On the Road Again
On the Road Again
Books About Cars, Driving, and Roadtrips
Bauer, Joan. Rules of the Road. (F BAU)
Jenna’s job as a shoe seller takes a strange twist when her employer, an odd, elderly woman, hires her to drive her across the country.
Boylan, James. Getting In. (F BOY)
Takes readers through a
rollicking, and moving, rite of passage with four hopeful high-school senior
(and one hopelessly dysfunctional family) as they careen across America's Garden
of Ivy at its most tangled, its most sexy, and its most hysterical.
Cooney, Caroline. Driver’s Ed. (F COO)
A thoughtless prank results in the death of a young mother, and the
teenagers responsible must deal with the consequences.
Felsen, Henry Gregor. Crash Club. (F FEL)
Tragedy results when teens form a club that rewards accidents.
Felsen, Henry Gregor. Street Rod. (F FEL)
Ricky defies his father and buys a car, soon learning that he has more to learn about cars than he thought.
Fleischman, Paul. Whirligig. (F FLE)
After killing a girl while driving drunk, a teenager must make amends to her family by honoring their strange request: to travel to the four corners of the country and plant a homemade whirligig in each location.
High, Linda Oatman. Sister Slam and the Poetic Motormouth Roadtrip.
(F HIG)
In this novel told in slam verse, best friends and aspiring poets Laura and Twig
embark on a road trip after graduating from high school, from Pennsylvania to
New York City, to compete at slam poetry events.
Keller, Beverly. The Amazon Papers.
Athletic, straight-A student Iris finds herself in trouble for the first time in her life when her mother’s vacation gives way to a wrecked car, two unlikely boyfriend prospects, and a zany scheme to fix everything.
Kerouac, Jack. On the Road. (813.5 KER)
The fictionalized autobiography of the author and his friends’ experiences in the Beat Era.
Kingsolver, Barbara. The Bean Trees. (F
KIN)
Taylor, a poor Kentuckian,
makes her way west with an abandoned baby girl and stops in Tucson. There she
finds friends and discovers resources in apparently empty places.
Paulsen, Gary. The Car. (F PAU)
A teenager abandoned by his parents assembles a car from a kit and begins a journey across the country, joined by a Vietnam veteran who with whom he learns about survival and strength.
Sachs, Marilyn. Thunderbird. (F SAC)
Dennis, whose main interest is in environmental protection, meets a girl who main passion seems to be her 1957 Thunderbird.
Shoup, Barbara. Stranded in Harmony. (F SHO)
While struggling with the changes he faces during his senior year in a small Indiana town, Lucas gains insight through a unique friendship with a former Vietnam war protester.
Shoup, Barbara. Wish You Were Here. (F SHO)
A high school senior tries to cope with the shifting patterns of his life while struggling to come to terms with his parents' divorce, his best friend's sudden departure, his mother's remarriage, and his father's nearly-fatal accident.
Thompson, Julian F. Philo Fortune’s Awesome Journey to His Comfort Zone. (F THO)
Seventeen-year-old Philo Fortune hits the road after high school to see the country and to discover the source of future financial success but instead gets kidnapped and finds love.
Tomey, Ingrid. Nobody Else Has to Know.
When Grampa allows fifteen-year-old Webber to drive his car, the underage motorist hits and seriously injures a young girl. Grampa falsely tells police that he was behind the wheel, leaving Webber to grapple with coming forward to accept responsibility for the accident. (Review from Horn Book).
Young, Karen Romano. The Beetle and Me: A Love Story. (F YOU)
Fifteen-year-old Daisy Pandolfi wants more than anything to rebuild her
parents '57 Volkswagon Beetle. For Daisy the Beetle has always been special, almost magical. It must run again, and it will be her very own set of wheels if it does. But she's determined to fix the Beetle herself, with no assistance from concerned family or friends who recognize that Daisy's got a lot more invested in her project than elbow grease and midnight oil. And
then there's Billy…(Review from Amazon).
