“Dig here,” said the map with a big red “X.”

And you did, and it was fun, and it’s a challenge, too, because you have to be smart to read the clues and decipher the secret messages. Treasure hunting is great, even if it’s just a game that adults set up, even if everybody knows it’s not real. Or read the new book “Egg Marks the Spot” by Amy Timberlake – and, well, is it?

Badger liked his new rock room well enough. It used to be the attic and the “Important Rock Work” was done in the living room but when Skunk moved into Aunt Lula’s house with Badger, everything got moved around.

That was fine. It gave Badger a chance to set up his “Wall of Rocks”: every specimen, from A to Z, had its own spot and its own light and it was magnificent. Only one thing made the Wall of Rocks less-than-perfect: Badger’s beloved Spider Eye Agate (the A-rock) was stolen by his cousin, Fisher, at a family reunion.

As it happened, Skunk was having issues of his own. Someone was taking his Sunday New Yak Times Book Review, and he was powerless to stop the thief. The only thing to do was to create a distraction for himself, so he convinced Badger to go rock-hunting at Endless Lake. It would be fun!

And it was. Badger found a few good rocks; even Skunk had some luck, and Augusta, also known as Tiny Orange Hen, showed up. Sadly, so did Fisher, who was stalking Badger because he was looking for treasure to sell and he thought Badger might know where it was.

Nope, Badger didn’t. But Augusta did, she showed Skunk, and when Badger followed them into a nearby cave, everything became a big mess. The treasure was gigantic and rare and very valuable, and legions of hens had been guarding it for centuries. But Fisher – who never saw pretties he couldn’t poach – vowed to have it…

If you read author Amy Timberlake’s first book about Skunk and Badger last year, and were charmed, alas, you’ll be disappointed in this one and its preposterousness. That’s okay, though. “Egg Marks the Spot,” the second tale in the series, isn’t a book for you.

Indeed, this book speaks to the silliness in the heart of your average upper-gradeschooler, in a tangle of adventure and science, dinosaurs and spelunking and the comeuppance of a criminal, all packed into a few chapters of chaos and feathers. And yet, the story’s not silly to the point of ridiculous; in fact, Timberlake’s characters teach archaeology and geology to kids who might not notice they’re learning while they’re laughing. It’s like giving your child a science tutorial in a windstorm, knowing that they’ll be eager for more when the next installment is out.

“Egg Marks the Spot” is great for 7-to-10-year-olds, and both boys and girls can enjoy the pandemonium. If you know a kid who loves animals, science, peril, and hilarious tales, they’ll totally dig it.

“Egg Marks the Spot: A Skunk and Badger Story” by Amy Timberlake, 160 pages, c. 2021, Algonquin Young Readers $18.95.

• Terri Schlichenmeyer of The Bookworm Sez is a self-syndicated book review columnist. Schlichenmeyer’s reviews include adult and children’s books of every genre. You may contact her at bookwormsez@yahoo.com