Phyllis Root says she wanted ONE DUCK STUCK to be "a north woods wetlands counting book, accurate to the marshes of Minnesota. All the animals are actually found there. I love to go canoeing and camping, and this book is a composite of my experiences." Jane Chapman does all her painting in her kitchen, looking out onto the garden. "The color blue in ONE DUCK STUCK is the exact same blue that's in my kitchen," she says. Although she has a pet tortoise named Muggs, who at age 70 is a family heirloom, one day she would like to have a duck as well.