Rubert the Jumping Duck by Jessica Bernard, illustrated by Denis Proulx Ages 4-8 48 pages Outskirts Press February 2008 Paperback     Funny little Rubert, a duck who loves to jump, jumps throughout all his preparations for school, and his jump muscles get stronger and stronger. He jumps to visit his best friends, Maggie the dog and Rickie the raccoon, and then he jumps so high that he lands on a big fluffy cloud. But when he jumps off the cloud, he accidentally lands on the group of neighbors below that are watching him. Thankfully, everyone laughs at Rubert’s antics, and he jumps all the way to school. Rubert the Jumping Duck was written by a seven-year-old girl, Jessica Bernard. Colorado-based Outskirts Press plans to release a second book by Bernard, Rubert the Jumping Duck Goes on Vacation. The entertaining llustrations created by Denix Proulx have a coloring-book style to them. The large print and images are perfect to hold up for group reading situations. The first page offers information about the book, followed by a place for the child who owns the book to sign their name and personalize it, making it a treasure for them. North American environmentalists may be appeased by the fact that the book was published in the U.S., which consumes less fuel spent in transport.     web reviews   Lillian Brummet/2008 for curled up with a good kid's book   For grown-up fiction, nonfiction and speculative fiction book reviews, visit our sister site Curled Up With a Good Book (www.curledup.com)