The Pool Is Cool

A beginning swimmer persuades their father to take swim lessons, too, in this encouraging picture book from Reed and Knight-Justice. Interspersed with action-oriented first-person narration describing swimming class (“Lifeguards and coaches keep everyone safe”), water-related onomatopoeia provides a sonorous refrain (“Bloop. Dribble. Drip. Drizzle”). When the brown-skinned protagonist’s dad fails to join in the fun at a pool party, the parent’s avoidance turns out to be due to fear of the water. “Maybe I can help, even though I’m just in preschool,” exclaims the youth, and before long Dad is pictured looking comfortable in the pool. Alongside direct text, unlined digital mixed-media artwork foregrounds blues and yellows. This assuring work emphasizes the growth that can happen at any age. Background characters are portrayed with various skin tones. Ages 4–6. (June)