Get your family travel-ready with these reading recommendations from the New Orleans Public Library all about journeys, adventures, and vacations.
Children:
Never Take Your Rhino on a Plane by K. E. Lewis & Isabel Roxas is a cautionary tale about the daredevil stunts and embarrassing antics you will face when traveling with your pet rhinoceros. From the security line to the luggage carousel, there is no hope for a relaxing trip or in-flight movie in this picture book.
In Lone Wolf on Vacation by Kiah Thomas & K-Fai Steele, the titular Wolf is excited for a peaceful, refreshing solo vacation. But from a sing-along bus ride to a broken elevator to a hotel room snafu, Wolf can’t seem to catch a break. And worst of all, some familiar old characters have somehow chosen the same dream destination.
The Sleeper Train by Mick Jackson & Baljinder Kaur captures the magic of family travel while introducing children to a mode of transportation rarely used in the United States. Just as it’s starting to get dark, a child and her family board the sleeper train, where they’ll travel through the night and reach their destination in the morning.
Middle Grade:
A Hero’s Guide to Summer Vacation by Pablo Cartaya follows 13-year-old Cuban American Gonzalo as he joins his estranged grandfather on a road trip to promote his grandfather’s fantasy book series.
Embark on a journey like no other with Atlas of Mythical Journeys: Discover Heroic Quests, Daring Voyages and Epic Adventures by Emily Hawkins & Iryna Dobrovetska. Blending myth, history, fact, and fantasy, this treasury brings together a huge range of traditional stories that are sure to quench your thirst for adventure.
In Debbie Fong’s Next Stop, readers meet Pia, a soft-spoken middle schooler, as she embarks on a bus tour that changes her life.
Teen:
Three girls. One beach vacation. Beach Cute by Beth Reekles follows three teen girls—Luna, Rory, and Jodie. They don’t know it yet, but the three strangers have one thing in common: They are on their way to the same resort. As their lives collide under the sun, will they have the summer they’ll never forget?
In Get Real, Chloe Torres, three estranged best friends take a road trip to see their favorite band, and along the way, things get messy. This sizzling summer adventure from YA star Crystal Maldonado is a hilarious and heartfelt romcom with a little something for everyone.
Travel-hungry fantasy fiends will fall in love with Costumes for Time Travelers by A. R. Capetta. The story is set in a town called Pocket—the place time travelers first reach after they stumble away from their home-time. To Calisto, Pocket is home. For Fawkes, traveling is life. When he floats into Pocket, Calisto meets him for the first time, though Fawkes has seen Calisto—in glimpses of what hasn’t happened yet. He’s also seen the villains chasing them both. Now Calisto and Fawkes must rush through time to save Pocket, and travelers, from being erased.