Ouak Spotting
There are many reasons to be gleeful about attending ALA in Boston, but one reason that stuck in my mind particularly had to do with ducks.
Ducks in a row, to be precise.
Wandering about the streets of Boston I was impressed by the lovely architecture.
Note the Starbucks. Even it looks classy in that building.
But then I ran across the Boston Commons and you know what that means?
Yup! It’s the Make Way for Ducklings bronzed characters! I took my shots while I could.
They’re surprisingly larger than you might expect. A kid can easily ride Mama Duck without worrying that her ankles will buckle under the weight. I had the pleasure of listening to one tourist berate another for asking where the Papa Duck was. A cultural touchstone, to say the least.
Off to the conference floor! More soon!
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About Betsy Bird
Betsy Bird is currently the Collection Development Manager of the Evanston Public Library system and a former Materials Specialist for New York Public Library. She has served on Newbery, written for Horn Book, and has done other lovely little things that she'd love to tell you about but that she's sure you'd find more interesting to hear of in person. Her opinions are her own and do not reflect those of EPL, SLJ, or any of the other acronyms you might be able to name. Follow her on Twitter: @fuseeight.
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This is so on list of Sights to Behold before I Die, along with PEI, the Eric Carle Museum, and Hogwarts.
Just a quick note: the ducklings are in the Public Garden, not on Boston Common. The two parks are across the street from one another, and people often do mistake them for one entity, but the Public Garden (and the rest of Back Bay) is the result of a Victorian era land fill project. The fact that the area was planned is also why the streets are in a nice orderly grid pattern in Back Bay, and (comforting to a librarian), they are also alphabetical: Arlington, Boylston, Clarendon, Dartmouth, etc.
Oh, good point. I walked through Boston Common to get to the Public Garden. Just assumed that one was part of another.
In 1999 we took our two children (then ages 3 and 8) to Boston. I had this dream of reading Make Way for Ducklings by the statues. The only problem? The children didn’t want to cooperate. I did get a picture of the 3 year old riding Mama Duck, however.
Oh, I love the ducklings so much! Thanks for the pictures.
Fabulous shots of the ducklings. My favorite is the very first one. Great perspective!
Great pictures of the ducks! During warmer months they used to have the Swan boats in the Gardens. Plus nearby the Duck tour on amphibious craft that cruise the streets, then plunge into the Charles River for a bit. Quite fun!
I got my picture taken next to the ducks! I admit it was one of the main reasons I went to ALA Midwinter (-:) There actually was a little boy riding Mama Duck, but he kindly got off so I could take my picture….and walked down the line of ducklings, patting each one on the head and saying “duck, duck, duck”. Hee hee.