Remember it being around the house for years, don't think I ever read it. It's actually charming, the humour is understated, the overall impression is of a heartwarming story of a boy. I suspect Buck deliberately bundled the theme of cross-cultural friendship, given the setting in WWII China, but it's not ham-handed and likely many children (especially today, who won't have a ready background of the world in 1945) will not be bothered with it.

Ink drawings in a Chinese style, somehow reminiscent of the Henry Huggins books. ( )