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Jun 11, 2008

Suzanne rated it:

This is probably one of my all time favorites. I live near Boston and am very familiar with the Public Garden. They have installed "Make Way for Duckling" sculptures there which any visitor to Boston might enjoy seeing.

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Feb 04, 2009

Nicole rated it:

Title:
Make Way for Ducklings
Author:
Robert McCloskey
Publisher and Year:
Viking Press, 1941
Genre: fiction
Ages: 3-8

Synopsis: This book is about Mr. and Mrs. Mallard, who are looking for a place to live and raise their ducklings, but everywhere is too dangerous. Finally, they find an island in the middle of a pond in the Public Square in Boston. However, because of bikes, they move to another island on the river. The ducklings are born, and Mr. Mallard go More...

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Oct 07, 2011

Melissa rated it:

Make Way for Ducklings
By: Robert McCloskey

Genre: Traditional Literature

Mr. and Mrs. Mallard are searching for the appropriate home to lay their eggs, hatch and raise their ducklings. After finding a quaint little place, the Mallards await the arrival of their 8 little ducklings: Jack, Kack, Lack, Mack, Nack, Ouack, Pack and Quack. Mrs. Mallard accepts the responsibility of raising the ducklings while Mr. Mallard takes off to find a more permanent home. Read the res More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Sep 07, 2011

Nicole rated it:

Make Way for Ducklings, a well-loved, classic children’s picture book, is like taking a walk back in time. Robert McCloskey’s heartwarming portrayal of two ducks searching for the perfect place to raise their family of ducklings is charming and memorable. The illustrations capture a simpler time where policeman would take a moment to help a mother mallard and her ducklings cross the road. The Caldecott award winner was fist published in 1941. The soft cream colored pages with the brown text and More...

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Sep 04, 2011

Brittany rated it:

When I first saw this book in the library I became immediately emotionally attached to it. My Great-Grandmother had this book at her house, and when I was very young I used to look at the pictures, but I never read the words. This book is strikingly simple in appearance, which makes it seem antique and elegant. The dark green cover contrasts well with the image of the brown and cream colored ducks. Inside, the same principle was applied to the illustrations. The pictures inside are all drawn wit More...

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Feb 04, 2011

Q_Barb rated it:

This early Caldecott winner is a charmer. The illustration by McClosky with just shading of a brown pencil, shifting of the size of the characters and their surroundings is almost lyrical as he tells the story of the Mallards, parents of newly hatched ducklings, and their search for the perfect place in Boston to raise their brood.
It is a story of kindness, friendship, having a goal and persevering to meet that goal. It is fun to read and look at multiple times as I am sure young c More...

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Apr 05, 2010

Josiah rated it:

Here is an example of the kind of synergy that can result when the text and illustrations of a good picture book come together to tell a story in perfectly delegated harmony.

Make Way for Ducklings is a real classic, and it's not hard to see why it has charmed readers for so long. Mr. and Mrs. Mallard are small creatures, in many ways defenseless when it comes to the world at large, but they are intelligent and resourceful and want to find a suitable location to raise their new fami More...

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Oct 07, 2009

Davis rated it:

Make Way for Ducklings may indeed be my favorite book from childhood. It is also beautifully illustrated. It will keep your children captivated from the beginning to the end.

It is a wonderful tale about a mother and father duck who look for a home in which to raise their ducklings. Eventually they find that home in the Boston Public Gardens. There is a wonderful scene where they are about to cross a busy Boston street and a friendly policeman holds up traffic until they reach safety. More...

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Sep 23, 2009

Becky rated it:

I love the story this book tells, but even more I love the story the illustrations tell. The pictures illustrate what the text says, but adds many little details. I liked that in each picture of the ducklings after they were hatched they were all doing something different. One was always looking down, one was right there with his mother, one was always a little behind just trying to catch up, and one was always looking up usually searching for a fly. The detail of these simple pictures are amazi More...

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Jul 19, 2009

Lv2readB rated it:

Closkey, R. (1941). Make way for ducklings. New York: Scholastic.
(renewed in 1969 and 2001)

Summary:
Mr. and Mrs. Mallard lived on an island in the middle of a Boston Charles River, close to the Public Garden (where they later lived . Although Boston was dangerous (getting run over by bikes, speeding cars, etc…), the ducks decided to hatch 8 ducklings there. They befriended Michael, the policeman, who helped Mrs. Mallard when Mr. Mallard had to take a trip up the river. Whe More...

