Portal:Children's literature/Selected article/2

Make Way for Ducklings is a children's picture book written and illustrated by Robert McCloskey. First published in 1941, the book tells the story of a pair of mallard ducks who decide to raise their family on an island in the lagoon in the Boston Public Garden, a park in the center of Boston, Massachusetts. Make Way for Ducklings won the 1942 Caldecott Medal for McCloskey's illustrations, executed in charcoal then lithographed on zinc plates. Although the book was originally criticized for having a loose plot and poor characterization, it remains popular worldwide even sixty years after its first publication primarily for the enhancing illustrations and effective pacing. The book's popularity has led to the sale of over two million copies and the construction of a statue in the Public Garden of the mother duck and her eight ducklings.