The Uglified Ducky

Posted by Elizabeth Yetter Jul 26, 2008

Feeling like you don’t belong is a common theme in many children’s stories, but it’s never been more adeptly written about than in The Uglified Ducky by Willy Claflin (August House, ISBN 0-87483-858-4).

The story begins with a young moose that’s wandered off from his little moose nest. He finds a snug place to rest by a pond, right next to a duck nest, and, upon waking, discovers that he is now a duck.

The mother duck is not pleased with having an “uglified ducky” in her brood but settles to teaching the moose and her offspring how to be all ducky.

First, mother duck teaches moose and his five new siblings how to waddle, but all moose can do is stumble and trip. Things get worse when mother duck attempts to teach him how to quack and swim.

Both the mother duck and the young moose are fed up. Mother duck can’t figure out why the uglified duckling can’t do ducky things and the moose feels as though he doesn’t belong to this family.

The Uglified Ducky is an adorable story that will be loved by children as well as adults. The story is told in “Moose Speech” (a glossary is at the front of the book) which adds to the charm of the tale.

The is a great book for reading out loud to groups and for discussion.