Once Upon a Tide by Tony Mitton, illustrated by Selina Young.
Released May 9th, 2006.
What appears to be a beach tale of two children with buckets and shovels, really is an adventure story.  It is the story of Bess and a boy who build their own sailboat on the beach.  They then take the boat out to sea where they meet a whale, discover an island, and dig up a treasure chest.  Then they return to the beach and create a beach house from the boat where they live “forevermore.”  The text is rhyming and lilting, suiting the rhythm of the book.  The illustrations are filled with beach details, active and will project well for a storytime.  My only quibble with the illustrations is that the two characters are portrayed as children throughout the story until the final spread.  Then they are adults with children of their own, but wear the same clothes and retain their childlike features.  It is jarring enough to make you turn back to the beginning of the book to see if they were supposed to be adults all along. 
Because the text on each page is brief and there is lots of action in the book, it is a good choice to share with toddlers and preschoolers.