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17 Books to Inspire Your Next American Road Trip

With most international borders closed to Americans for 2020, there is no time like the present to plan a Great American Road Trip!

The options of beautiful places to visit on a Great American Road Trip are endless but what is the most scenic drive in the United States?

Well, that depends on what you’re looking for — mountains, ocean, desert, lakes, or farmland.

From East Coast to West Coast to Cross-Country Road Trips, here are 17 American Road Trip Books filled with ideas to inspire your next adventure!

Table of Contents

List of American Road Trip Books

1. 50 states 500 state parks: an essential guide to america’s best places to visit.

By Publications International Ltd.

National Parks seem to dominate bucket lists these days but did you know there are over 500 State Parks across all 50 states ? From beaches to mountains, wildlife reserves to historic sites, this book will give you some American road trip ideas for planning your next domestic adventure.

2. 50 States, 5,000 Ideas: Where to Go, When to Go, What to See, What to Do

By Joe Yogerst , National Geographic

The travel experts at National Geographic have put together a comprehensive, illustrated book filled with 5,000 ideas on places to visit in all 50 states , plus every province in Canada. From well-known famous sights to relatively undiscovered hidden gems, there is bound to be something for every type of traveler on this list.

3. 100 Drives, 5,000 Ideas: Where to Go, When to Go, What to Do, What to See

By Joe Yogerst, National Geographic

Another great read from National Geographic, this sequel to 50 States, 5,000 Ideas gives readers inspiration for 5,000 places to visit on 100 different drives from Alaska to Hawaii and the 48 contiguous states, plus 10 Canadian provinces!

4. 1,000 Places to See in the United States and Canada Before You Die

By Patricia Schultz

You’ve probably heard of the famous 1,000 Places To See Before You Die book, but why not start off your quest with these regional 1,000 Places to See in the United States and Canada Before You Die ? The title is a bit morbid but the suggestions in the book are anything but.

5. Lonely Planet USA’s Best Trips

By Simon Richmond, Lonely Planet

Lonely Planet has taken the hassle out of planning road trips with their book about the 51 best road trips in the USA ! This beautifully-photographed tome also includes planning advice, itineraries from 2 days to 2 weeks, detailed maps and directions, and other essential information to make your road trip dreams a reality.

6. National Geographic Guide to Scenic Highways and Byways: The 300 Best Drives in the U.S.

By National Geographic

The folks at National Geographic have compiled practical planning tips and information on 300 of the best drives in the good ‘ole U S of A, from day trips to multiple week-long adventures in all 4 corners of the United States and everywhere in between.

7. NYT. 36 Hours. USA & Canada.

By Barbara Ireland

This is the perfect book for the full-time working wanderluster. The New York Times has compiled entries from its 20-years-old “36 Hours” column to bring us weekend itineraries spanning, you guessed it, 36 hours in 150 destinations across the USA and Canada.

8. Off the Beaten Path: A Travel Guide to More Than 1000 Scenic and Interesting Places Still Uncrowded and Inviting

By Reader’s Digest

A book after my own heart! I’m a lover of hidden gems and relatively undiscovered places so Reader’s Digest’s compilation of 1,000 off the beaten path places is right up my alley! Sure, the Empire State Building and Golden Gate Bridge are obviously worth visiting but have you ever thought about following the dinosaur trails through Colorado?

9. Road Trip USA: Cross-Country Adventures on America’s Two-Lane Highways

By Jamie Jensen

This author traversed nearly 400,000 of two-lane highways in order to narrow down a collection of 35,000 miles of the best stretches of pavement for would-be road trippers. The book includes hundreds of possible itinerary combinations and over 125 detailed driving maps to make your next road trip a breeze.

10. Roadfood: An Eater’s Guide to More Than 1,000 of the Best Local Hot Spots and Hidden Gems Across America

By Jane Stern

The best part of traveling is the food, amiright? The Roadfood eater’s guide provides over 1,000 unique options for travelers who are tired of repetitive roadside chain restaurants. The legendary chef James Beard said that “this is a book that you should carry with you, no matter where you are going in these United States.” SOLD.

1 1. Route 66: The Mother Road 75th Anniversary Edition

By Michael Wallis

Can you even call it a Great American Road Trip if you don’t traverse “America’s Main Street,” Route 66? The 75th Anniversary Edition of Route 66: The Mother Road pays homage to the people and places along this iconic stretch of pavement that has been traveled by road warriors over the past eight decades.

12. Secret Route 66: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure

By Jim Ross & Shellee Graham

For road trippers who have “been there, done that” and seen the main sights of America’s Main Street or who gravitate towards hidden gems in their travels, Secret Route 66 is the perfect remedy. This tribute to the Mother Road highlights 90 places along Route 66 that, as the name implies, are weird, wonderful, and obscure.

13. The Most Scenic Drives in America: 120 Spectacular Road Trips

By Editors of Reader’s Digest

This recently revised and updated book is the perfect coffee table book for anyone who enjoys landscape eye-candy. The editors at Reader’s Digest have put together 120 of the most scenic drives in America and is great for active road trippers and armchair travelers alike.

14. The Open Road: 50 Best Road Trips in the USA

By Jessica Dunham

Part of the notable Moon travel guides family, The Open Road is a collection of 50 of the best road trips in these great united states. Whether you’re looking to travel coast-to-coast or just get away for the weekend, there is bound to be an itinerary that fits the bill.

