Dipping her toes into the pool, Baby Duck longs to make the swim team, but she needs some encouragement before she is ready to jump in. Even watching as her father swims his long strokes across the pool and listening to her mother as she offers words of encouragement, Baby cannot bring herself to hop into the water. Baby Duck’s song sums up her fears. “But I’m a slowly swimmer. My arms get tired . . . What if I swallow water?” Luckily, Grampa arrives to offer some company and some observations on Baby Duck’s possibilities. Taking his time, he reasons that even the best swimmers get tired and sometimes even swallow a bit of water. The kind words of experience give Baby Duck the confidence to curl her toes over the side of the pool and hop in to join the rest of the team as they swim laps. Now she has a new song: “Swim, swim, swim. I like and love my Grampa.” Pencil-and-watercolor illustrations on oversized pages are as droll as the text, depicting ducks clad in bathing suits, swim caps, and goggles as they bounce and splash through the water. Young readers will recognize Baby Duck’s fears and be inspired by her bravery to take the plunge with her in her latest outing. (Picture book. 3-6)
