I feel that this is a familiar story of wolf and duck soup, but Pizzoli puts a unique spin on the tale. Susan the duck has the worst luck. Her roller skates are too big. She’s lost her favorite marble. There is a hornets’ nest outside her window. And she’s run out of pickles. With each unfortunate discovery, Wolf shows up with a gift she’s won – a soup pot, onions, carrots, etc. When wolf shows up for his Duck Soup, Susan thinks her luck has run out, but the wolf slips on the marble, falls headfirst into the pickle jar, sticks his foot in the roller skate, and smacks into the hornets’ nest, never to be seen again. The illustrations, done in a graphic, flat-color style with simple linework, are typical of Pizzoli’s other award winning books. Sharp-eyed readers may notice a tiny bug with its own story throughout the book. A fun read aloud for storytime for 3-5 year olds who will likely figure out what is going on before the characters do.

Reviewed by Barb Rehmeyer, Liberty Library