Lulu and the Duck in the Park (review)

"Animals mattered more to Lulu than anything else in the world." While Lulu's family has indulged her on this matter, she's been unsuccessful at convincing her Class Three teacher, Mrs. Holiday, how wonderful it would be to have more animals than just a class guinea pig. When two rowdy dogs destroy several ducks' nests on a class outing to the park, Lulu secretly salvages an egg, which she tenderly stuffs under her sweater to keep safe until she can get it home after school. When the egg starts to hatch during the school day, however, Lulu and her best friend, Mellie, have to find a way to hide the baby duckling. British author McKay, best known for the Casson family chronicles (Saffy's Angel, BCCB 5/02, etc.), brings her lilting domestic style to early chapter books in this first title in a new series. Many kids will sympathize with animal-loving Lulu, and McKay's easygoing, perceptive humor adds liveliness to the account. The events are exactly those that loom large in a primary-grader's life: in addition to the inarguably exciting hatching of a duck egg under Lulu's sweater, there's also the teacher's threat to trade the class guinea pig for another classroom's stick insect, and the uncontrolled rambunctiousness of two loud dogs (who are wonderfully and plausibly cowed by the experienced teacher's stern command). Monochromatic watercolor illustrations show Mrs. Holiday's class as a scruffy, amiable, multicultural group, with dark-skinned Lulu a cute and visibly determined heroine. A lighthearted yet eventful outing, this will entice as a chaptery readaloud as well as a readalone.