

This book was absolutely wonderful, especially the illustrations. My children loved it. It was not just about being ugly, it was about knowing who you are, your roots, etc - self awareness and self-confidence. The poor duckling "thought" that he was ugly because he didn't know who he really was [a swan]. ...Because he was different from everyone around him, he believed that he was what everyone said he was -- ugly and worthless. The others picked on him because he was different. Once he discovered the truth of who he really was is when he was set free from the bondage of all the untruth that he heard. He discovered who he really was and flourished.

This version of The Ugly Duckling is a great retelling of the classic story, with an enriched exploration of the Ugly Duckling's feelings and experiences. The illustrations are stunning. My three children, ages 3-5, are enthralled. And because of the nuance and complexity of the story, this will continue to be a family favorite for years to come.

Our class liked it when the ugly duckling turned into a swan. Everyone learned that it doesn't matter if you don't look like everyone else. You should like who you are. We learned about the differences between swans and ducks. Our class learned that when you are young you have to learn about a lot of different things. We think that kids could learn about different things from reading this story such as animals, other stories to read, and feelings.

The ugly duckling is a classic telling of an all too familiar theme that we as parents tell our kids all the time: that looks on the outside matter little, and that it's what is on the inside that counts. This classic tale tells the message for us, in a fun and entertaining way that children will enjoy (my daughter did anyway).

If you don't the skinny on this old classic, it's as follows: a newborn baby duck makes his way into the world, but this is no ordinary duck, oh, no; this duck doesn't quite look like his siblings or any other duck for that matter. This duck is teased, bullied and made to feel worthless. But in the end, we find out that this duck is not a duck at all, but in fact is a swan and a beautiful one at that.

I believe that the realization of the swan that he is not ugly and actually is something beautiful is very touching as he seemed so sad before this realization. I don't think the author is trying to say that if you are labeled as ugly, that you will and should be teased; but the symbolism of ugly duck turning into a beautiful swan seems to convey a type of hidden self worth which comes into light when needed the most. I realize this might be over the heads of younger readers, but I hope you parents understand my meaning.

The color illustrations are excellent.

Darien Summers, author of The Mischievous Hare, a children's book.

A beautiful picture book on the Hans Christian Anderson tale. The Ugly Duckling is one of the world's most passionate childrens' stories of becoming. A wonderful book to read to remind a child what's possible no matter what. It's always a good thing to know one really is a swan ...underneath it all.

I read the book The Ugly duckling by Jerry Pinkney.
The book is about a ugly duckling,everyone is mean to him. One day he got fed up with them so he ran away to a pond but there was a shoot off . So he immediately ran off. After awhile he came across a old ladies house. Her animals were mean to him so he went to a pond.In the winter he froze and a farmer gets him out.He did not like them either so he ran away. In the spring he finds out he is a wonderful swan.
I enjoyed the book because I never heard the part when he got frozen. The theme is never be down about the way you look because you might look better when you get older. This book didn't have good word choice and all the words were easy I liked that.The conflict is he is ugly and everyone is mean to him.The illustrations were very full. the character is the ugly duckling. There are many different version. The intended audience is kids who are not beautiful so they don't feel bad about themselves.

Wonderful art captures everyones attention but none more than a young child. The first few times the book is held by a child and the pages are turned, you can see on the child's face the magic taking place. Jerry Pinkney captivates my grandchildren with his talent. My two year old granddaughter insists on knowing what is taking place on each page. There is no better motivator to reading than capturing a youngster's attention with art and then the words that explain the picture. The Ugly Duckling and Mr. Pinkney's art takes me right back to my parent's home where we were not allowed to watch TV until the weekend and only after dark, and where we were surrounded with books. Mr. Pinkney is old school, great art. This book will make you homesick for your favorite cozy reading place in your parents house. Share it with the kids in your life too ; )

Hans Christian Anderson's story tells of a swan hatched into a family of ducks, who lives his life trying to fit into a situation where he doesn't belong. When this "ugly duckling" finds himself in the company of swans and realizes that he is really one of them, he understands that all the qualities which caused him to be rejected were actually signs of his true character. This story lends a hope-filled perspective on social difficulties, suggesting that may be seeds of greatness even in the most awkward individuals. It brings a gentle moral lesson both to those who are ostracized and those who are tempted to judge others by their appearances.

Jerry Pinkney's adaptation brings the story into a visual splendor, with lushly detailed watercolor paintings full of drama and life. His text is smoothly written, although heavily abridged from the original version. It's a perfect adaptation for children who are not quite ready to transition from picture books to chapter books, because its visual representation of the story establishes the story line so vividly; reading the full text version at a later time will be easy if they can picture Pinkney's scenes in their minds.

Beautiful book, full of details. The story is a faithful re-telling of Andersen's story, so the story is not dumbed-down like so many re-tellings of this story are, so it's a bit lengthy and scary. Not for the youngest readers.