Customer Reviews

You're the Boss, Baby Duck!

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

 

 

I first discovered the Baby Duck series with Amy Hest's delightful book, "In the Rain with Baby Duck". My toddler loved that book and we read it over and over. Having just had a new baby, I ordered "You're the Boss, Baby Duck" with high expectations of a similar experience. What a disappointment! While it captures how an older sibling may feel left out, it was very negative towards the new baby. I kept waiting for the part where Baby Duck bonds with the new baby and discovers how great it is to have a little brother/sister. Instead, by the end of the book, Baby Duck decides to let the baby stay "for a couple of days" so that she could boss her around. What kind of message about sibling love is that supposed to be sending? If you've just had a new baby in your house, I recommend "Arthur's New Baby" by Marc Brown instead. It effectively captures a child's jealousy in a much gentler way and has a much happier resolution.

Pass this Baby Duck book by!

I'm writing this review mostly to counter-balance the review below, which is pretty harsh. The book is cute, like the rest in the series, and this one does a good job of reassuring older siblings that they won't be forgotten because of the fuss over the new baby. I don't think it's really worth five stars, you understand, but I don't think it should get an average of only one, either. Frankly, any book that (1) amuses my son, and (2) doesn't have me trying to skip pages to get to the end is OK by me. Honestly: three stars.

I sense a pattern in these here "Baby Duck" books. Inevitably the storylines run along these general lines: Our hero (Baby Duck) has some kind of childlike problem, be it anything from new glasses to going to school for the first time. After dealing with this problem in her own way and failing to illicit any real help from her parents, Baby Duck is inevitably reassured/guided wisely by her Grampa. The end. Kids like repetition and consistency, a fact that I have to assume contributes to the continual popularity of the "Baby Duck" series. Though a fine bunch o' books, I have to admit that I find them more than a little dreary. If you're a steadfast Baby Duck fan, then I have little doubt that this particular offering, "You're The Boss, Baby Duck" will live up to your expectations. If, on the other hand, you've been reading similar tales by such great children's book authors like Kevin Henkes or even David Small, then I'm afraid you're bound to wind up a little disappointed.

Baby Duck is not pleased. There's a new baby in the house and nobody is paying any attention to our heroine. Babies, after all, aren't much use and Baby Duck is filled with jealousy. This isn't really her fault, though. Her parents are acting particularly negligent on this day in question, not even pausing a moment to hear their eldest child read to them. Fortunately for Baby Duck the family has gone to visit with Grampa. The wise elder sees his granddaughter's frustration at the new baby's presence. After some quickie counseling, Baby Duck attempts to show off and play with her little sibling. To her delight the baby (unlike her parents) responds to everything she does. The book ends with Baby Duck towing her sister in a wagon singing that maybe the baby can stay two more days, "But Baby Duck is boss".

A couple things. First we have to deal with Baby Duck's songs. I did some quick checking on this tale and this book was not originally published in another country. I say this because there was no getting around the fact that Baby Duck's song lyrics simply do not rhyme. I'm all for free verse, but it seems to me that if you write a song of four lyrics that scans perfectly, it should rhyme. Then I thought, "Wait. Maybe the author is making a clever play on how little kids will constantly sing songs that rhyme only in their own heads". I was willing to give author Amy Hest some points for this idea, up until I hit Baby Duck's last song. Which rhymes. It may not seem like a big deal to you, but I'm a stickler for inconsistency ESPECIALLY in kid's books. If you're going to be consistent in any one medium, be sure it's in children's literature.

But that's a pretty petty complaint. So I'll go one better. Amy Hest may well be an accomplished writer, but this is not the book to use to discover her. The phrase, "You're the Boss, Baby Duck" doesn't really fit in with the rest of the story. The characters are stock to the point of cardboard cutouts. The one thing I found original in this tale was Baby Duck's glasses, and that was a leftover from a previous adventure anyway. Jill Barton's illustrations are all well and good. She's especially good at bringing to Baby Duck's eyes a glare of detestation towards her little sib. There are cute little touches that pop up throughout this tale, including baby Hot Stuff's casual overboard tossing of her pacifier. Still, these illustrations can't save an otherwise bland tale.

There are plenty of places to go for I'm-Jealous-Of-The-New-Baby books. My personal favorite is "Julius, Baby of the World" by Kevin Henkes. I suggest you take a good long look at the selections out there and purchase one of them instead of the nice, but ultimately blah, "You're the Boss, Baby Duck". If you want a book that is comforting and doesn't challenge young readers in much of any way, this is an excellent choice. If you'd like something a little less run-of-the-mill and a little spicy, try the aforementioned "Julius" or (even better) Charlotte Voake's, "Ginger". Why settle for less?

I'm with Reviewer #2. In our house, we now sometimes call our 2-year-old dog "Baby Duck" because of his rivalry issues, and my 5-month-old son "Hot Stuff." It's a really cute book, deserves 4 stars at least, and the treatment of Baby Duck's eventual acceptance of her little sister is subtle, but I think a child would get it.