Wittlinger, Ellen. ZigZag. (F WIT)
A high-school junior makes a trip with her aunt and two cousins, discovering places she did not know existed and strengths she did not know she had.
Yanksy, Brian. My Road Trip to the Pretty Girl Capital of the World.
(F YAN)
In 1979 when his life in Mansfield, Iowa, seems to fall apart, seventeen-year-old Simon takes his father's car and sets out for Texas, looking for his birth parents and picking up a man claiming to be Elvis, two bums, and an abused young wife along the way.
Bryson, Bill. The Lost Continent. (917.3 BRY)
Bryson travels America by car to rediscover the country he left to live in England. As with all of his books, this one is a hilarious collection of insights about the country Bryson visits.
Campbell, Rob. Plato’s Garage.
In a collection of essays that are often personal, occasionally
journalistic, and frequently meditative, Rob Campbell takes a look at the world from a different perspective - through the reflective lens of the automobile in our car-obsessed culture.Review from Amazon).
Moon, William Least Heat. Blue Highways. (917.3 Moo)
A classic of travel literature, this is an excellent account of small town America. William Least Heat Moon equips a van with the necessities he’ll need to survive and sets out to see America, traveling the “blue
highways”—the small roads marked on maps in blue. In doing so, he avoids the ordinary interstates and sees a side of America that reveals its charm and history.
Paterniti, Michael. Driving Mr. Albert. (616.07 PAT)
In a bizarre roadtrip, Paterniti is hired to transport Einstein’s brain
across the country.
Rushin, Steve. Road Swing. (070.4 RUS)
A hilarious account of the author’s journey around the country to visit
various sites related to sports figures and great moments in sports.
Steinbeck, John. Travels With Charley. (917.3 STE)
With his dog Charley, John Steinbeck set out in his truck to explore and experience America in the 1960s. As he talked with all kinds of people, he sadly noted the passing of region speech, fell in love with Montana, and was appalled by racism in New Orleans. (Synopsis from Amazon).
Wong, Janet. Behind the Wheel: Poems About Driving.
A collection of poems about the relationship between people, cars, and the road.
Books About Cars, Driving, and Roadtrips
Bauer, Joan. Rules of the Road. (F BAU)
Jenna’s job as a shoe seller takes a strange twist when her employer, an odd, elderly woman, hires her to drive her across the country.
Boylan, James. Getting In. (F BOY)
Takes readers through a
rollicking, and moving, rite of passage with four hopeful high-school senior
(and one hopelessly dysfunctional family) as they careen across America's Garden
of Ivy at its most tangled, its most sexy, and its most hysterical.
Cooney, Caroline. Driver’s Ed. (F COO)
A thoughtless prank results in the death of a young mother, and the
teenagers responsible must deal with the consequences.
Felsen, Henry Gregor. Crash Club. (F FEL)
Tragedy results when teens form a club that rewards accidents.
Felsen, Henry Gregor. Street Rod. (F FEL)
Ricky defies his father and buys a car, soon learning that he has more to learn about cars than he thought.
Fleischman, Paul. Whirligig. (F FLE)
After killing a girl while driving drunk, a teenager must make amends to her family by honoring their strange request: to travel to the four corners of the country and plant a homemade whirligig in each location.
High, Linda Oatman. Sister Slam and the Poetic Motormouth Roadtrip.
(F HIG)
In this novel told in slam verse, best friends and aspiring poets Laura and Twig
embark on a road trip after graduating from high school, from Pennsylvania to
New York City, to compete at slam poetry events.
Keller, Beverly. The Amazon Papers.
Athletic, straight-A student Iris finds herself in trouble for the first time in her life when her mother’s vacation gives way to a wrecked car, two unlikely boyfriend prospects, and a zany scheme to fix everything.
Kerouac, Jack. On the Road. (813.5 KER)
The fictionalized autobiography of the author and his friends’ experiences in the Beat Era.
Kingsolver, Barbara. The Bean Trees. (F
KIN)
Taylor, a poor Kentuckian,
makes her way west with an abandoned baby girl and stops in Tucson. There she
finds friends and discovers resources in apparently empty places.
