3 Watery Wonders

Elizabeth, Queen of the Seas, written by Lynne Cox, illustrated by Brian Floca.  Based on a true story, this delightful tale of perseverance and a truly unique elephant seal shines thanks to Cox's succinct storytelling and Floca's charming illustrations.  In Christchurch, New Zealand, the rather adorable Elizabeth (named after Queen Elizabeth) defies the habits of her fellow elephant seals, who love to hang out in the ocean and on the rocky coasts, by living in the shallow Avon River that flows through the heart of the city.  She also likes to sunbathe...on the two-lane road, causing panic among some of the townsfolk who fear that she will cause an accident or get hurt.  Three times people take her by boat far far away, but guess who comes swimming back?  Cox reveals that a young boy (and his sister) told her this story while she visited New Zealand, and this child Michael, who loves spotting Elizabeth, in the story.  Floca, the recent Caldecott winner (for Locomotive), captures Elizabeth's fun-loving, feisty personality with finesse.

 

Swim, Duck, Swim!, written by Susan Lurie, photographs by Murray Head.   A thoroughly engaging story of a little duckling who does not want to swim.  Head's cute and sometimes hilarious eye-catching photographs fill the page as Lurie introduces the little quacker hanging out with Mama and Papa by a pond.  Some pictures capture the baby duck with its beak open so it looks like it's saying the lines from Lurie's first person narration, such as "I do not want to learn how to swim."   Another photograph shows the feathered little one hiding under one of its parents ("I curl up tight and hide").   This may sound cloying or saccharine, but it's all actually quite clever, and there's a real satisfaction watching the duckling finally jump in with a huge SPLASH!, joining its friends in some watery play.  The group I read it to absolutely loved this little gem.

 



Three Bears in a Boat, written and illustrated by David Soman.  "Their voyage was not without incident," deadpans the narrator of this exquisitely rendered adventure from the co-creator of Ladybug Girl.  Isn't that the truth?  After a trio of mischievous bears break their mother's prized blue seashell, the panic-stricken group takes to the seas to find a replacement.  Their quest becomes increasingly more eventful as the search for an island in the shape of a lumpy hat.  Soman's illustrations offer a wide variety of inventive perspectives, taking us above the sailboat and under the waves.  One stunning spread shows the boat receiving some assistance from a herd of whales.  The bears argue and point fingers and then a raging storm adds some peril.  It all ends happily but the final line is also refreshingly startling.