Duddle Puck: The Puddle Duck

A newly arrived duck who would rather oink, neigh, and even belt out “HIP-HIP HOORAY!” than quack has all the farmyard’s residents aflutter. 

Duddle Puck’s little quirk is such a source of irritation—“Hank the Horse was stunned; / he was taken quite aback. / ‘Ducks should never neigh, / they really oughta quack!’ ”—that everyone including the farmer gangs up at last and quacks loudly in chorus to demonstrate how it’s supposed to be done. More amused than cowed, Duddle obligingly utters a gigantic “QUACK-” that is followed on the ensuing spread with an equally stentorian “A-DOODLE-DOO!” Echoing the author-illustrator duo’s previous nod to nonconformity, The Cow Loves Cookies (2010), Wilson contributes a rollicking rhymed narrative (a bit challenging to read, at least aloud, due to sudden metrical shifts and the protagonist’s tongue-twister name). Though Hall lays out the farm differently, it’s still an idyllic setting, into which he brings back both the spade-bearded farmer and, in an inconspicuous cameo, the cow. Topped by a feed cap just like the farmer’s, Duddle Puck struts insouciantly past the offended livestock, hops up onto a picnic table to cheer on a birthday celebration, and is last seen crowing proudly from the henhouse roof. 

Wilson and Hall follow The Cow Loves Cookies by introducing another barnyard eccentric: a duck who refuses to quack. Hall gives Duddle Puck a blue ball cap and a briefcase--additional evidence that he is "a very odd duck." Washed in pale watercolors, Marcellus's farm looks a lot like the one in The Cow Loves Cookies, though cows aren't among the many animals that Duddle Puck mimics as the story progresses. Wilson's rhymes drive ahead like an old farm tractor, one that perhaps sputters and backfires from time to time, cataloguing the animals' indignant reactions: " 'Duddle, ' Henny squawked, 'ducks should always quack!/ A proper puddle duck should really know how to act!' " Bold, telegraphic type blasts across the pages, emphasizing just how much fun Duddle is having, whether he is oinking like a pig while bill-deep in mud or tromping through an outdoor birthday celebration adding a "hip-hip hooray!" of his own. Not one but two closing gags suggest that this nonconformist bird won't be changing his tune anytime soon. Ages 4-8. (Aug.)

PreS-Gr 1--Wilson and Hall team up for the second time to tell the story of a mixed-up puddle duck. When Duddle arrives at the farm, the animals in residence are shocked and annoyed to hear him cluck, honk, oink and neigh, and they determine to teach him the right way to speak. After they model proper quacking, Duddle contemplates the irony of their awesome demonstration and in response lets out a hearty "Quack-a-doodle-do!" This rhyming story offers a fun, gentle lesson in identity and acceptance, but it's the ludicrous portrayal of Duddle and his disgruntled farm mates that will likely capture young readers' attention. Each spread features a comical interpretation of the puddle duck in his blue baseball cap and his efforts to fit in where he doesn't belong. The watercolor and ink illustrations afford a natural element to the incongruous scene. Alternating white and full-color backgrounds give readers opportunities to both inhabit some moments and step away from the fuss as the ever-present farmer and his cat do. VERDICT For Wilson fans and those who just love farm animal antics.--Lynn Van Auken, Oak Bluffs School, Oak Bluffs, MA