Adventure, True Love and Seafood

Adventure, True Love and Seafood
We hosted 16 relatives (seven in our house) over the long Thanksgiving weekend.  My job, besides cooking some stuff, was to read to the four little children in my daughter's room each night before bed. And each night we read The Sign of the Seahorse:  A Tale of Greed and High Adventure in Two Acts. By request. Begging, and requests. And more begging.

Graeme Base had me at Animalia, but this Aussie children's book writer and illustrator just keeps getting better. Base shows his lyrical side with the writing of this tome, which is epic and rhythmic and descriptive all at once. My nephew kept popping up to peer more closely at the detailed drawings as each new twist of the plot emerged. The lovely fish Pearl, the brave crab soldier Bert, the evil sharks and the catfish gang came together in a well-written rhyme that had them engage in the previously mentioned begging--then promptly passing out.

That's the sign of the very best kind of story. -Rita

Find The Sign of the Seahorse and other cool kids' books by children's author Graeme Base at Amazon.com.

Share this story

Pin

More in KidsView all picks →

Illustration of three smartphones and a kids' smartwatch with location, signal and Wi-Fi icons
Sponsored

Phone plans for kids, compared: what a first phone line really costs in 2026

From free lines to $65 a month: what a kid's phone plan costs at AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile and the cheaper carriers, plus kid-safe phones and watches.

Bijou Build adaptable and portable playgrounds

Bijou Build: a modular outdoor playset that grows with your family

Start with the Mainstay and add accessories over time • Panels are woven from recycled water bottles and resist moisture and UV

Collage of holiday gifts for kids, including a Ms. Rachel Toniebox, a LEGO Wallace & Gromit set, a gingerbread house inflatable bed, a drawing robot, a scooter and a red wagon

The Cool Mom Picks 2026 Holiday Gift Guide for Kids

Our annual holiday gift guide for kids: screen-free favorites, LEGO, bikes, books, cozy PJs and the hot toys kids are asking for this year.