Monkey and Duck Quack Up!

PreS-Gr 2—When Monkey spies a sign advertising a two-person rhyming contest, he is certain that he and his pal Duck can easily win the grand prize of a three-day cruise. "We can do this, we can rhyme!/We're young, we're hip, we're in our prime." Unfortunately, Monkey's desire to find rhyming words jointly is squelched by Duck's inability to respond with anything but "Quack!" Monkey offers up "Beat, Sheet, Meet, Greet…Wash your feet…Trick or treat." "Quack" is Duck's only response. When a frustrated Monkey is about to give up, then inspiration strikes. They enter the contest, and Monkey recites words that rhyme with quack: "Rack, Sack, Plaque, Track!" and so on. After winning the contest, they have a great time on their cruise. True to their personality differences, Duck relaxes and Monkey tries every activity offered. The pleasing, digitally rendered illustrations are presented in bold yellow and orange, on backgrounds of green, blue, and purple. The text rhymes, of course, although at times it is a bit forced and singsong. The surprise ending lifts this tale a bit, but the book will serve best as an additional purchase.—Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA