Ping is a Peking duckling on a houseboat on the Yangtze River. Peking ducks actually do live on houseboats as is shown in the pictures and the master does call them and administer the tap of the switch to the last one up the gangplank at night, so this story might be true.

Marjorie Flack first became interested in Peking ducks when she was working on "Angus and the Ducks" which has become such a nursery favorite. The ducks were so smart that she wanted to know more about them. She found that they originally came from China and there were many amusing facts on which to base a story. So she wrote the story.

But she has never been to China and Kurt Wiese has lived there so she asked him to make the pictures.

From the dust jacket