15. The Ultimate Pet-Friendly Road Trip

By Amy Burkert

Just because you’re going on a road trip doesn’t mean you need to leave Fido behind. In fact, I’d argue road trips are the best type of travel for pet owners. This book offers up the ultimate pet-friendly road trip bucket list of 49 attractions across the country so you don’t need to leave your furry companion at home when you hit the road.

16. Unique America – Strange, Unusual, and Just Plain Fun: A Trip Through America

Are you the type of traveler that looks to the Atlas Obscura website first for ideas for your next trip? If so, then Unique America is for you. Get ready to see the world’s largest ball of twine, a floating bridge, or a ginormous artichoke the size of your car.

17. Where To Go When the Americas

By DK Eyewitness

DK Eyewitness Travel Guides are my go-to choice when I have an upcoming trip. I love the balance between visual representation and easy-to-digest information about the places they cover. Where To Go When is only last on this list because it’s in alphabetical order, haha. But if you’re looking for seasonal inspiration for your next American road trip, look no further.

Have any of these American Road Trip books inspired your next adventure?!?!

More Wanderlust-Filled Book Recommendations

17 books that will inspire you to visit america’s national parks.

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About Laura

Laura is an avid traveler who aspires to live a life filled with adventure and a dash of luxury and hopes to inspire others to do the same. She seems to consistently be drawn to lesser-traveled hidden "pearls" and loves to give these under-the-radar places the credit they are due. Laura can often be found on the ski slopes in the winter and is obsessed with all activities involving water...and mac and cheese...and Golden Retrievers.

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• INTELLIGENT TRAVEL

Books to Inspire the Ultimate American Road Trip

Last May, the two of us set out on the road to work on “ America by Night .” Funded in part by a National Geographic Young Explorers grant, the project aimed to explore and document what some Americans do while most others sleep.

At this point, we’ve spent more than 100 days and nights on the road, driving more than 20,000 miles through 36 states.

Before we embarked, we assembled a little library of books about rambles and adventures in America that we hoped would help us prepare for life on the road and get us excited about the prospect of living in our car for months on end.

During our trip, these books traveled with us in a shoebox. We’d flip   through them for sections relevant to where we were traveling. Often one of us read aloud while the other drove.

Some books were better than the others. The best of them reminded us to be open and curious and to see wonder in the world even when we were tired, cranky, and homesick–or when the car’s A/C conked out during a Vegas heat wave. They showed us the possibilities of the road, and instilled the sense that we were on a grand adventure–even in the moments when our trip didn’t feel like one.

Here are five of our favorite books on wandering in America to inspire your next journey, big or small:

1. American Nomads: Travels with Lost Conquistadors, Mountain Men, Cowboys, Indians, Hoboes, Truckers, and Bullriders , by Richard Grant

“Anyone who has fallen under the spell of this country, or any big wild place, knows the temptation. We have all wondered, if only in passing, what it would be like to go further out there, deeper into the wilderness; to cut the ties to civilization and turn trips and expeditions into a permanent state of being.”

Finding happiness in transience, British writer Richard Grant moves to America and spends several years on the road. Armed with a fearless form of immersion journalism, Grant traces the history–and mystique–of wandering in America, blending with it tales of his own journey and those of the fellow nomads–from drug-crazed cowboys on the rodeo circuit to retiree RVers convening in Quartzsite, Arizona–he meets along the way.

2. Travels with Charley: In Search of America , by John Steinbeck

“A journey is a person in itself; no two are alike. And all plans, safeguards, policing, and coercion are fruitless. We find after years of struggle that we do not take a trip; a trip takes us.”

To cure the itch of restlessness, Steinbeck takes to the road in 1960 with his poodle, Charley, and his truck camper, Rocinante. The book chronicles his journey around the U.S., one which takes him through cities, small towns, and national parks. Despite the recent controversy regarding its veracity, the book is enduringly powerful, an observant and deeply reflective work that gives us at once a portrait of a changing mid-century America and of the man himself.

3. Blue Highways: A Journey into America , by William Least Heat Moon

“What you’ve done becomes the judge of what you’re going to do — especially in other people’s minds. When you’re traveling, you are what you are right there and then. People don’t have your past to hold against you. No yesterdays on the road.”

After losing his job and separating from his wife, Heat Moon seeks escape and reconnection in the country. His account of his three-month quest to explore America by way of its back roads is as expansive, meandering, and contemplative as the 13,000-mile route itself. The book details the author’s encounters and observations as he dodges interstates and big cities in search of small-town America. In the end, Heat Moon reminds us of the value of people and places unsung, and produces a portrait of America that is deeply authentic–and surprising.

4. Adventures in the Unknown Interior of America , by Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca

“This land, in short, lacks nothing to be regarded as blest.”

Sent to conquer Florida in 1527, Spanish explorer Cabeza de Vaca is one of four survivors when his ship wrecks off the coast of Texas. This account, written as an official report to the King of Spain and first published in 1542, chronicles Cabeza de Vaca’s experience wandering in America’s borderlands, largely on foot, in the eight years before he was able to reconnect with Spanish colonials. Unsurprisingly, his trials along the way drastically alter his perspective–but it is precisely these changes that make the book so relevant to modern readers.

