The Tale of the Mandarin Duck

December 1, 2020
In 2018, New Yorkers had an all-too-brief but oh-so-passionate love affair with a rara avis (literally). In the fall of 2018, a mandarin duck was spotted in New York City's Central Park. Native to East Asia, the duck was an ornithological surprise that immediately captivated urban dwellers. People flocked to the park to take photos on their cellphones. In this retelling of the incident, a girl of color stands up on a rock and proclaims that she will gaze upon the beautiful bird directly "with [her] own two eyes." Her words catch on, and soon everyone follows suit. Some months later the bird disappears, but lingering on is an appreciation of beauty all around that can be viewed directly, not through a device. Midler has crafted a loving ode to the people of New York, to the errant bird, and to the art of direct communication, something at which the star of stage and screen excels. Stunning full-page color photographs present the duck in all its magnificently colored feathered panoply. Grayscale sketches that fill many pages present a dizzying array of city folk in all their robust diversity. Adults and children wistfully remembering a socially close NYC will appreciate this moment from a past time. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at 42.5% of actual size.) A celebration of beauty--in a city, in its people, and in an extraordinary avian visitor. (photographer's note) (Picture book. 4-10)

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Starred review from December 14, 2020
Inspired by the mysterious 2018 appearance of an exquisite Mandarin duck in Manhattan’s Central Park, this story is rooted in reality yet slyly surreal. As the fable opens, New Yorkers, “world famous for their liveliness... looked each other in the eye, and pretty much liked what they saw.” But a pall descends with the advent of cell phones, as people become mesmerized by the small screens in their hands and lose their connectedness to one another as well as to the world around them. Enter the Mandarin duck, “something so rare that he had to be seen with your own two eyes, and remembered with your heart.” When a perspicacious girl puts away her phone to revel in the duck’s splendor, others do likewise, and discover “that all around them are rare and beautiful birds, with and without feathers.” There is a crackling creative synergy among the book’s collaborators, each of whom contributes bountifully to the storytelling: actor Midler with a chipper yet resonant text, critic Kakutani with crisp photos capturing the rainbow-hued duck against brilliant fall foliage, and artist Avillez with whimsical black-and-white line art that engagingly depicts city folk in various pursuits. Ages 3–7. Author’s agent: Jonathan Ehrlich, Grubman, Shire, Meiselas & Sacks. Illustrators’ agents: (for Kakutani) Kim Schefler, Levine Plotkin & Menin; (for Avillez) Kate Mack, Aevitas Creative Management.

December 1, 2020

Gr 3-5-Not to be confused with Katharine Paterson's multiple award-winning The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks, illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon, this self-conscious "modern fable" swaddles an actual bird's 2018 visit to New York City in thick layers of wishful thinking. Once, Midler writes, New Yorkers were lively folk who "looked each other in the eye, and pretty much liked what they saw." Then the advent of smartphones put an end to all the personal interaction-until, that is, the public furor created by an exotic duck's brief stay in Central Park taught people to use their eyes again to see "that all around them are rare and beautiful birds, with and without feathers." The illustrations, in which Kakutani's sharp color photos of the gorgeously hued duck and aerial duck's-eye views of Manhattan alternate with Avillez's monochrome ink and wash galleries of busy, diverse humans adorned in similarly stylish garb, will be more of a draw to younger readers than the affected story or the celebrity names on the cover. Regardless, the photographer's afterword, which is archly entitled "Why a Duck?" and includes a reference to a scene in The Sopranos, points directly to adults as the intended audience. VERDICT An additional purchase, at best; the authorial dedication says it all: "For the birds."-John Peters, Children's Literature Consultant, New York

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