The book Big Clifty, Star Route explores a year in the life of Bud, a ten-year-old boy in the small rural community of Limp, Kentucky. The story begins with several adventures brought on by a massive January snowstorm and builds to a climax of an unexpected Christmas experience. Bud struggles to understand his father Pap, who is significantly older, and who adheres to a different faith. Dewey Hodge, who owns the local country store, becomes a father figure for Bud. Bud collects pop bottles to buy his dream pocketknife and meets a new friend, Claire Marie. They develop a childhood romance with unexpected consequences as Bud discovers his own identity. Along the way, Bud learns valuable life lessons including hard work, honesty, consequences, and his place in God’s creation.