• Nat Geo Expeditions

5. Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail , by Cheryl Strayed

“It had nothing to do with gear or footwear or the backpacking fads or philosophies of any particular era or even with getting from point A to point B. It had to do with how it felt to be in the wild…It seemed to me that it had always felt like this to be a human in the wild, and as long as the wild existed it would always feel this way.”

Though this journey happens on foot, it still provides inspiration for the wandering soul. In 1995, in the wake of a divorce and her own mother’s death, Strayed, then 26, strikes out alone to hike 1,100 miles of Pacific Crest Trail wilderness, from the Mojave Desert to the Oregon-Washington border. Feeling “loose in the world,” Strayed begins her trek with no backpacking experience, woefully unprepared. The book, which weaves the myriad physical challenges, pitfalls, and accomplishment Strayed encounters on the trail with details of her previous life, is ultimately a paean to the renewal that comes from sloughing off the familiar in search of solitude.

When they’re not documenting what Americans do at night,   Nat Geo Young Explorer   Annie Agnone   is a candidate for an   MFA in creative writing   and Kevin Weidner   works as a writer, editor, and educator in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.  

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Roadtrips are like snowflakes or fingerprints. Each are familiar, but none match. And for those of us bit by that kinetic fever — that unbearable urge to move — nothing beats one. We go forward at our own will, where and when we want, and forge out our own unique road print across an endless web of roads. The only real debate is whether to ask directions when we get lost.

Or what to read before we go.

Jack Kerouac’s On the Road remains the iconic roadtrip book for most people. But that doesn’t mean it’s the best. Nor is, I think, John Steinbeck’s Travels With Charley, o r William Least Heat-Moon’s Blue Highways .

Here are five lesser-known alternatives to help amp up your adventure.

The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town America by Bill Bryson

Quotable: “Out here in this crud-bucket motel in the middle of a great empty plain I began for the first time to feel at home.”

In Lost Continent, Bryson — who grew up in Des Moines because “someone had to” — returns after years in England, and his father’s death, to rediscover the “magic places of my youth” at the tail end of the Reagan area. His 13,978-mile route generally sticks with back roads and American icons: the homes of Mark Twain, Lincoln, Elvis, FDR, the Amish; plus college towns, Gettysburg, Selma, the Rockies, Custer’s Last Stand. All the while, he’s searching for “Amalgam,” the perfect American town he sees on TV and film.

With cheeky wit weaned on years of British life, Bryson leaves few prisoners. Iowan women look like “elephants dressed in children’s clothes.” Michigan is “shaped like an oven mitt and is often as exciting.” Of impression-less Delaware, “I could feel it vanishing from my memory as I went.” Even the great Mississippi appears “flat and dull.” Eventually he concludes, “America has never quite grasped that you can live in a place without making it ugly.”

He gets away with this because he so often is moved by the exceptions: “inexpressively beautiful” Appalachia, Iowa farms “hysterical with color and light,” Vermont rides offering “a day trip to heaven.” Even Colonial Williamsburg somehow inspires him.

When he returns to Iowa after his first month on the road, he writes, “I actually felt my heart quicken. I was home. This was my state.” And thinking of Iowans again, “I was seized with a huge envy for these people… their sense of community… And I felt guilty for mocking them.”

Cross Country, Robert Sullivan

Quotable: “On the road, everything is a museum.”

Sullivan — who once spent nights in New York City alleys watching rats — is an obsessive roadtrip nerd, who’s crossed the country by car 30 times. And Cross Country — filled with hand-drawn maps and photocopies from his journal — recounts the entire culture and origins of the American roadtrip as Sullivan rides from Oregon to New York with his family.

For anyone who’s covered any distance by car, it’s illuminating and fun: learning how “motels” were born, where to play golf on a toxic waste dump, and how tips stagecoach drivers gave riders in 1877 apply to back-seat drivers today. And also that we’re driving in the “golden age of coffee lid development,” as seen in the evolution of coffee lids used at gas station on the interstate, from the ill-conceived Push & Drink to the Solo Traveler, the Optima, the wonderful DLX12R!

The Cruise of the Rolling Junk, F. Scott Fitzgerald

Quotable: Zelda (early on) “Gosh, we’re smart… this is the best thing ever done,” (later) “the joys of motoring are more or less fictional.”

In 1920, F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald decided on a whim to drive to Montgomery, Alabama for a breakfast of biscuits and peaches in Zelda’s hometown. Riding in a 1918 Marmon dubbed the “Rolling Junk,” it took eight days and 1200 miles to complete the task. (They returned by train.)

Typical of the early roadtrip days, much of the way is riddled with car problems. They’re barely out of Connecticut before turning to their spare tire “Lazarus.” Later the car body had to be welded back together. Mostly this is handled in good spirit, perhaps because of the grand historic inns the Fitzgerald’s ultimately steer for (some that are still open: e.g. Princeton’s Nassau Inn, DC’s Willard Hotel, or Greensboro’s O Henry Hotel).

The pace picks up in the south, as Fitzgerald drives through a forested “green subway,” and tree branches that reach over the car like the “faintly tired hauteur of a fine lady’s hand.” He captures the Southern light too, a half a century after the Civil War: “The sun was at home here, touching with affection the shattered ruins of once lovely things.”

(More troubling is Fitzgerald’s “unforgivably breezy” attitude, as Paul Theroux writes, of African Americans met along the way.)

Great Plains, Ian Frazier

Quotable: “A person can be amazingly happy on the Great Plains… Once happiness gets rolling in this open place, not much stops it.”

