Baby's Boat

In this bedtime book, a baby sails a sea of sleep--rumpled sheets--in an infant-sized boat in front of an Easter-egg purple starred sky: ``Sail, baby, sail / Out upon that sea, / Only don't forget to sail / Back again to me.'' Baby fishes for dreams, and eventually does fall asleep. Baby and the various props--teddy bear, toy fish, large spoon--are palpably lifelike, and the scene has an incandescent, soft-edged feel. Unfortunately, the strong conceptual focus of Titherington's work in such titles as Pumpkin, Pumpkin and A Place for Ben is missing, and this lullaby comes across as a rather slight and saccharine offering. Also, the text is clumsy in places, as in ``Her line a silver moonbeam is.'' Though the narrator's sentiments will tug at parental heartstrings, the very young may not comprehend them. Ages 3-up. (Apr.)