The Itsy Bitsy Duckling

December 5, 2016
Burton and Rescek welcome the spring in this spin on “The Itsy Bitsy Spider,” which follows The Itsy Bitsy Reindeer and other collaborations. Rescek’s cozy-cute artwork highlights numerous animal families in addition to the featured duckling: frogs and colorful bugs take shelter from a storm (“Down came the rain/ and chased the snow away”), purple birds sing from a tree branch, and bears in nightcaps and pajamas stretch in their burrow after a winter of hibernation. Burton’s rhymes hit the occasional off note, but children should find it easy to get swept up in the atmosphere of energy and exploration. Ages 2–4. Illustrator’s agency: Bright Agency.

July 1, 2017
Yet another remake of the classic fingerplay. Burton and Rescek need to find a new song to parody or, better yet, come up with something original. As in earlier remakes--The Itsy Bitsy Pilgrim, The Istsy Bitsy Bunny, The Itsy Bitsy Reindeer (all 2016), and The Itsy Bitsy Snowman (2015)--the words are meant to be sung to the tune of the favorite nursery rhyme. In this outing, the rhymes work, but the meter is clunky. Rescek's characters are cheery enough as they celebrate the transition from winter to spring. The question is why ducklings should replace spiders. "Down came the rain and chased the snow away" is simply not as satisfying as "washed the spider out." The elements of danger, pluck, and mastery inherent in the original song are missing, as are the actions. A scene of anthropomorphic animals of different species sharing a den confuses rather than enlightens. There is no clear change from winter to spring; the color palette throughout is bright and springlike, and the duckling is about as realistic as an Easter Peep. Sturdy board pages may stand up to lots of handling, but young children are unlikely to ask for it more than once. Toddlers are better served by a chorus of the original, accompanied by the finger motions. (Board book. 1-3)

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