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Blue and black? Or white and gold? Remember when that darn dress went viral a while back? That's the first thing I thought of when we read this fantastic little book, Duck! Rabbit! by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld. Gosh, that dress killed me. I couldn't for the life of me figure out how people saw white and gold- because it was blue and black, no questions asked. Just like this book. I mean, it's definitely a rabbit...right?
The premise of this story is simple. Two narrators (who are off the page and therefore unseen) are debating the nature of the animal at the heart of this book. One is certain it's a rabbit, but the other knows, unquestionably, that it is in fact a duck. One sees rabbit ears, the other sees a bill. One sees the animal eating bread, the other sees it eating a carrot. Who is right? Is there a right?
I've always loved optical illusions, and this book was definitely Pickle's introduction to these mind-benders. And what a winner it is! Duck! Rabbit! made us laugh out loud from start to finish, and it is such an excellent starting point to so many types of discussions. This book can undoubtedly be used to help kids understand that people can stare right at the same thing but have two totally different perspectives, which is undoubtedly a challenging concept for little ones to comprehend. But this book tackles that idea with such humor, making this whole notion a little less mind-boggling. It is also fabulous for teaching children that some arguments simply don't have a true resolution, as sometimes there is more than one "right" answer. What then?! You have to learn to recognize when it's time to back down and respectfully disagree with your opponent. And that's ok. Fantastic book- definitely gets two trunks up from our team!
Want the book? Get it here! Duck! Rabbit!, by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld.
Interested in another great picture book on the concept of perspective? Click here for our review of Fiona Robertson's A Tale of Two Beasts.