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Feb 05, 2009

Monique rated it:

Originally published in 1941, this classic tale of a duck family finding a home has warm memories for me. Mr. and Mrs. Mallard think the Boston Public Gardens may be just the place to raise a family, until rude boys on bicycles almost run them over. After finally settling on a cozy island on the Charles river, the ducks befriend a policeman named Michael and hatch their brood of 8 ducklings. Mr. Mallard leaves his little family to explore the river and Mrs. Mallard teaches the ducklings to sw More...

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Apr 14, 2009

Arthur rated it:

When I bought an animal alphabet book by Richard Scarry this week, Bep told me that as late as the 1980s it was forbidden for animals in Dutch children's picture books to wear clothes. I had no idea. I was reading Donald Duck at the time and thought he was subversive for not wearing pants, but apparently he was subversive for wearing a shirt! I still don't understand this no clothes rule. What's so wrong about anthropomorphing (?) animals? One of the finest moments of Dutch literature is a medie More...

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Jul 08, 2011

Kate rated it:

This is a classic children's book about two ducks looking for a place to raise their family. I know it's silly, and probably not what the children reading this book are thinking about, but my favorite part is in the beginning when the mother and father duck are trying to find a suitable place to have their baby ducks. The mother is so picky, but it shows how much she cares about these little duckies. Of course, the part that most appeals to little children is probably the part towards the end More...

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Mar 18, 2009

John rated it:

This was my favorite book as a child.

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 18, 2010

L-Crystal rated it:

Make Way for Ducklings is for students in preschool through third grade and has won the Caldecott Medal (1942). I read this book on CD. This book is about duck parents who want to find a safe place to bring up their ducklings, which is not easy. They finally find that the Boston’s public garden may be the perfect spot because it has no creatures which are harmful to them, plenty of peanuts, and even police. Mother duck’s love and protection of her loved ones are definitely shown throughout the More...

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Sep 11, 2011

Katie rated it:

This picture book was about husband and wife ducks who are searching for a place to lay their eggs. They go to different places until they find the perfect stop to lay them in a park. They liked this place because a policeman would feed them peanuts and it was safe for the ducklings. The husband duck, Mr. Mallard, then takes a trip to the public park while Mrs. Mallard takes care of the ducklings and raises them. When are old enough to swim and walk the mother duck and the ducklings travel to t More...

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Sep 08, 2011

Ilana rated it:

My favorite Robert McCloskey book. I loved this book when I was a young reader and still love it today. It is on my sons' bookshelf and though not a favorite of his, when my turn to pick a book to read to him, I like to pick this one. I like the Mallards looking for the perfect home and the way the ducks are comfortable married couple and later parents to their 8 ducklings. I like the part in the beginning of the father mallard talking to the swan on the boat who is not alive and too busy to res More...

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Sep 06, 2010

Megan rated it:

The book is very large and the illustrations take up most of the space on the pages because the text is small and minimal on the page. This book won its award in 1942 so right away I could tell the difference between this book and the most recent Caldecott winner. The whole book seemed monochromatic because the pictures and text are the color brown. I looked up how the illustrations were made because they definitely look hand drawn but it didn't look like it was made with an ink pen. I found the More...

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Jul 07, 2011

CJ rated it:

We rode the swan boats in Boston last weekend. All the while, I was thinking of this book and of E.B. White's The Trumpet of the Swan.

Then today we were killing time in the book store while I had some work done on the car, and I found (and bought) a lovely hardcover edition of Make Way for Ducklings. My husband is reading it to the kids as I type. I read it to my daughter several years ago, and we both enjoyed it (as we did s0 many other of McCloskey's books, especially Blueberries f More...

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Jun 06, 2011

Kelly rated it:

Make Way for Ducklings is the tale of a mother duck and her search for an ideal place to lay her eggs and hatch her ducklings. While it is a simple story with concise language, it is a very heartwarming tale.

Mrs. Mallard (as she is dubbed in the story) passes up several locales for nest building. In the end, she and Mr. Mallard end up in the Charles River. There, they befriend a friendly policeman, who ulimately aids Mrs. Mallard in her journey to the Public Pond (along with help fro More...

