Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey

1.  BIBLIOGRAPHY

McCloskey, Robert. 1941.  MAKE WAY FOR DUCKLINGS.  Ill. by Robert McCloskey.  New York, NY: Viking Press.  059033494

2. PLOT SUMMARY

Mr. and Mrs. Mallard are looking for an ideal and safe location to raise their ducklings.  They scout several places in Boston, Massachusetts, like Public Garden, Beacon Hill, and Louisburg Square, but finally decide on an island near the Charles River because of its tranquility and human hospitality.  As they wait for the ducklings to hatch, they make friends with a police officer named Michael, who feeds them peanuts every day.  After the babies arrival, Mr. Mallard decides to explore the city more and Mrs. Mallard readily agrees to raise them on her own for a week.  As Mrs. Mallard and her eight ducklings make their way to meet Mr. Mallard on an island near the Public Garden, they run into some difficulty in trying to cross the highway safely.  Luckily, their policeman friend, Michael, ushers them safely across and even calls police headquarters so that other officers will help them in the Mallards journey. After thanking the police officers, Mrs. Mallard and her eight ducklings meet with Mr. Mallard and make the new island their home.

3.  CRITICAL ANALYSIS

This heart-warming story is told using a combination of simple sentences with longer, worded sentences, all used to drive the momentum of the story forward.  By using this alternation in sentence structure, McCloskey keeps his readers engaged as they turn the pages to find out what happens next in the Mallard's family journey.  For example, short simple sentences are used when describing the ducklings upbringing, and readers must turn the page to see how the ducklings are learning and growing.  McCloskey also effectively uses hard page breaks with punctuation to keep his readers attention.  This is evident with a page ending with the word "But-", and when readers turn the page, they see a little boy racing through the streets on his bicycle, nearly hitting Mr. Mallard.  In another example, the comma is used to break a sentence onto two pages, with one page ending with "The policemen held back the traffic so Mrs. Mallard and the ducklings could march across the street," and continuing onto the next with "right into the Public Garden."

The brown colored, charcoal drawings portray realistic details in the ducks' body structure and movement, and also capture the many settings of Boston where the story occurs.  McCloskey brings Boston to life in his drawings with they city's brownstone buildings, Victorian row homes, and stone arched bridges.  From the illustrations, readers are able to determine that the story occurs in the past, perhaps during the nineteen forties, based on the car models shown in the streets as well as the clothing attire worn by the town citizens and police officers.  The brown charcoal drawings are also used to show the characters' expressions, such as Mrs. Mallard's proud, up-turned face, as she defiantly marches across the crowded street, Michael's concerned and scared look as he hurriedly dials headquarters for help, and the surprised and astonished faces of the town's citizens as they look on the Mallard family.  Readers sense the urgency and real danger the Mallard family is in as they try to cross the busy street when McCloskey uses bold, capital letters to spell out " HONK!" and "QUACK!" in the illustrations.

Although the story does use traditional stereotype roles for the male and female of the family (with the father leaving  to work and the mother left with to raise the children), Mrs. Mallard is anything but passive and meek.  She is portrayed as strong and independent, demanding the best for her children, and stopping at nothing to ensure the safety and security of her family.  This touching story captures the love and caring parents have in raising their children.  Young children can relate to it because they see the lengths their parents will go to, to keep them safe from harm.  It also relates to children the importance of helping others, like Michael and his fellow police officers did to ensure the Mallard's safety.

4.  REVIEW EXCERTS

1942 Caldecott Award Book

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL:  "McCloskey's attention to detail and marvelous storytelling are a magical combination."

PENGUIN GROUP: "Starting and ending with adorable ducklings, this 60-year old story is still as charming today as it was when Viking first published it in 1941. A true classic, Make Way for Ducklings is sure to win yet another generation of fans!"

5.  Connections

*Discuss with young students the importance of safety when crossing the streets.  What should they do first?  Where or who can they go to if they need help?

*Have students strengthen their map skills by printing out a copy of the Boston city streets and have them pinpoint the Mallard family's journey. Then print out a copy of your city's streets and have the students map out a safe journey the Mallard family may take within the city limits.

* Have students study the characteristics of Mallard ducks using the National Geographic website  http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birds/mallard-duck.html