THE UGLIFIED DUCKY

Maynard Moose relates the tale of the Uglified Ducky, a moose who lost his way and found a home with a “fambly” of ducks. But the Uglified Ducky cannot waddle, fails miserably at quacking and sinks when he attempts to swim. The final straw is the flying lesson. Discouraged and sore, the Uglified Ducky strikes out on his own and finally meets some moose who set him straight. The moral of the tale? Readers are told that if they don’t feel that they fit in, “that does not mean you are uglified….It just means you have not found out what you really are yet. So demember [sic], everybody is a beautiful something or other. Especially you.” Claflin’s tale is punctuated throughout by glossary-defined moose words and malapropisms, making it a tale just begging to be read aloud—though one Andersen would likely not recognize, either. Stimson’s droll gouache illustrations perfectly match the tongue-in-cheek text, with characters that are just brimming with personality. This is one not to be missed. (audio CD) (Picture book. 3-10)