Review of "Giggle, Giggle, Quack"

Bibliography:
Cronin, Doreen. 2002. Giggle, Giggle, Quack. Ill. By Betsy Lewin. New York: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers. ISBN: 978-0-689-84506-2

Critical Analysis:
Shades of Alvin and the Chipmunks are apparent in this tale of a mischievous duck and his barnyard followers. When the farm’s owner, Farmer Brown goes on vacation, leaving his brother, Bob in charge with the directive to follow the instructions he’s written down, mayhem ensues. As Farmer Brown drives away, duck is seen eying a pencil lying in the road. The following pages show a gullible Bob feeding the animals pizza, washing the pigs in a bubble bath, and showing the animals the movie “The Sound of Moosic” in the living room. All instructions have of course been written by the playful duck, who’s last note reads, “It’s for you, Bob,” in response to an angry phone call from Farmer Brown. The book ends with a picture of an angry Farmer Brown stomping back down the dirt road, made all the more silly by his full tropical vacation attire.

Lewin’s colors are at medium saturation, lending a laid-back feel to layered pictures that may be overwhelming at a deeper saturation. The buoyant watercolors are outlined with thick, wavy, black lines and add a sense of playful breeziness to the text. The relaxed, cartoon-like pictures cover the pages entirely, giving the reader a close-up, comical view of the situation on the farm. Humorous animals respond to Bob’s actions with a “giggle giggle quack” or “giggle giggle moo,” etc. The predictable nature of the repetitive responses invites participation.

Booklist Review: “As in Stephen Gammell's Once Upon MacDonald's Farm (2000), the mischief and the mayhem will appeal to little ones who chafe at being domesticated.”

Cooperative Children’s Book Center Choices Review: “The expressions on the animals' faces as Duck successfully pulls the wool over Bob's eyes - a hen smothers a giggle beneath her wing, while two cows share a smirk of delight -- invite children to share the joke in this amusing tale of good-natured trickery.”


Kirkus Review: “The many fans of Click, Clack, Moo (both adults and children) will want to read about the cows and their duck friend to see what happens next, but like most sequels, the second story stands not on top, but in the shadow of the innovative original.”

Connections:
A wonderful activity that focuses on teaching the vocabulary words: prefer, influence, snicker, and sensitive can be found on the freereading.net site.
And another book that contains feisty, naughty protagonists and is written by Doreen Cronin and illustrated by Betsy Lewin is Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type.