Afflicted with three bossy big sisters, Shelly stays inside his shell—literally so in Francis’s lighthearted illustrations, which feature a family of ducklings in human dress and surroundings—until they give up badgering him to do the sorts of things that they like to do. Having failed to get him to dance, paint or play outside, Adelaide, Miranda and Tallulah declare that he’s just not ready, and skip off—whereupon Shelly climbs out of his eggshell for a game of Go Fish with his plush bunny, and other quiet pursuits. Closer in spirit and theme to Eve Merriam’s Unhurry Harry (1978), illustrated by Gail Owens, than to Robert Kraus’s Leo the Late Bloomer (1971), illustrated by Jose Aruego, this should strike a chord with all young children afflicted with pushy brothers and sisters—and might make salutary reading for the siblings, too. (Picture book. 5-7)