Paulsen, Gary. The Car. (F PAU)
A teenager abandoned by his parents assembles a car from a kit and begins a journey across the country, joined by a Vietnam veteran who with whom he learns about survival and strength.
Sachs, Marilyn. Thunderbird. (F SAC)
Dennis, whose main interest is in environmental protection, meets a girl who main passion seems to be her 1957 Thunderbird.
Shoup, Barbara. Stranded in Harmony. (F SHO)
While struggling with the changes he faces during his senior year in a small Indiana town, Lucas gains insight through a unique friendship with a former Vietnam war protester.
Shoup, Barbara. Wish You Were Here. (F SHO)
A high school senior tries to cope with the shifting patterns of his life while struggling to come to terms with his parents' divorce, his best friend's sudden departure, his mother's remarriage, and his father's nearly-fatal accident.
Thompson, Julian F. Philo Fortune’s Awesome Journey to His Comfort Zone. (F THO)
Seventeen-year-old Philo Fortune hits the road after high school to see the country and to discover the source of future financial success but instead gets kidnapped and finds love.
Tomey, Ingrid. Nobody Else Has to Know.
When Grampa allows fifteen-year-old Webber to drive his car, the underage motorist hits and seriously injures a young girl. Grampa falsely tells police that he was behind the wheel, leaving Webber to grapple with coming forward to accept responsibility for the accident. (Review from Horn Book).
Young, Karen Romano. The Beetle and Me: A Love Story. (F YOU)
Fifteen-year-old Daisy Pandolfi wants more than anything to rebuild her
parents '57 Volkswagon Beetle. For Daisy the Beetle has always been special, almost magical. It must run again, and it will be her very own set of wheels if it does. But she's determined to fix the Beetle herself, with no assistance from concerned family or friends who recognize that Daisy's got a lot more invested in her project than elbow grease and midnight oil. And
then there's Billy…(Review from Amazon).
Wittlinger, Ellen. ZigZag. (F WIT)
A high-school junior makes a trip with her aunt and two cousins, discovering places she did not know existed and strengths she did not know she had.
Yanksy, Brian. My Road Trip to the Pretty Girl Capital of the World.
(F YAN)
In 1979 when his life in Mansfield, Iowa, seems to fall apart, seventeen-year-old Simon takes his father's car and sets out for Texas, looking for his birth parents and picking up a man claiming to be Elvis, two bums, and an abused young wife along the way.
Bryson, Bill. The Lost Continent. (917.3 BRY)
Bryson travels America by car to rediscover the country he left to live in England. As with all of his books, this one is a hilarious collection of insights about the country Bryson visits.
Campbell, Rob. Plato’s Garage.
In a collection of essays that are often personal, occasionally
journalistic, and frequently meditative, Rob Campbell takes a look at the world from a different perspective - through the reflective lens of the automobile in our car-obsessed culture.Review from Amazon).
Moon, William Least Heat. Blue Highways. (917.3 Moo)
A classic of travel literature, this is an excellent account of small town America. William Least Heat Moon equips a van with the necessities he’ll need to survive and sets out to see America, traveling the “blue
highways”—the small roads marked on maps in blue. In doing so, he avoids the ordinary interstates and sees a side of America that reveals its charm and history.
Paterniti, Michael. Driving Mr. Albert. (616.07 PAT)
In a bizarre roadtrip, Paterniti is hired to transport Einstein’s brain
across the country.
Rushin, Steve. Road Swing. (070.4 RUS)
A hilarious account of the author’s journey around the country to visit
various sites related to sports figures and great moments in sports.
Steinbeck, John. Travels With Charley. (917.3 STE)
With his dog Charley, John Steinbeck set out in his truck to explore and experience America in the 1960s. As he talked with all kinds of people, he sadly noted the passing of region speech, fell in love with Montana, and was appalled by racism in New Orleans. (Synopsis from Amazon).
Wong, Janet. Behind the Wheel: Poems About Driving.
A collection of poems about the relationship between people, cars, and the road.