Sitting Duck Book

When Brody's niece Anabel comes for a visit, Max and the gang's only job is to keep her out of trouble. How hard could it be to babysit a puppy anyway? To Max's surprise, this fun-loving pup can't help getting into trouble—especially when set loose in the backyard. Turns out being a "sitting duck" is a lot harder than Max expected!

In this hilarious Max the Duck book, children will delight in the silly mayhem that results when Max tries to be a good babysitter.

Children's Literature

Max, the duck hero and his anthropomorphic friends, from previous amusing adventures, are looking forward to baby-sitting with Brody's oversize puppy niece, Anabel, with mixed feelings. The irrepressible Anabel cannot wait to play. And play they do, from dress-up and chef, to a wild game of ball, until Brody yells, "ENOUGH!" He sits down with her for a story and nap, but he is the one who falls asleep. Anabel asks Max to go outdoors with her. "...how much trouble could a puppy get into, anyway?" Max wonders. And away they go, swinging, then bouncing until Anabel bounces up into a tree. The whole crew attempts a rescue, with hilarious results. When Irene picks her up, they assure her that Anabel was "no problem," but the chaos inside and the exhausted Anabel tell a different story. The front end pages introduce the cast of characters as snapshots, while the back shots record some of the episodic chaos Anabel has caused. The exaggerated cartoon-y actions are visualized to generate laughter as Max, camera in hand, records them all. Reviewer: Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz