I was really hoping from the title that Jack and Annie would be going to pulpy 1930s China to see Ruth Harkness of The Lady and the Panda: The True Adventures of the First American Explorer to Bring Back China's Most Exotic Animal fame. Unfortunately, Mary Pope Osborne instead chose the 2008 Great Sichuan Earthquake as the time for our intrepid duo's return to China.

Anne again amazes with her gift of blarney, managing to bluff her way past any security. She also has a bad case of having the writer on her side, as her personal self-centered side-trips inevitably and inexplicably lead the siblings right where they need to be.

Or maybe I'm just cranky at them for taking a working flashlight with them out of a major disaster zone.