Jonathan Emmett
Rebecca Harry
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For Isabelle — J.E.
In loving memory of my wonderful mum, Tanya xxx — R.H.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the publisher. For information regarding permission, write to Scholastic Inc., Attention: Permissions Department, 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.
ISBN-13: 978-0-439-86278-3 ISBN-10: 0-439-86278-7 Text copyright © 2004 by Jonathan Emmett. Illustrations copyright © 2004 by Rebecca Harry. All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Inc., by arrangement with Macmillan Children’s Books, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited, London. SCHOLASTIC and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc.
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First Bookshelf edition, February 2007
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Written by Jonathan Emmett
Illustrated by Rebecca Harry
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O nce upon a time upon a nest beside a lake,
there lived two ducks —
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a mother duck and a father duck.
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There were five eggs in the nest. Mother Duck sat upon the nest,
all day...
and all night...
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through howling wind...
and driving rain, looking after the eggs — ALL five of them.
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One
Then, one bright morning, the eggs began to hatch.
two
three
little beaks poked out into the sunlight.
four
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One
three
two
four
little ducklings shook their feathers in the breeze.
“We’ll call them Rufus, Rory, Rosie, and
Rebecca,” said Father Duck. And Mother Duck agreed.
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But the fifth egg did nothing.
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“Will it ever hatch?” said Father Duck.
“It will,” said Mother Duck, “in its own time.”
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And — sure enough — it did.
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“She’s very small,” said Father Duck. “What shall we call her?”
“We’ll call her Ruby,” said Mother Duck, “because she’s small and precious.”
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Rufus, Rory, Rosie, and Rebecca ate whatever they were given.
They ate anything and everything.
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But Ruby ate nothing.
“Will she ever eat?” said Father Duck.
“She will,” said Mother Duck, “in her own time.”
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And — sure enough — she did.
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Rufus, Rory, Rosie, and Rebecca swam off whenever they were able.
They swam anywhere and everywhere. But Ruby swam nowhere.
“Will she ever swim?” said Father Duck. “She will,” said Mother Duck, “in her own time.”
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And — sure enough — she did.
Rufus, Rory, Rosie, and Rebecca grew bigger.
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And Ruby grew bigger too. Her feathers grew out, and her wings grew broad and beautiful.
And when Rufus, Rory, Rosie, and Rebecca began to fly...
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...Ruby flew too!
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Rufus, Rory, Rosie, and Rebecca flew far and wide. They flew out across the water. They flew up among the trees.
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But Ruby flew farther and wider. She flew out beyond the water.
She flew up above the trees. She flew anywhere and everywhere .
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She stretched out her beautiful wings...
and soared high among the clouds.
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Mother Duck and Father Duck watched Ruby flying off into the distance.
“Will she ever come back?” said Mother Duck. “She will,” said Father Duck, “in her own time.”
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she did. And — sure enough —
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being yourself
Let the Scholastic Bookshelf be your guide through the whole range of your child’s experiences — laugh with them, learn with them, read with them! Helping you build your child’s reading future SCHOLASTIC BOOKSHELF Ruby is the smallest of five ducklings. She is the last of her brothers and sisters to do everything: the last egg to hatch, the last to dig into her meal of worms, and the last to learn to swim. While Father Duck worries that Ruby will never catch up to the others, Mother Duck knows that Ruby will flourish . . . in her own time. A late bloomer learns to fly.
Look for these other Bookshelf titles, available now!
being yourself
friendship
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$5.99 US / $7.50 CAN
ISBN-13: 978-0-439-86278-3 ISBN-10: 0-439-86278-7
50599
9 780439 862783
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