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If You Like...Books About Road Trips

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There is nothing better than hitting the open road during the summertime! Packing your bags, grabbing some tunes, and setting out to explore new places. If you like road trips or reading books about travel adventures, here are a few great middle grade books to add to your must-read list for the summer! 

The Lonely Heart of Maybelle Lane
By Kate O'Shaughnessy
New York : Alfred A. Knopf, 2020. 

Maybelle Lane has never met her dad but she has an old voicemail message of his voice in her collection of sounds. One day she hears his voice on the radio and realizes that he is a DJ. When he announces that he will be judging a singing contest in Nashville, Maybelle is determined to compete. She signs up, finds someone to drive her, and sets out on a road trip to Nashville to finally meet her dad. 

The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise
By Dan Gemeinhart
New York : Henry Holt and Company, 2019. 

Coyote and her dad, Rodeo, have been living in an old converted school for five years, constantly on the go, trying to escape the memories of the accident that killed Coyote's mom and sisters. When Coyote learns that a park near her old home is getting demolished, she knows she needs to return to get the special memory box that she buried there. 

Clean Getaway
By Nic Stone
New York : Crown Books for Young Readers, 2020.

Scoob sets out on an impromptu road trip down memory lane with his G'ma in her new RV. As they travel, Scoob learns more about how people have not always been friendly or welcoming to the Black community. The trip starts to get strange when G'ma begins avoiding calls from Scoob's dad and is constantly changing their license plate.

When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Peach Pie
By Erin Downing
New York: Pixel Ink, 2021.

The Peach family sets out on a summer road trip around the country to sell pies in their new food truck. This was always a dream of their mother's before she passed away and they are determined to accomplish it together. The only problem is, none of them know how to bake.

Wrong Way Summer
By Heidi Lang
New York : Amulet Books, 2020.

Claire's father has always told her and her brother outlandish tales about their absent mother. When he decides to sell their home and moves the family into a converted van, she begins growing tired of the stories and wants to find out the truth. As they take the ultimate road trip around the country, Claire is faced with the choice to continue to go along with the stories or force her family to face what really happened to her mom. 

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