Frazier moved to Montana to write a novel, but became obsessed with the plains instead. In a series of whirlwind roadtrips — often sleeping in his car — he probes the past and present. (Frazier’s fond of driving. For Travels in Siberia he foregoes the legendary Trans-Siberian to drive across Russia.) What he comes up with here is something of a guidebook to curiosity, set in a 500,000-square mile land long mistaken for the great American desert.

Many of his experiences in this 214-page book lead him on/off Indian Reservations. He describes the sound of the Sioux language as “soft and rippling, like something you might hear through a bead curtain.” And picks up hitchhikers, like Jim Yellow Earring, who leads him to the site of Sitting Bull’s cabin site, where Jim offers to rip out a rattlesnake tongue as a keepsake. (Frazier declines.)

His paragraph of his love of the Lakota warrior Crazy Horse is alone worth reading the book.

Roads: Driving America's Great Highways, Larry McMurtry

Quotable: “As it is with women, so it is with roads. There are too many nice ones.”

Steinbeck famously predicted in Travels with Charley that interstates would make it possible to cross the county and “not see a single thing,” but McMurtry finds nearly the opposite. In this quick 206-page travelogue, he sticks on the interstates, or “America’s great highways,” picking and choosing preferred stretches (which he likens to rereading select passages from great novels).

Often the glory he finds regards big skies and room to contemplate. Once he extends a Kansas drive for an interstate sunset of a wheat-colored light “developing purplish tinges along the edges, like bruises on the sky.” And he fills a bland day on I-70 through Ohio, Indiana and Illinois — near areas where “even the arrival of the outlet malls is a blessing “ — to answer “at least to my own satisfaction, the question about where the Midwest begins.” (He votes for Columbus, Ohio.)

America can never look the same, he concludes, contrasting Steinbeck’s prediction. “The lights will always differ… a thousand McDonald’s will never make Boston feel like Tucson.”

Robert Reid has written a couple dozen Lonely Planet guidebooks, talked travel on TV shows like the Today Show and CNN Headline News, and writes regularly for National Geographic Traveler. He lives in Portland, Oregon.

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AMERICAN ROAD TRIP

by Patrick Flores-Scott ‧ RELEASE DATE: Sept. 18, 2018

A compassionate success.

After Teodoro’s older brother, Manny, left for Iraq, the Avila family began to fall apart.

Then the 2008 financial crisis hit, and the Mexican-American Avilas downsized to a dumpy rental home amid a loss of income. Teodoro doesn’t see much hope for his broken family, but news of Manny’s return inspires the Avilas to improve their lives. Spurred on by an old childhood friend, Latina Wendy Martinez, and his Polynesian best bud, Caleb Ta’amu, Teodoro even tries to become a college-bound student. But when Manny comes home, he can’t shake off the shock of war. Situated between the hope-filled election of Barack Obama and the beginning of Teodoro’s senior year, Flores-Scott’s ( Jumped In , 2013) latest explores the fragile bonds of a fractured family through moments full of poignant confession and self-discovery. Teodoro’s funny, wry first-person narration features quick, emotionally charged sentences that provide the narrative a breathless, hard-hitting quality. In hopes of helping Manny heal, Teodoro’s spunky sister, Xochitl, plans an impromptu road trip, ensnaring an unknowing Teodoro in the process. The trio travels all along the West Coast, reconnecting with old friends and family. A final stop in New Mexico offers Teodoro the chance to help his brother confront his PTSD, pull his family together again, and possibly begin something meaningful with Wendy. Featuring a diverse cast of delightful characters, this novel bursts with much-needed optimism.

Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018

ISBN: 978-1-62779-741-2

Page Count: 336

Publisher: Henry Holt

Review Posted Online: June 23, 2018

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2018

TEENS & YOUNG ADULT SOCIAL THEMES | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT FICTION

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BOOK REVIEW

by Patrick Flores-Scott

IF ONLY I HAD TOLD HER

by Laura Nowlin ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 6, 2024

A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.

In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me , three characters tell their sides of the story.

Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.

Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024

ISBN: 9781728276229

Page Count: 416

Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire

Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024

TEENS & YOUNG ADULT SOCIAL THEMES | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT FICTION | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT ROMANCE

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by Laura Nowlin

IF HE HAD BEEN WITH ME

by Laura Nowlin ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2013

There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.

The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.

Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.

Pub Date: April 1, 2013

ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5

Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013

Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013

TEENS & YOUNG ADULT ROMANCE | TEENS & YOUNG ADULT SOCIAL THEMES

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• Entertainment

“American Road Trip” A Book Review for a Great Story

Follow the struggles of a family that finds a unique way to help a member with PTSD in the novel, American Road Trip, which is a story you’re sure to love.

The Plot of American Road Trip

American Road Trip was written by Patrick Flores-Scott and was published in 2018. The book follows Teodoro, nicknamed “T” by close friends and family, as he tries to turn his life around and focus on making a future for himself. But there are many things that are distracting him; his childhood friend and the girl he loves, Wendy, is back in his life and he dreams of attending the same college as her.

His parents are struggling financially and have had to move into a small, impersonal rental. And Manny, Teodoro’s older brother, is finally coming home after a long time away serving in Iraq. But having Manny home isn’t at all what T, his parents, and his older sister Xochitl were expecting .

