Shari Swanson

Mar 15, 2023 | kirkusreviews.com | Shari Swanson |Jonah Winter |Kate Messner

War-worried Midwesterners rally round an imperiled fowl family. By choosing to nest in an exceptionally risky public spot—far above the dirty Milwaukee River—darling Gertie offers a perfect distraction to humans in the last anxious days of World War II. Protective heroes—bridge tenders who rescue the mallard and her six cute ducklings in bad weather—ensure a happy ending: After a brief period on display in a department-store window, Gertie and her family are released into a nearby park.