"Okay! Here's all my money!
$$$
Elixir of Strength,
come to Papa!
POIT!
Bleah! It smells like
low tide."
Beaky Barnes is back in a second graphic novel that has much to do with libraries and librarians. Devious Duck arrives on a train that stops at the Simpleton town limits. Readers will know that his reading material is a tad suspicious; the book is called How to Fool People.
Immediately, he begs for bread. The baker is kind enough to share a slice; he is not impressed with Duck's messy eating habits. There are other things going on around town: the Inspector is eating oatmeal with too much molasses and complaining about it; Beaky is off to work at the library while leaving her chick in the capable hands of her roommate, the Inventor; Chickie is causing a great deal of trouble in the Great Idea Nest; and Duck is conning an old woman to get all the food she has that was meant to feed the birds.
Duck needs money to live. His book gives him an idea for making some. Filling some bottles with pond water and trying to sell it as an elixir, he cons the Inspector into giving up all of his money to buy it. Duck now has the money needed; the Inspector is building the strength it promises. Both soon require a sleep.
It is not the last of Duck's plans to dupe community members. As that is happening, much is going on around town. When Duck ends up at the library looking for more information to scam people, he has met his match. What follows says a lot about the talents and value of those who make libraries run smoothly. Devious Duck learns needed lessons through exceptional artwork that is trademark David Ezra Stein. Each of the elements in this tale of community support and kindness come together in an unconventional finale.
Be on the lookout for the next installment!
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