LitPick Review
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Bubba and Squirt’s Big Dig to China is an adorable, heart-warming, and educational story about the misadventure of siblings Bubba and Squirt.
Who says you can’t dig a hole to China?! Bubba’s big sister, that’s who. But Bubba just knows he can prove her wrong. So, with a magical shovel his grandpa found at a garage sale, Bubba begins digging his special hole to China under the annoying and watchful gaze of his sister. It’s all fun and games until unexpectedly, the ground begins to shake. Dirt pours into the hole Bubba so meticulously dug. He’s trapped and can’t get out! Then the hole swallows him and he is transported through a magic portal…right into the middle of a courtyard filled with Terracotta Warriors! Squirt, of course, is right on her brother’s heels, determined to protect and keep him safe.
Now the two siblings are stuck in China, still not completely sure how they ended up there in the first place. But, the story isn’t over yet. Before Bubba and Squirt can even begin to grasp their surprising situation, an ancient Chinese ghost appears and orders the pair to find his missing pi, or else they can never return home!
Bubba and Squirt must now navigate Chinese culture and people to find the ghost’s missing pi. Otherwise, they’ll be trapped in China forever!
Opinion:
I found this book to be remarkably entertaining and educational. While the reader follows Bubba and Squirt through their journey, they will subconsciously be learning about Chinese culture and belief systems. The book does not elevate one view point or another; it simply presents the facts as they are, which makes the read all the more enjoyable.
I love the characters of Bubba and Squirt! They are completely age appropriate and each has their own voice. The two take turns narrating chapters, making it extremely entertaining to read their interpretations of events. Other characters are also developed well and add different elements to the story, helping it to move along and introduce more twists and turns.
One thing that bothered me as I read this story was, surprisingly, the size of the font. It feels way too big, and at times I wondered if the font was enlarged purely so that book would appear to be longer. However, seeing as this book is geared towards those younger than myself, perhaps I am pointing out something that is completely normal for this age category.
Despite the distracting font size, I found this story to be funny, cute, entertaining, and educational. I enjoyed reading it for the tidbits about Chinese culture almost more so than the story itself. The author did an amazing job integrating educational facts into a fictional story. This book is highly recommended!
