Staff Picks
Road Trip! - Children's Novels
- Jenny D.
- Thursday, November 19, 2020
Collection
Who doesn't love a good road trip? This time of year, lots of folks are usually traveling - but this year, many people are postponing their traditional trips over the river and through the woods. Never fear, you can still go on a virtual road trip by picking up one of these children's novels featuring traveling by car. Happy trails!
My Diary from the Edge of the World
Published in 2015
Spirited, restless Gracie Lockwood, twelve, of Cliffden, Maine, living in a world where sasquatches, dragons, giants, and mermaids are common, keeps a diary of her family's journey in a used Winnebago as they seek The Extraordinary World in hopes of keeping her little brother, Sam, safe against all odds.
The Middle of Somewhere
Published in 2007
Twelve-year-old Ronnie loves organization, especially because her brother has attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, but traveling with their grandfather who is investigating wind power in Kansas brings some pleasant, if chaotic, surprises.
The Watsons Go to Birmingham--1963
Published in 1995
The ordinary interactions and everyday routines of the Watsons, an African American family living in Flint, Michigan, are drastically changed after they go to visit Grandma in Alabama in the summer of 1963.
Ashes to Asheville
Published in 2017
"Twelve-year-old Fella is swept away on a wild road trip by her older sister Zany to fulfill their late mother's dying wish"-- Provided by publisher.
On the Road with Mallory
Published in 2016
"Mallory's family is headed to the Grand Canyon. Mallory is looking forward to the road trip--until she finds out that her snobby cousin Kate will be coming along. Is it a recipe for disaster?"-- Provided by publisher.
From Texas with Love
Published in 2014
The wackiest road trip in history continues, dodging villains from Texas all the way to Roswell, New Mexico! After their explosive escape at Graceland, Coke and Pepsi are ready to resume their trip across America -- only now in a convertible instead of the RV. They travel through Arkansas and Oklahoma, visiting weird-but-true tourist stops along the way. They're also shoved into a spinning clothes dryer, locked in a vapor cabinet, almost flattened by a falling cow, and poisoned with toxic bowling shoes, finally ending up in Texas, home of the Weird Capital of the Country, Austin. The twins' many enemies -- the bowler dudes, Mrs. Higgins, and Dr. Warsaw -- all swear that they're done chasing Coke and Pepsi for good. But when the twins start receiving more codes and ciphers from a mysterious robotic voice, they know someone's after them. They just have to figure out who before the mystery villain finds them first.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid
The Long Haul
Published in 2014
The Heffley family road trip starts off full of promise, then quickly takes several wrong turns--with everything from a fender bender to crazed seagulls--but even the worst road trip can turn into an adventure, and this is one the Heffleys will not soon forget.
Counting to Perfect
Published in 2018
Ignored by her parents since her "perfect" older sister, Julia, had a baby, Cassie, twelve, foregoes her summer plans to join Julia and baby Addie on a road trip.
On the Road
Published in 2005
A dog who thinks her name is Down Girl goes on a car ride to the beach, goes camping in the woods, and reluctantly pays a visit to the vet with her master, Rruff.
The Lonely Heart of Maybelle Lane
Published in 2020
Eleven-year-old Maybelle Lane collects sounds. She records the Louisiana crickets chirping, Momma strumming her guitar, their broken trailer door squeaking. But the crown jewel of her collection is a sound she didn't collect herself: an old recording of her daddy's warm-sunshine laugh, saved on an old phone's voicemail. It's the only thing she has of his, and the only thing she knows about him. Until the day she hears that laugh--his laugh--pouring out of the car radio. Going against Momma's wishes, Maybelle starts listening to her radio DJ daddy's new show, drinking in every word like a plant leaning toward the sun. When he announces he'll be the judge of a singing contest in Nashville, she signs up. What better way to meet than to stand before him and sing with all her heart? But the road to Nashville is bumpy. Her starch-stiff neighbor Mrs. Boggs offers to drive her in her RV. And a bully of a boy from the trailer park hitches a ride, too. These are not the people May would have chosen to help her, but it turns out they're searching for things as well. And the journey will mold them into the best kind of family--the kind you choose for yourself.-- Amazon.
Amelia Bedelia Road Trip!
Published in 2013
Fun and fiascoes ensue when young Amelia Bedelia and her parents take a road trip through their state.
The Car
Published in 1994
A teenager left on his own travels west in a kit car he built himself, and along the way picks up two Vietnam veterans, who take him on an eye-opening journey.
Field Trip
Published in 2015
Ben and his twin classmates, Charlotte and Jacob, are missing a school field trip so Ben's father takes them, his new apprentice Brig, and the dogs on an adventure during which Ben manages to try out for a hockey academy against his parents' wishes and the twins turn the road trip into a learning experience.
Road Trip
Published in 2013
A father and son embark on a road trip to a distant animal shelter to save a homeless border collie puppy.
The Remarkable Inventions of Walter Mortinson
Published in 2019
Against the wishes of his mortician mother, Hadorah, twelve-year-old Walter and classmate Cordelia take a hearse on a road trip to meet legendary inventor Flasterborn, who once mentored Walter's long-dead father.
A Whole Nother Story
Published in 2010
Ethan Cheeseman and his children, ages eight, twelve, and fourteen, hope to settle in a nice small town, at least long enough to complete work on a time machine, but spies and government agents have been pursuing them for two years and are about to catch up.
Road Trip with Max and His Mom
Published in 2018
"Max and his mom embark on a road trip as they adjust to their new understanding of family"-- Provided by publisher.