Our friend, the Pout-Pout Fish, is back embarking on a new adventure of courage and friendship.  Author, Deborah Diesen’s power packed verse draws us into a delightful glide through the ocean of attentive, buggy-eyed sea creatures as Mr. Fish fulfills his promise to find Ms Clam’s pearl. Guided by Ms Shimmer, hidden on each page, he searches deeper along the ocean floor, over a slope and into a trench of darkness. He repeats his mantra to gather some courage. “I’m as fast as a sailfish, I’m as strong as a shark, I’m as smart as a dolphin, but I’m scared of the dark!” Just when he is ready to head back, Ms Shimmer declares, “You can do it, Mr. Fish” and they brave the dark as two instead of one. Mr. Lantern saves the day with a glimmer of light revealing the lost pearl. With the perceived recent decline in the popularity of picture books, parents would be wise to look into this gem of  life lessons told in rich vocabulary and rhyme to see the value of this genre.