JACK, THE SEAL AND THE SEA

A German import that, while unabashedly didactic, carries a valuable message. A fisherman (Jack) nets a seal along with his meager catch in polluted waters and revives him. After the seal leads him to clean, more productive fishing grounds, Jack hears the sea itself beseech him for help and becomes an advocate of action--letters to government and industry, better local practices on garbage disposal--to clean up the sea. The author's soft, delicately detailed, realistic illustrations are the book's best feature: they evoke the misty sweep of sea and sky, and the seal is especially beguiling.