It’s time to hit the road with these excellent stories of adventure on four wheels. The best of the best are Kate DiCamillo’s Louisiana’s Way Home and Dan Gemeinhart’s The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise. Both are Newbery worthy. If you’re looking for a dose of humor with your adventure then check out Dan Gutman’s Mission Unstoppable or Gary Paulsen’s Road Trip.
Louisiana’s Way Home by Kate DiCamillo (companion novel)
After Louisiana and her grandmother take off in the middle of the night, she finds herself in a different state with her grandmother wailing in pain. Louisiana must take control of the situation which means taking the wheel, finagling a dentist appointment, and getting a motel room with no money. DiCamillo at her best.
The Someday Birds by Sally J. Pla
Charlie has OCD. The last place he wants to be is traveling across country in an old RV with his crazy family and a weird lady from Bosnia. If he wants to see his dad, that’s what he has to do. The only thing keeping this trip mildly tolerable is his bird obsession and the opportunity to observe the birds on his “someday” list.
The Genius Files: Mission Unstoppable by Dan Gutman (series)
Twins Coke and Pepsi have been recruited by an organization that wants to put kids in charge of solving the world’s problems. That would be fine, if someone else didn’t want them dead. Luckily their mom has planned a coast to coast RV trip to the weird museums and parks across America which will hopefully throw off the killer.
How to Avoid Extinction by Paul Acampora
It’s been almost a year since Leo’s granddad died and everyone, especially his gram, is a little bit lost without him. When his gram announces that she wants to see the allosaur bones in Utah, a couple thousand miles away, Leo knows nothing and no one is going to stop her. He grabs a few clothes then hops into his gram’s yellow 1973 Ford.
The Great Good Summer by Liz Scanlon
Ivy’s mother goes way out of character when she drops everything to follow Hallelujah Dave to the Great Good Bible Church of Panhandle Florida. No one seems concerned about getting her back, so Ivy and her friend Paul set out on a bus from Texas to Florida to retrieve her mom and maybe even see the space shuttle before it’s retired for good.
The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise by Dan Gemeinhart
Coyote’s mother and sisters died 5 years ago, and now she and her dad are traveling around the country in a renovated school bus. When she learns that the park where she and her sisters buried a time capsule is being demolished, Coyote realizes she has four days to cross the country or her time capsule will be gone forever.
So B. It by Sarah Weeks
All Heidi knows about herself is that she showed up on Bernadette’s doorstep with her mentally handicapped mother when she was only a few days old. Her mother only speaks 23 words and can’t tell her anything. When she discovers some pictures that might offer clues about her family, she hops on a bus to New England to find answers.
Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
Sal and her dad have recently left their Kentucky farm for Ohio. Sal’s mom left, and in the midst of her leaving, died in a bus accident in Idaho. Now she and her grandparents are taking a road trip to visit the crash site. .
Road Trip by Gary Paulsen
Ben and his dad love dogs. When a shelter calls to say they have a dog that needs a home, they jump in the truck for a 2 day trip. A lot happens in this short book. They trade in the beat-up truck for a school bus and add a few interesting characters along the way. They even end up in a bus/cop car drag race.
CHATTERING LIBRARIAN 