Manny is heavily affected by PTSD, so Xochitl does what seems the most reasonable thing to do: she tricks her brothers into a road trip from their home in Seattle to their uncle’s green chile farm in New Mexico, where she believes that once Manny reconnects with family members and precious memories, he will be able to clear his head of the terrible memories he created in Iraq, and their broken family will be healed.

Family Relationships and Realism

One of the most amazing things about American Road Trip is the depiction of the Avila family. They are not perfect, and in fact, are very fractured, and this fact comes up several times throughout the novel. They cry together, laugh together, sing and dance together, fight together, and eventually heal together. Flores-Scott does an amazing job of beautifully portraying how even though life sometimes gets in the way , sacrifices have to be made for your family.

T and Xochitl make many sacrifices for their brother, including spending their summer with him in New Mexico and putting their own dreams and plans on hold, and Manny works hard to make a change and to overcome what is haunting him. But it doesn’t come easily to the three siblings, and that is another great aspect of the book-how realistic the relationships and events are.

Their family isn’t perfect, and their problems are not solved quickly. It takes a lot to get the family back to having strong, loving bonds, and even then, the ending isn’t one hundred percent perfect, but it is just right for the story and its characters. Creative and Interesting Story and CharactersAlthough the actual road trip in American Road Trip doesn’t kick off until over a hundred pages in, the story is never boring and constantly has interesting moments.

At the beginning of the story, readers are drawn in with T’s unique character and his fantastic character development, as he goes from a lazy teenager with a lackluster future to a dedicated young man who learns about the sacrifices that have to be made for family and how hard work will help secure his future.

Xochitl, the middle sibling, and the only girl is a strong female character who is willing to do anything that will help her older brother, including giving up her dream of singing and playing in a band. The novel intertwines the plot lines of T’s plans for his future, his love for Wendy, and his family struggles, as well as a road trip with his brother and sister.

The road trip is a creative idea that leads the siblings back to extended family members who help the three remember how things used to be. The green chile farm in New Mexico is another creative element that further advances the plotline. American Road Trip thoroughly develops its main characters who all have different personalities and goals, and this leads to a very interesting novel that grabs the reader and doesn’t let them go until the end.

Themes and Messages Found in American Road Trip

Many heartwarming messages and themes can be obtained from this book, including some about family, sacrifice, hard work, love, perseverance, and dreams. The road trip from Washington to New Mexico shows how even though families can become weak and go through rough patches, in the end, they can become strong again and will always be there for each other. T learns how setting goals and having dreams, as well as fighting to attain them, helps him to shape who he wants to become.

T also learned about the huge amount of love he has for Manny, Xochitl, and his parents, as well as Wendy, with whom he also goes through some ups and downs. In the end, American Road Trip shows that even through hardships, families will be there for each other.

This novel has definitely earned five stars out of five and will tug on the heartstrings of all who turn its pages.

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American Road Trip

Patrick flores-scott.

323 pages, Hardcover

First published September 18, 2018

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Review: American Road Trip

Title: American Road Trip Author: Patrick Flores-Scott Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR) Pages: 336 Genre: Contemporary Review copy: Digital ARC via Netgalley Availability: Releases Sept. 18, 2018

Summary: A heartwrenching YA coming of age story about three siblings on a road trip in search of healing.

With a strong family, the best friend a guy could ask for, and a budding romance with the girl of his dreams, life shows promise for Teodoro “T” Avila. But he takes some hard hits the summer before senior year when his nearly perfect brother, Manny, returns from a tour in Iraq with a devastating case of PTSD. In a desperate effort to save Manny from himself and pull their family back together, T’s fiery sister, Xochitl, hoodwinks her brothers into a cathartic road trip.

Told through T’s honest voice, this is a candid exploration of mental illness, socioeconomic pressures, and the many inescapable highs and lows that come with growing up—including falling in love.

Review: Relationships and connections. These are things that keep Teodoro “T” going. First, he has a best friend who believes in him and is willing to stand by him through pretty much anything. Second, he has a sister who will push him, but will also hold him tightly. I loved seeing the back and forth between Xochitl and T. They both want the best for each other and their brother Manny though they don’t always go about things the same way. Flores-Scott lets readers get to know T, but also allows us to see the ways in which the siblings interact and how those relationships shape the individuals. Beyond these two, he also has quite a few others in his corner both near and far. One of the beauties of this story is how many, many people are willing to pitch in to make life better for both T and his brother. Their lives are often dark and difficult, but hope doesn’t curl up and die because of the many people around them.

And who can resist a road trip story? Road trips almost always provide moments for bonding even if it’s just having some horrible shared experience. This particular road trip is all about connecting and re-connecting with people. Each stop felt like they were tying themselves to others. I pictured pins on a map with the strings connecting from one to another. This was not an upbeat road trip though. There are some moments of humor, but Manny’s PTSD is intense and no matter how far they run, they can’t seem to escape it.  Xochitl’s plan is to buy time for healing, but this isn’t easy.

This might be a challenging book for those who have experienced PTSD in their families. The pain is hard to witness even knowing it’s fiction, but the love and caring of so many people offers hope and optimism. Woven in throughout the most difficult issues, there are moments of laughter and a lovely bit of romance so it’s not constant intensity.

Recommendation: Get it soon especially if you enjoy family stories. This is not the story of a perfect family, but does show a family willing to do what’s needed even when it gets hard. I loved getting to know the characters in this story and hope many people get to experience them too.

