Marlo

Marlo, a putty-colored dog with a squarish snout, has been digging in the dirt, and everybody knows what happens to muddy dogs: “A bath! Marlo really didn’t like baths.” Working in a clear-line style, debut author-illustrator Browne shows Marlo peering from the bathtub with a stricken look, clutching a rubber duck. In an instant the two are carried off into the surf, and Marlo, now in deep-sea gear, dives through a school of yellow fish. The riches Marlo discovers unfold in spread after wordless spread: fish resembling swimming toothbrushes, huge jellyfish, hermit crabs that live in boots or Santa hats. But there’s danger, too, as Marlo comes face-to-face with a massive, tanklike fish (fortunately, his diving gear is equipped with jet propulsion). Though Browne is more interested in visual comedy than biological observation, he captures the magic of undersea movement—the way schools of fish divide and re-form, the way even enormous fish appear to hang weightlessly in the water, and the profusion and color of aquatic life. It’s a lovely, quirky diversion. Ages 4–8. [em]Agent: Elena Giovinazzo, Pippin Properties. (Mar.) [/em]