A Fish Named Spot

The titular Spot isn't the only fishy element in this debut picture book, an ill-starred foray into fantasy. Simon longs for a pet, but last year, when his aunt Loretta indulged him with a puppy from England, Simon had a terrible allergic reaction. Now ""crazy Aunt Loretta"" makes a second attempt, this time breezing in from an African vacation with an exotic fish. Caught off guard, Simon has only dog biscuits to feed the fish, which he fondly calls Spot. Overnight, Spot outgrows his tank and begins acting just like a dog, wagging his tail and going for walks. But a dip in a nearby pond leaves Spot yearning for his piscine past, and he uses the garden hose to fill Simon's house with water. At this point, the Martha Speaks-style, you-are-what-you-eat joke spins out of control, and the text loses its internal logic. As boy and fish cavort through the aquarium-like house, Simon suddenly has a fish's capacities: he joins Spot in an underwater duet (Simon on clarinet, Spot on trumpet) and in swimming up the chimney. Highlights of Goldfinger's gouache paintings include a palette with plenty of zing and Spot's expressive fish face, but rubber-limbed human figures lack definition. Ages 6-8. (Apr.)