Fuse 8 n’ Kate: Ducky by Eve Bunting, ill. David Wisniewski

Remember when I was constantly trying to find picture books with tidal waves in them for Kate? Somebody somewhere (forgive me for not writing it down) suggested we try good old Ducky from 1997. It’s been a day or two since I picked up the book, so I gave it a whirl and discovered that it would definitely be an interesting title for the old podcast here. As such, we’re talking rubber ducks, plastic waste, cut paper, and shark sympathy on the old podcast today. Also, this has GOT to be our most miserable protagonist to date. Talk about not appreciating the adventure you find yourself on. Oy!

Listen to the whole show here on Soundcloud or download it through iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify, Google Play, PlayerFM, Audible, Amazon Music, or your preferred method of podcast selection.

Show Notes:

And yes! Pop! Goes the Nursery Rhyme is out in stores and libraries RIGHT NOW! And here, for the record, is the picture of the secretary bird I mention:

And here is the image of the weasel that utterly destroyed all my presentations last week:

Now I just want to pay homage to David Wisniewski’s cut paper aplomb. Look at this shot. You’ve the duck floating on top of the water, the shark under the water, and then the water itself. Look at how he’s somehow managed to make it look like light has hit the water and turned into that reflective pattern we’ve all seen but that is so hard to capture in, say, CUT PAPER!!!

Now, I take a look at this image and you know what I see? Some poor shark trying to eat plastic. I do NOT feel bad for Ducky in this scene. I feel bad for the shark. Second, when Kate asked how the shark would get the plastic out from in between his teeth, I instantly thought of this year’s incredible nonfiction picture book Don’t Eat the Cleaners by Susan Stockdale. A great book you should also check out!

Life’s too short not to appreciate this shot of a pelican with a fish in its beak, flying above the scene below.

God. This is gorgeous. Why did this not get any kind of Caldecott love? Looks like it was beaten out by a shockingly strong slate of winners. Sucks to be you, 1998 Caldecott committee. Too much good stuff that year.

Dear Werner Herzog, please read this aloud in a video. We will pay you. Please.

Kate was willing to suspend disbelief for most of this book. Then she got to this scene where the duck somehow just balances between the handlebars of this bike. Belief? No longer suspended.

Alaska just doesn’t show up in a lot of picture books. Yet this image seems to imply that that is precisely where Ducky ends up by the story’s end. I sure hope the Alaskan librarians and educators out there lean into this book regularly. Alaska pride!

Kate Recommends: Andor on Disney Plus

Betsy Recommends: Mayhem by Lady Gaga (though I could have just as easily mentioned the Lord Gaga sketch on Saturday Night Live as my recommended thing)

Filed under: Fuse 8 n' Kate