Run, Ducky, Run By Lael Littke Deseret Book, 1996. Paperback: 166 pages. ISBN: 1-57345-134-7 Suggested retail price: $6.95 (US) Audience: Youn women 10-14 years of age
Reviewed by: Jana Zollinger, Vicki Zollinger

The following is a review by Jana (11yrs.) and Vicki (ever so much more than twenty) Zollinger.

We reviewed the paperback book "Run, Ducky, Run" by Lael Littke. Published by Deseret Book (1996), this 166 page book sells for $6.95 and is written mainly for young women 10-14 years of age.

I gave the book to Jana to read first and when I asked her what she thought of it she was very vague. She said she wanted to read it again before she could give me an answer. Fair enough. She hasn't read it YET! So it was my turn to give it a try and I will do my best to give my impressions. First let me preface this by telling you that I have never written a review for so many to see and I feel a great responsibility to be objective. I didn't realize that you do two different types of reading when one is for pleasure and one is for review. So let me begin.

The book is about a young girl nicknamed Ducky (to remind herself what an ugly duckling she had been before becoming a model). She is new in town and has been persuaded by Paula (with the bulldozer personality) to run for class president. She then finds out that another one of the Bee Theres has also decided to run for the same office. Ducky must either run against her friend or sabotage her own campaign so that she loses and her friend wins. I had some problem getting into this book and felt that maybe I should have read one or two of Littke's first six books from this series (The Bee Theres). I feel like I was left out of "the loop" somehow and struggled to catch up with the characters. Do her other books explain what a "Beehive" is or the title "Sister"? A non-member wouldn't know what she was talking about. So this book definitely caters to Mormon young women. Also I feel that the characters lacked a little in depth. Oh, they were cute enough but they just missed the mark somehow.

I also wish that Littke would have written more about the mysterious campaign poster that Ducky found "behind the little door in her closet". It would have added an element of intrigue that I would have really found interesting

On a scale of 1-10 I give this book a 6.