Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews
Ace Lacewing, Bug Detective: The Big Swat
Picture Book Series
For ages 7 to 10
Charlesbridge Publishing, 2012 ISBN: 978-1570917486
It is spring in Motham City, and the residents of the colorful metropolis are in a highly excited state because their baseball team, the Stinkbugs, are not last in the Bug Leagues, for a change. No indeed, this season a rookie called Bugsy Goldwing has taken the Stinkbugs to the top.
Ace Lacewing, bug detective, and his “gal” Xerces, are big Stinkbug fans, and when Madame Damselfly comes to Ace’s office to tell them that Bugsy is in trouble, Ace is eager to help. Apparently, Bugsy’s special bat, the one he used the night before to win the game against the Chicago Grubs, has been stolen. Bugsy, like so many other ball players, is a superstitious fellow, and he is convinced that he cannot be a good player without his lucky bat.
Ace heads over to the stadium and watches poor Bugsy strike out four times. Without his bat, Bugsy has no confidence, and his playing is suffering. Ace goes to the locker room to see what he can learn, and he meets a roach who admits that he stole the bat for “some bug.” The roach has no idea who the bug was, except that he wore a Detroit Tigerfly cap.
Ace and Xerces start going from stadium to stadium, checking out Bugsy’s competitors to see if one of them might have taken the precious bat. They have to hurry though, because the big game is taking place the next day.
Readers who like mysteries are going to enjoy this third Ace Lacewing adventure. Sprinkled with funny tongue-in-cheek humor, this is a picture book that will also appeal to anyone who has a fondness for baseball and baseball-centric stories.