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American Road Trip Kindle Edition

A heartwrenching YA coming of age story about three siblings on a roadtrip in search of healing. With a strong family, the best friend a guy could ask for, and a budding romance with the girl of his dreams, life shows promise for Teodoro “T” Avila. But he takes some hard hits the summer before senior year when his nearly perfect brother, Manny, returns from a tour in Iraq with a devastating case of PTSD. In a desperate effort to save Manny from himself and pull their family back together, T’s fiery sister, Xochitl, hoodwinks her brothers into a cathartic road trip. Told through T’s honest voice, this is a candid exploration of mental illness, socioeconomic pressures, and the many inescapable highs and lows that come with growing up—including falling in love. Christy Ottaviano Books

• Reading age 12 - 18 years
• Print length 336 pages
• Language English
• Grade level 7 - 12
• Lexile measure HL550L
• Publisher Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
• Publication date September 18, 2018
• Page Flip Enabled
• Word Wise Not Enabled
• Enhanced typesetting Enabled
• Sticky notes On Kindle Scribe
• ISBN-13 978-1627797412
• See all details

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Editorial Reviews

A Teen Vogue Best Gift Book for Teens A Texas Tayshas List Selection "Told via T’s honest, engaging, and often-naive voice, the story openly explores mental illness spawned by war and how the illness affects family members and those around them. This powerful story also reminds readers that the paths to their dreams may have to take detours but are still attainable. " ― Booklist , starred review "In a story about mending broken ties, making sacrifices, and visiting landscapes and loved ones from the past, Flores-Scott invites readers to follow T on a road trip that brings to life the Avilas’ Latino heritage and Manny’s disorder. . . it celebrates many things: family love, realized dreams, and the taste of a green chile cheeseburger. " ― Publishers Weekly, starred review "Adeptly provides a window and a mirror of Latinx culture and reimagines the American road trip as an individual journey, one deeply anchored in sacrifice for those we love." ― School Library Journal , starred review "Written in T's vulnerable, observant voice, 'American Road Trip' holds true to classic road-trip themes like the emotional power of singalongs and unexpected detours, but it also wades into the darker waters of mental illness with both realism and sensitivity ." ― The New York Times " American Road Trip is as multifaceted as its protagonist, Mexican-American teen Teodoro (known as “T”), wrapping a moving multigenerational story into a endearing coming-of-age tale." ― The A.V. Club "Flores-Scott's latest explores the fragile bonds of a fractured family . . . Teodoro's funny, wry first-person narration features quick, emotionally charged sentences that provide the narrative a breathless, hard-hitting quality . This novel bursts with much-needed optimism. A compassionate success. " ― Kirkus Reviews " Flores-Scott’s character development is extraordinary . . .Readers will find themselves intimately connected to and cheering for the success of these siblings. With strong messages of hope, survival, and the power of family, American Road Trip is a must-read. " ― VOYA

About the Author

Excerpt. © reprinted by permission. all rights reserved., american road trip, henry holt and company.

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2008

Daylight creeps into the game cave.

I turn to Caleb. "We played all night, man. We played all night."

Caleb Ta'amu does not respond. His wide body is sucked into the sofa, long hair frizzing wild, eyes bugging on a flat screen, zombied out on too much Halo.

I toss my headset. Dig through fast-food wrappers on the coffee table. Grab my phone and shove it in Caleb's face.

He slaps my hand, pissed I'm messing with his gamer trance. "What the hell, T?"

"Check the time!"

Caleb checks it. He whips off his headset. "Do not tell me it's tomorrow."

"It's tomorrow, Caleb."

He drops his controller. Hops to his feet. "You gotta get outta here."

We sneak upstairs. Caleb opens the door. He rubs his eyes in the gray morning light. "Second day, junior year. We're off to a stellar start."

"Yeah," I say. "We're killing it."

"You gonna try and make first period?"

"I guess. You?"

"I guess. If my dad doesn't strangle me first. You better go, T."

I hike the sidewalk-less, residential streets of SeaTac, Washington. Drizzle spraying my face. Water sloshing through my shoes. A mile of dark, evergreen-tree-lined streets. Shabby houses, beige apartments, barred windows, rusted cars on blocks ...

I arrive at my destination.

But I can't go inside.

I stand, stuck in this spot on this potholed road, soaking up rain to the rumble soundtrack of Sea-Tac Airport jumbo jets.

They come. They go. Move in and out.

I cannot move.

And I can't stop staring at the dented-up front door of a tiny, falling-down rental house — our tiny, falling-down rental house.

And I can't stop thinking how we got here.

How two summers ago, we rode the happy housing bubble right into a bright blue, boxy, four-bathroom house down in Des Moines. My mom and dad's marriage needed a spark. My dad hoped a big new house would do the trick.

One year later the housing bubble popped.

The whole economy popped.

Orders for Boeing planes slowed way down and Fauntleroy Fabrication in Seattle — where my dad machined airplane parts and my mom was a warehouse clerk — went belly-up.

Papi's fat union check was gone.

Mami traded her living-wage job for part-time work at Walmart.

And we went from being a family that didn't worry much about money, to one that did.

I'll never forget the night last spring. My dad drove me and my sister, Xochitl, ten minutes from Des Moines to SeaTac. And he parked right here in front of this rental. Right where I'm standing. He told us he'd done the math and decided it would be better to hang on to some savings and walk away from the new house now, than be stuck owing way more than it's worth. He'd rather tank his credit for years than put us in a deeper financial hole. He said we'd swallow our pride and move on.

