From Publishers Weekly Marcella is a different sort of duck. More than anything else， she likes to paint. At first her friends don't understand， but they accept her difference and through her eyes learn all about the phases of the moon as she paints it night after night. Clearly the greatest care went into creating this first book by Coats. It is beautifully designed， well-written and says much to children about friendship， creativity and， of course， the moon. Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information， Inc. From School Library Journal PreSchool-Grade 1 The ink and watercolor illustrations come close to redeeming the thin plot in Coats' first picture book. Marcella is an unusual duck; she spends her time painting the moon. Her first picture shows a full moon. Each evening she paints the moon， which goes through its cycle from full to a thin silver crescent and finally disappears. She continues to paint the moon until it becomes full and round once more. Toward the end of the story， simply because she decides that she has painted enough， Marcella joins the other ducks for a swim， and she becomes friends with them. While the story line is inane， the richly colored illustrations speak volumes. They are brilliantly rendered in dark， nighttime hues and promise a tale much more interesting than the text presents. Those interested in a picture book which shows the phases of the moon will be better served by Frank Asch's Mooncake (Prentice-Hall， 1983). Sharron McElmeel， Cedar Rapids Community Schools， IowaCopyright 1986 Reed Business Information， Inc. See all Editorial Reviews