Webster J. Duck

A search for love and reassurance—from master storyteller Martin Waddell.

When little Webster J. Duck cracks open his egg, he’s all alone. "Where’s my mother?" Webster wonders, and sets off to find her. Though he meets some waggly, woolly, very friendly animals along the way, his mother is nowhere to be seen. It looks as if Webster is all alone-until his new friends lend a helping hand. With delightful illustrations by David Parkins, master storyteller Martin Waddell celebrates the wonderful feeling of being found by someone you love.

Webster J. Duck turns to several animals when he tries to find his mother.

A search for love and reassurance—from master storyteller Martin Waddell.

When little Webster J. Duck cracks open his egg, he's all alone. "Where's my mother?" Webster thinks, and sets off to find her. Though he meets some waggly, woolly, very friendly animals along the way, his mother is nowhere to be seen. It looks like Webster is all alone—until his new friends lend a helping hand. With delightful illustrations by David Parkins, WEBSTER J. DUCK celebrates the wonderful feeling of being found by someone you love.

Children's Literature

Whether it be in a park or the friendly neighborhood supermarket, it can be a terrifying experience for a child to lose sight of her mother. Webster J. Duck's experience is even worse—his mother is nowhere to be seen when he first cracks open his egg and enters the world. The courageous duckling sets off to find his mother. He meets a wooly duck that says "baa," a waggly-tailed duck that says "bow-wow," and a big-eared duck that says "moo." Nowhere, however, can he find a duck that says "quack." In the way of all good picture books, Webster's mother does return. The delight on both Webster's face and his mother's is palpable. The gentle watercolors are as comforting as the text. They are very focused with few extraneous details, appropriate for the very young reader, as is the simple word repetition. Read before playtime or naptime, this book assures the child that she can depend on her mother's presence. 2001, Candlewick Press, $13.99. Ages 18 mo. to 4. Reviewer:Stephanie Farrow

Martin Waddell is the author of many well-loved books for children, including A KITTEN CALLED MOONLIGHT; CAN'T YOU SLEEP, LITTLE BEAR? (one of four tales about Big Bear and Little Bear); FARMER DUCK; OWL BABIES; and WHO DO YOU LOVE? He says, "WEBSTER J. DUCK is a sunny story, born of long holiday with my children by a lake on the river Shannon in Ireland. We saw a nest in the reeds and a watchful cow in the mud by the lakeside. In that moment, Webster's story was born."

David Parkins is also the illustrator of AUNT NANCY AND OLD MAN TROUBLE and AUNT NANCY AND COUSIN LAZY-BONES by Phyllis Root, as well as Dick King-Smith's chapter books SOPHIE'S TOM, SOPHIE HITS SIX, SOPHIE IN THE SADDLE, SOPHIE IS SEVEN, and SOPHIE'S LUCKY.