n the duck family, there are four siblings, one of whom always wants to be first—up until the moment when the impatient duck gets a shocking surprise! The underlying idea, of course, is that we don’t always stand to win everything by being first. Indeed, the illustrator dedicates the book to all the children who take their time and go slowly. Nevertheless, this is no message book and it makes its point by getting up to its own dark comedy and mischief in the most pleasing way.