CAPTAIN BOB SETS SAIL

Schotter (Purim Play, 1998) pens a rip-roaring tale of a boy's bath, his hijinks spiritedly displayed in Cepeda's (We Were Tired of Living in a House, 1999) bigger-than-life, full-bleed oil illustrations that make full use of the boy's superb orthodontia while tastefully maintaining his anatomical privacy. Captain Bob sails the soapy seas of Bath Bay and Faucet Falls, along with a host of bath toys. His imaginative powers are up to the rigors of his voyage, even when he's “attacked from behind by a ruby-ringed Sea Hand,” his steady-gripped caretaker, who is herself capable of cleaning up the boy, and, judging by the lavish spillover, the post-bath bathroom. Captain Bob swims, floats, and submits to scrubbing but is never squashed. He controls the taps with shouts and roars until the waters cool and it's time to go. He drains the ocean to crawl out onto the “shaggy shore” of dry land, where he is brushed, dressed for bed, and kissed—just because he's Captain Bob. Sure to enliven tub time. Brace yourselves. (Picture book. 3-7)