Then he pointed at the dented-up metal door. And said we'd be living here for a while.

The drizzle turns to showers. I take a step toward that door.

But I can't do it.

I can't open up.

Cuz I can't stop thinking about my big brother, Manny.

And I can't stop thinking about us back when we were still living in our old house — the solid little house we all grew up in — the one where we still lived when Manny left us for Iraq. For years, every time I saw our front door, I'd have this hope he'd be inside when I opened up. My brother would be sitting there, smiling at me like he never went to war. He'd be ready to toss a baseball. Take me for a ride in his Mustang. Fishing at the Des Moines pier. Slurpies. Double-scoop cones. French fries and homework help.

I'd see that old door, and I'd feel that stupid hope.

But Manny's tours of duty kept getting extended.

So I gave up hoping for Manny.

And I settled for hoping I'd walk in and catch my parents dancing or cooking together again, teasing each other like they used to. Something would click and they'd remember how good they were before my brother shocked us with his big announcement.

Spring of his senior year, Manny sits us down and tells us he's off to basic training right after graduation. He says he's been planning this ever since those towers fell a year and a half before.

My mom flips. She tells him he can't go because he's headed to college. She tells him he can't kill people for this lie of a war. That's what Mami tells him.

He gives Manny a back-pounding hug. Tells him he's proud and gives him his blessing.

And that's the start of my parents fighting their quiet war at home.

The front doors have changed since then.

But Mami and Papi haven't changed.

Screw it. I'm soaked to the bone and freezing cold. I walk up. Turn the knob. And push in that messed-up door.

My big sister is sitting at the table. Xochitl is postshow buzzed. Scribbling in her journal. Badass in her purple-striped hair and tattooed arms. Smelling like cigarettes and beer.

She shakes her head at me back and forth, dramatic, fake-parental, wagging her finger, then pointing at the spot on her wrist where a watch would go.

I shrug my shoulders. Make a pleading face, playing like I'm in big trouble.

She chokes back a laugh.

I can't help but laugh out loud.

She shushes me, leaves the room, and returns with a towel. Throws it at me.

I sit at the table. She sits across.

It's been so long since the two of us hung out.

And so long since we played Radio Xochitl. I raise my pointer finger in the air.

My sister smirks and shakes her head no.

I bob my head. Oh, yes.

She looks to our parents' room. Mouths the words, It's too late.

I know she can't resist showing off. So I press the invisible power button and Xochitl starts singing.

She's Aretha Franklin. Powerful, even with the volume on low.

They say that it's a man's world.

She keeps her eyes on me.

But you can't prove that by me —

I mime spinning the dial. Xochitl babbles gibberish as stations fly by.

I stop and she belts out norteño — Los Tigres del Norte.

Somos más americanos que toditos los — I turn the dial. Xochitl busts it.

My method on the microphone is bangin' Wu-Tang slang'll leave your headpiece hang —

I spin again and again and she doesn't miss a beat. Dixie Chicks, Café Tacuba, Jill Scott — then serious and intense with some Ani DiFranco ...

What kind of paradise am I looking for? I've got everything I want and still I want more

Even in a whisper, Xochitl can kill you with a song. I poke that power button in the air. Radio Xochitl fades to silence. She's smiling, loving this. I'm smiling. Loving my crazy sister. The doors have changed. Thank God Xochitl hasn't.

Xochitl wasn't quiet enough. My mom woke up and freaked about my all-nighter with Caleb. So today I head straight back to the rental after school.

Xochitl's here, too. She's never home for dinner. I'm guessing she either got fired from selling zit cream at the mall or she quit another band.

Mami doesn't ask questions. We're all home, so she gets to work whipping up her one comfort food specialty: green chile cheeseburgers.

Mami's uncle, our Tío Ed, got married to a New Mexican and moved down there a long time ago. He started farming New Mexican green chile, and for years he's sent us a box every fall. Mami tried out the recipes they make down there, like green chile enchiladas and green chile stew. Those were tasty as hell. But the Avila family go-to became the green chile cheeseburger.

These peppers are not jalapeños. Not poblanos. I got nothing against 'em. But New Mexican green chile was created by the Almighty Gods of Flavor for the purpose of combining heat with cream or cheese and creating ecstasy in your mouth. So Mami only pulls them out of the freezer for special occasions.

I don't think this qualifies as a special occasion. But I'm not gonna argue.

It's a quiet dinner. Nothing but the sounds of faces being stuffed till Xochitl slaps a drum roll on the table. She splashes an imaginary cymbal and says, "I bring you this announcement from Fallujah, Iraq: Manny's coming home! They promised. He's home for good in February."

"How do you know?" Mami says.

"We e-mail. It's all set up. He'll call you with the details."

Mami looks at Xochitl like she feels sorry for her for being hopeful.

We've been burned so many times. I can't stand Xochitl even talking about it.

My dad says, "Vamos a ver, mija. We'll see."

Xochitl scoots her chair back. "We can't wait, Papi." She hops to her feet. "We have to get our act together now. For Manny. "

Barely twenty years old, and she's taking charge. "We have to make this house feel like a home," she says. "We'll paint. Put up prints. Get our old furniture in here."

"Xochitl, stop," I say.

"I'm not stopping. And I'm reinstituting game night. Everyone plays." She points at our parents. "And you two are going out on mandatory dates."