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Sep 07, 2011

Katie rated it:

Mr. and Mrs. Mallard are looking everywhere for a home to raise their ducklings. Tired from searching all day, they land in Boston to rest. It just so happens they find Boston to be the best place and decide to stay even though people, cars, and bikes pose a threat to their way of life. Mrs. Mallard teaches the ducklings how to survive in order to one day cross the busy streets to adventure to the park. With the help of the police officers, the ducks make it safely across and enjoy their new More...

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Oct 12, 2009

NS - Cami rated it:

This book is a Caldecott winner. The illustrations were strong. The storyline adorable, with a motherduck raising her young to lead them across a busy highway to the pond in the park. The mama duck receives the assistance of the police force; hence the title, "Make way for Ducklings." I do agree that the text was beautifully supported by the pictures. The pictures by far were the strongest element. I did notice however, some grammatical errors in the text such as a substitution "e More...

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May 18, 2010

Ronyell rated it:

“Make Way for Ducklings” is a Caldecott Medal award-winning book by Robert McCloskey and it is about how a family of ducks tries to live in the city of Boston. “Make Way for Ducklings” is a brilliant classic book that children will read over and over again.

Robert McCloskey has done a superb job at both illustrating and writing this book. Robert McCloskey makes this book extremely cute as it is simply about a family of ducks trying to adjust to life in the city. Both children and p More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 04, 2011

Claire rated it:

I want to begin by saying I absolutely loved the books I read for this week. I intended on going for the chapter books each week so I only had to do one review, but I'm glad this week forced me to give picture books a shot. "Make Way for Ducklings" was the first book I read for this week. The story leads up to a town stopping in amazement of a protective mother duck leading her eight ducklings through the busy streets to meet with their father on the other side of town. The illustratio More...

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Sep 17, 2008

Merwyn rated it:

It's ducks! Baby ducklings! I know, I know, I'm supposed to be one of the more cold-hearted crusty cranky cynical conservative Olympia bloggers but you've found one of my weaknesses.

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Oct 03, 2010

Lesli rated it:

This was my son Jeremy's favorite book as a little boy...he's 28 now!
I would read this darling story of the adventures of a mother duck and her ducklings as she tried to protect them as they traveled through the city.
This book made such an impact on Jeremy that his nickname was, "Fuzzy Duck". We called him "Fuzz" when he got older. We even had "fuzzy duck" jammies...fuzzy yellow one-peice jammies with feet in them!
I still remember quacking at th More...

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Oct 23, 2011

Joan rated it:

Really like this story. It also ties in to Alaska, we always have geese here, they are part of our spring and fall, watching for them in the spring, dealing with their waste in the lakes and on the soccer fields, and watching for the babies. Then watching them leave in the fall. Regardless of the original setting, the story is part of our lives here. Timeless story also, and for older students you can point out what has changed in our society, and what has not. It also reminds me of how whe More...

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Oct 02, 2011

Nallely rated it:

This book is a classic! The illustrations are a little dull but that doesn't matter much because the book in it self is good. This a type of book that I would read aloud just for fun. I like that this book is basically about a family in the shoes of ducks. I also like that this book show appreciation for animals. Animals should not be mistreated and this book tells us that. I'm not a mother but I think that this book does very well at showing a mothers love for her children. I would probably rea More...

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Sep 01, 2011

Allison rated it:

This is a great book especially for kids who like in and around Boston,MA, or are going there to visit. Also, for any child who visits places where there are waterfowl. It's a wonderful tale of how a duck family makes a place for itself in a major city and the humans adapt to their presence and accommodate them. Besides being a fun tale, it also teaches compassion for others and for wildlife. Also, the illustrations are really fantastic and monochrome which I believe makes it easier to focus on More...

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Aug 08, 2011

Randie rated it:

I was a little surprised when my five-year-old son chose this book at the library. He usually goes for something with bright colors or dinosaurs, but he is a sucker for an animal book ;).

Mr. and Mrs. Mallard search for a place to build a nest and decide to settle down in Boston. However, the Boston streets are filled with people, cars, and bikes and only with the help of friendly Police Officers can they safely navigate from their nest to the public garden.

I love the brow More...

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