FISHING WITH DAD

The big one is a torpedo and it doesn't get away (the Coast Guard takes it) in this documentary of a little boy's indoctrination into commercial fishing. Daniel, who flexes his muscles to show he's ship-shape, turns out to be sea-worthy too; he keeps a clean deck, takes his turn at the wheel, and sorts out the trash fish with the rest of them. A foggy day sells Dad on radar (like a horizontal fathometer, he explains to Daniel) before a near-collision with an ocean liner; the next day looks good for fishing until they net the torpedo (more explanation) and watch the Coast Guard blow it up; then it's homeward bound with the hint of a summer's berth for the delighted Daniel. Readers who anticipate a fish story from Flora will be disappointed; this is straight sailing with some instruction and a little father-and-son satisfaction. The sharply defined, sometimes amusing illustrations are more characteristic.