Review by Booklist Review
If Farmer Brown thought Duck was trouble, just wait until Baby Duck arrives! Baby Duck hatches with a crack, crack, crack to a chorus of moo! baa! oink! The exuberant little thing is delighted and delightful as she laughs, waddles, and plays. But when the other animals begin to yawn (new parents will relate), the bright yellow critter simply will not sleep: peep, peep, peep. The text features a bouncy, playful rhythm and rhyme, setting a quick pace, while loose watercolors capture the comical antics. After the animals have tried everything they can think of to send Baby Duck to sleep, such as a lullaby and a cozy blanket (the sheep knit one), Duck comes up with a plan effective, if a bit destructive. All's quiet in the barnyard . . . until Farmer Brown wakes up, that is! An irresistible addition to the Click, Clack, Moo series.--McDermott, Jeanne Copyright 2014 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
After a lively baby duck is born on the farm, the animals from Click, Clack, Moo and its sequels try to turn its "peep peep peep" into "peep peep... sleep" at bedtime. Lewin's always expressive watercolors show sleep-deprived hens and sheep rocking the duckling to sleep and knitting it a blanket, but it's Duck who arrives at a solution that will be familiar to parents who have reached for their car keys in order to lull a restless baby to sleep. A sweet-natured addition to the series, and one that will leave readers giggling, thanks to a great closing gag. Ages 4-8. Agent: Holly McGhee, Pippin Properties. (Feb.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-K-Banjo, guitar, and percussion are the perfect accompaniment for a barnyard story, as is Maurice England's folksy narration of Doreen Cronin's picture book. England gives voice to each "moo," "baa," and "quack" as the animals anticipate Baby Duck's arrival. The plucking of banjo strings illustrates the newly hatched Baby Duck's playfulness as he laughs and waddles. Soon the rest of the animals are tired, and they try to get Baby Duck settled down to sleep as "Brahms' Lullaby" plays. The repetition of "but Baby Duck would not sleep" after each animal's action (singing a lullaby, lowering shades) will have young viewers reciting along. The animation is simple and consists mostly of moving heads. At times, the animals seem to float in space, which might be off-putting to young viewers. After Duck drives the tractor back and forth to lull Baby Duck to sleep, the sounds of crickets and the occasional crash are heard. Farmer Brown awakens and takes a look around the barnyard, and the sound of an abrupt record scratch is the perfect expression of his shock as he sees the results of Duck's reckless driving. VERDICT Enhanced by a lively soundtrack and expressive narration, this is a humorous selection for public libraries and preschool classrooms.-Constance Dickerson, Cleveland Heights-University Heights Public Library, OH © Copyright 2017. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
The farm animals eagerly await the birth of Baby Duck, but they're not thrilled when she turns out to be a round-the-clock peeper. Forget that the story lacks the complexity of Click, Clack, Moo: Duck's ultimate solution yields a supremely funny visual punch line courtesy of Lewin's watercolors, which, as always, have a gratifying looseness that reflects Cronin's nerve-jangling plotting. (c) Copyright 2015. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Poor Farmer Brown has a new animal to contend with, and this one is disrupting the whole barn!The farm is quiet. All of the animals are intently watching an egg, waiting for it to hatch. "Not a moo. / Not a click. / Not an oink. / Not a quack. // Not a baa. / Not a cluck. / Not a thing. / Thena crack." Out pops Baby Duck! The little fuzzball waddles and plays and jumps and laughs. But the one thing Baby Duck does not do is sleep. Her incessant peep, peep, peeping is keeping the whole barnyard awake. (With bleary eyes and mouths stretched open wide in incredible yawns, Lewin's animals defy any reader not to do the same.) In a tried-and-true method of dealing with sleepless infants everywhere, Duck finally finds a way to lull Baby Duck to sleepwith the help of a tractor. Alas, the farm fence and crops don't fare as well. This author/illustrator duo rarely disappoints, but the rhythm stumbles a bit in its transitions, making this read-aloud not as seamless as others in the barnyard collection. Nevertheless, the familiar high jinks of this parental Duck and his farmyard companions will provoke plenty of giggles. (Picture book. 3-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
