A Good Splash Dashed! The Whale in the Swimming Pool by Joyce Wan

"RACE YOU TO THE POOL!"

It's a warm, sunny morning, and and the kid can't wait to his the water. He tugs on his baggy red swimsuit and heads downstairs for a dunk.

"WHOA!!

Don't you just hate it when THAT happens? On top of his inflatable wading pool is... what looks like a giant spouting inflatable whale with a Zen-like smile affixed to his enormous face.

"MOOOM! THERE'S A WHALE IN MY SWIMMING POOL!"

"GREAT, HONEY! DON'T FORGET ABOUT SUNSCREEN!"

Mom's not going to be much help here. The boy decides to take charge of the whale removal.

He closes his eyes and tries to wish away the sight.

No luck. He tries to shove the whale out of the way.

No way. He points out the neighbor's full-sized pool (complete with visible shark fin) next door as a more, um, fitting environment for a whale.

No response. The whale just sits there, like he's happily hatching a whale egg on a nest.

Maybe a game will get him off his perch.

"TAG! YOU'RE IT!"

Nope. The boy begins to despair of ever taking a dunk in his pool. And he's beginning to get all hot and bothered.

But wait! There is one way to get wet! He clambers atop the whale's head, puts his floatie over his spouting blowhole and catches the wave, so to speak! Ahhhh!

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again is the theme of Joyce Wan's little whaling saga, The Whale in My Swimming Pool (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2015). This kid is going to need that perseverance, because author Wan arranges another obstacle for him when he goes inside for a nap and finds a huge bear snoring in his bed. If it's not one thing, it's another! It's all a fun fantasy, illustrated by the author with a wide blackline and flat color that heightens the silly seriousness of the boy's situation.