Doreen Cronin

When Duck gets tired of working for Farmer Brown, his political ambition eventually leads to his being elected President.

Duck for President

Sarah Sammis

I've had a number of people recommend Duck for President by Doreen Cronin to me especially after my review of Click Clack Moo. The latest person to recommend it was my son. I take recommendations from family very seriously. Now having laughed myself silly, here is the review.

Duck for President follows the political career of Farmer Brown's duck, Duck. Farmer Brown perhaps having learned something from his experiences in Click, Clack Moo now divides up the chores among the animals. If they want perks, they have to earn them. Duck's job is to "take out the trash; mow the lawn; grind the coffee beans." (p. 5). He finishes every day "covered in tiny bits of grass and espresso beans." (p. 7). He decides the best way out of this daily ritual is to take over the farm (through a democratic election, of course).

When I went into reading Duck for President, I wasn't expecting the book to go all the way to the Whitehouse. Of course, the cover art should have been a clue. The copy I have shows both mascots of the two major political parties. To be honest though, I didn't really look at the cover. I was so excited to read the book that I just jumped in.

What follows is a hilarious series of events as Duck's political career takes off. He doesn't stop with the farm. No. He goes on to be governor and even the President of the United States (but does he blog about it?) .

As the book came out in 2004, it's a clear and very funny parody of the dog and pony show that was Bush's second election. Having now survived eight horrible years of so called leadership it's nice to be reading this parody with optimism as we try to dig out of his legacy.