Ducks Overboard!: A True Story of Plastic in Our Oceans by Markus Motum
Published by Candlewick Press on September 28, 2021
ISBN: 1536217727
Pages: 32
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Ducks Overboard!

 

In 1992 a container ship filled with plastic bath toys was buffeted by waves and lost at sea.  This added to what was already a horrific problem of plastic waste.  In Markus Motum’s picture book a little lost yellow duck describes what he sees:  sea turtles stuck in fishing nets, a route that goes to Japan, Hawaii, South America, and the United States, and the Great Pacific Garbage Patch which is approximately twice the size of Texas!  But, in the end there is hope with beach cleanup days and petitions to sign.  This book sheds a light on the problem of single-use plastic waste and how this problem must be attacked.  The illustrations are excellent.  What did concern me was that while many of the words are regular picture book size there are other informational words which are tiny and not very easy to read.  It is a book with a strong message.

 

Ellen Spring, Oceanside High School, Rockland