Catch of the Day! Gus and the Greatest Catch of All by Victoria Cossack

Gus was the very best fisherman in town, no contest--although he'd won many.

Gus holds all the records as the finest fisherman in his fishing village. As an angler, he's awesome! His daily catch tops twenty-five, but he's not content to rest on his laurels. To keep up his reputation as the greatest, he must catch more.

So one fine day, Gus sets out to sea in his trusty rowboat, going for a catch of 100 fish! The cameras are rolling to record his triumph.

But when he tosses in a bucket of chum-bait, he can't believe his eyes.

The school of fish was growing by the second!

His boat began to rock beneath him!

Gus and his boat are borne up on a veritable tsunami of fish. His boat and oars go flying, and grabbing a big breath, Gus goes underwater, snatching and grabbing at the hoard of fish all around him. But the fish flow together as one, staying in a mass just ahead of him, clearly challenging him to a game of tag. Hey! Games are even more fun than fishing!

Having one hundred new friends might be better than catching a record-breaking 100 fish!

Even when a giant eel gives him a great big squeeze, Gus sees that it's just a big fishy hug. And when he finally is forced to the surface for a breath, Gus is a changed man....

Gus rows toward home with a full heart and, for the very first time, an empty fishing net.

More is not always better, and Big Gus gladly trades accolades for lasting friendship, in Victoria Cossack's Gus and the Greatest Catch of All (Page Street Kids, 2019), a turn-the-tables tale of the fish that got away but came to stay. Artist Cossack's cozy seaside fishing village and friendly fish are charming in this little fantasy tale for young readers with the simple theme of a live-and-let-live space in your own place.