Genre: Picture book Published: 2014I found the illustrations in this book to be engaging and entertaining. In the story two kids decide to dig a hole until they find something interesting. In the illustrations the kids keep digging around diamonds, but every time they get close to one they decide to dig in a different direction. At the end they dig down until they fall through the sky and land on the grass in front of their house. This book would be fun to read aloud to younger kids because they would keep pointing out how close they were to the diamonds. I also appreciated the unexpected twist at the end of the book when the kids fell through the sky. Sam and Dave decide one Monday that they are going to dig a hole. These boys are on a mission and won't stop until they find something spectacular. Soon they have dug themselves in above their heads. Dave refuses to stop until they find something. After eating their cookies and drinking their milk, they ultimately fall asleep from exhaustion. The boys wind up falling and falling, yet they fail to see the treasure that eludes them.The book has lots of humor and a surprise ending. Seems like the family dog knows where the treasure is all the time. Proves the point that spectacular means different things to different people. Generally I do not enjoy books with so much white space and sparse, stylized illustration, but this in this case using the earth tone colors and simple conversation, it fits the bill. Targeted for preschoolers and early elementary age children, but some aspects of the story are subtle which may lead some children to ask for explanation.
What do You think about Sam And Dave Dig A Hole (2014)?
So fun and clever. Great for adults and kids. We had fun conversations with Juniper (6) afterwards.
—mjordaan
Didn't like it as well as his previous books, felt words were disjointed.
—Mika
I liked this book but my kids LOVED this book.
—creckerd
