by Meg McKinlay
2012 | 96 pages | Chapter Book
Abby's teacher, Mrs. Melvino, has a class duck named Max, and Abby wants nothing more than to take him home for a weekend. Unfortunately, Max has a lot of very specific needs, and Mrs. Melvino has to see that all of them can be met before she will allow any student to take him home. Specifically, Max needs an "aquatic" environment without dogs, cats, or clawed animals, with a "calm, secure yard" and "duck food." Abby gets to work at once, but no matter what preparations she makes, it seems that her next door neighbor, Noah, is one step ahead of her. On top of that, Mrs. Melvino keeps making the requirements more and more strict, until it seems like Abby will never have her chance to babysit Max!
Class pets are a popular topic in books for beginning readers. The Willimena Rules!, Robin Hill School, Horrible Harry, Ready Freddy, and Katie Kazoo Switcheroo series all have titles involving class pets, as do stand-alone books like The Best Seat in Second Grade, 8 Class Pets + 1 Squirrel / 1 Dog = Chaos. Duck for a Day, originally published in Australia in 2010, shares some common characteristics with these other books, but ultimately takes the class pet concept in a new direction.
Though I wondered at times whether Mrs. Melvino's strict rules about caring for Max were too harsh, I thought she was a colorful and interesting character. I also enjoyed the way Abby and Noah's rivalry slowly evolves into friendship, caused by their mutual interest in the duck. Max's duck behavior also adds a lot of charm and humor to this sweet school story.
Duck for a Day will be published in the U.S. on February 28, 2012.
I received a digital ARC of Duck for a Day from Candlewick Press via NetGalley.
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