A Treasure's Trove: A Fairy Tale About Real Treasure for Parents and Children of All Ages - Michael Stadther, 2004

Low expectations can be good because it's easy to exceed them. This book had so many strikes against it (self-published; gimmicky in the extreme; unclear on audience; badly drawn; full of grammatical mistakes) that I was surprised to find anything redeeming in it, but I did love the character Pook. He's a doth (dog/moth), essentially the author's cute white bulldog (visible in a photo) with blue and orange wings added. I think that's why, although the other characters are wooden, Pook feels alive--Stadther is writing what he knows.

The most famous precursor to A Treasure's Trove is Kit Williams' Masquerade, which wasn't a very good story either but at least had truly impressive illustrations. I like puzzles but this one felt very contrived, like it wasn't following the classic rules. I used to fantasize about finding the Canadian Club whiskey cases that were hidden as part of a marketing campaign in the 70s--I was much too young to drink, but the search fascinated me (especially after seeing one that was hidden in Manhattan--more accessible than volcanoes and glaciers!) That yen for finding the hidden is still alive (hence the popularity of geocaching), but it's got to feel possible. I've just been listening to the audio of Malcolm Gladwell's What the Dog Saw, and his use of the distinction between puzzles and mysteries (originally by Gregory Treverton) comes to mind. Canadian Club was a puzzle; Treasure's Trove was a mystery. Nonetheless all the gimcrack-looking jewels were found.