NOBODY'S DUCK

Can a duck who belongs to nobody find a somebody?

An engaging duck paints its toenails while sitting on a lawn and ends up sleeping there too, complete with striped bedcap and stuffed bunny. A suspicious alligator homeowner who has been observing the stranger comes out in the morning and demands to know: “Whose duck are you?” After some thinking, the white waterfowl finally comes up with the unacceptable answer: “I’m nobody’s duck!” The unusual pair sets out on a series of adventures that eventually bring them closer together than their chilly introduction would suggest. The alligator is determined to find out where the duck belongs, inquiring of the library and the giraffe librarian, the movie theater with its porcine cashier, and so on. The animals deny any relationship to the duck, but the alligator finally realizes the exciting changes in a previously lonely, boring life and embraces this new relationship. The minimal text appears in accessible speech balloons that instantly allow “reading” and retelling. The details in the colorful digital illustrations are hilarious. The duck wants to borrow an extremely large stack of books at the library; both animals wear their 3-D glasses in the movies; and the alligator is scared silly in the go-kart.

The final joke may fall a little flat, but there is much to enjoy here as two different personalities (and species) form a new family.