On Duck Pond (On Bird Hill and Beyond #2)

The team behind On Bird Hill returns with an intimate reflection on a small Massachusetts pond, where a placid scene can change at a moment's notice. While On Bird Hill had a certain dreamlike quality, particularly in Marstall's slightly surreal artwork, this story feels grounded in careful, quiet observation. Yolen writes in first-person rhymes (the narrator is eventually revealed to be a boy walking his dog), bearing contemplative witness to the disruptions caused by a "quack of ducks" that descends on the pond: "A frog leaped off his lily pad./ Quite surprised and very mad./ A heron flew back to her nest./ Tadpole hid--which they do best." A sunlit glow seems to infuse Marstall's landscapes, and he's carefully attentive to the physical details of the birds, frogs, and other creatures the boy notices. Informative endnotes invite readers to locate eight animals hidden in the preceding pages, offer additional information about a host of birds and other creatures, and encourage children to learn more about ponds and birds. Ages 3-5. Author's agent: Elizabeth Harding, Curtis Brown. Illustrator's agent: Abigail Samoun, Red Fox Literary. (Apr.)

K-Gr 2--This sequel to On Bird Hill celebrates the wildlife of a New England pond. When a rowdy raft of ducks drop in, creatures from turtles to heron to tadpoles rouse from drowsy bliss. The disrupters' equally sudden departure brings the gradual return of deer, a raccoon, and a redwing blackbird as well as the reemergence of the water denizens. Colorful spreads accommodate Yolen's rhymes: "A frog leaped off his lily pad, quite surprised and very mad." Marstall's realistic paintings embrace nature's greens, blues, browns, and yellows. The book concludes with notes on pond habitats, a description of the Cornell Lab's work with birds, and a picture dictionary of pond-loving birds and ducks. VERDICT Use this breezy visit to a pond for Earth Day celebrations or as a literary field trip on a rainy day. A solid introduction to nature, best shared one-on-one.--Gay Lynn Van Vleck, Henrico County Library, Glen Allen, VA