" Xochitl, " Mami says.

"And counseling?"

"Déjalo, mija," Papi says.

"At least talk to Father Michael?"

What is Xochitl talking about? We haven't been to mass in forever.

Then she points at me. "What's Manny gonna think when he sees you, you big lazy clown? There's a world out there, T. Find a passion. Set a goal. And go for it, bro!"

I make a beeline for my room, pissed at my sister for turning on me. Pissed at her for jacking up the volume on our quiet dysfunction.

Before I can slam my door, she says, "He's coming home, guys. Let's see some energy. Let's see some smiles. Oh, and I quit the Art Institute."

"No, Xochitl, no." Mami drops forehead onto palm and shakes her head. "You can't do that."

"I already did."

Xochitl tells them it's great she's quitting because it's too expensive. Plus she can work full-time during the day and help with rent and bills till Papi finds union work again.

"This way I'll be home afternoons before rehearsals to help out," she says.

"We're okay," Papi says. "No te preocupes tanto, mija."

Xochitl looks at the bare walls of the rental. Looks at our parents. Shakes her head. "We have to get right. And we need to do it before Manny comes home."

I wanna tell Xochitl that's impossible. Cuz Manny being here — being with us — is the only thing that can get us right.

WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2008

Breaks squeal. Rubber doors slap open. I hop a bus headed for Seattle. I do not care where.

It's been a whole week of my sister telling us stuff we already know about how bad we suck. A whole week of her taking charge in a way our parents should be taking charge.

Plus, she bought Risk. And tonight she will open that box. My mom will grumble as Xochitl explains the rules. Papi will ask a ton of questions. Xochitl will try very hard to explain. Mami will roll eyes at both of them. Then Xochitl will bawl them out like she's the parent.

If I'm there, I'll get pissed and walk out and my sister will throw down another lecture about my lame life. And the whole night will be a confirmation that Manny's still gone, my parents are a lost cause, and Xochitl has flipped and she's no longer my sister.

I flash the driver my pass. He nods. The breaks exhale. The engine rumbles and jerks us into traffic.

I would be over at Caleb's, but his dad got on his case after our all-nighter. Kennedy Ta'amu told Caleb it was time to get a life. Play a sport. Volunteer at church. Get a job. So now he's working a couple nights as a dishwasher at Vince's Pizza.

The bus winds its way north. Up Pac Highway. Past Sea-Tac Airport. Onto 405, then I-5. Into Seattle. The U District. The University of Washington campus.

I hop off at the Husky Union Building — the HUB — a brick, ivy-covered, dry place to kill some time.

I pull open the old wooden doors, walk past a bike shop, past a little branch of University Book Store, into a big open corridor. College kids lounge at tables and couches. They flirt. Surf the web. Read important novels. Argue about important things.

I head over to a newsstand to grab a Coke. I pay the lady and turn to go. No big deal.

But I almost bump into the girl behind me cuz she's on one knee tying her laces. She's got this shiny, dark brown hair hanging down so I can't see her face, but I got a feeling she might be cute and I want to find out.

So I fake sneeze.

The girl springs to her feet. "Do everyone a favor and cover that stuff up."

All I've got are uh s and um s because she is, in fact, kind of cute. Cute cheeks. Cute scowl as she stands there with cute brown eyes staring at me through long lashes and black dork glasses.

"Sorry about that," I say as I walk away fast.

"You wait, mister." She grabs me by the arm and examines my face.

And I'm like, "What?"

And she's like, "Your momma taught you better than that."

"Excuse me? My momma ?"

"Yeah. She taught you better."

"Leave my momma outta this cuz you don't know my momma."

Then she slips a bit of a wicked smile. "I think maybe I know your mamá."

I can't help but slip some of my smile and say, "How you think you know my mamá?"

And she says — her smile growing bigger — "Summers in Florence, Oregon. My great-uncle Frank's place."

I'm frozen stupid as time and space mess with my head.

This is Wendy Martinez, Frank O'Brien's grandniece.

But the Wendy Martinez from way-back summers was not cute. She was a bossy little busybody who chased me around and drove me nuts and — I'll admit it — I was a tiny bit scared of the little Wendy.

"You had better manners back then," she says. She busts out a full-on smile. "Teodoro Avila! Dude! Hug it out!"

We go in for the hug. Wrap arms like people do and ...

This hug. It's like firm? But soft and warm.

I turn to jelly in Wendy's arms as she squeezes tighter and my mind — everything fades and this is all there is. Me wrapped around Wendy. Wendy wrapped around me.

Then both of us — at the same exact time — inhale deep and fast and look big eyes right into each other.

That breath, those eyes — it's all way too much. So we let go and step back.

"My mom's at the bookstore," she says. "You have a second to talk?"

"I have lots of seconds," I say. But I'm thinking, I got the rest of my life, Wendy Martinez.

We find a bright spot in the atrium. We sit across a table from each other. Smile some nervous smiles. Then Wendy asks me about the family.

I tell her to go first.

Wendy says she and her mom still live a couple hours away in Vancouver, across the river from Portland. She's here at the University of Washington looking into a scholarship for women in science. She says this is the place to study health care. She's thinking about med school already. Wendy's got all the data and all her stuff one hundred percent together.

Before I know it, she asks me what I'm doing here.

I start telling Wendy about staying away from game night, but that feels way too complicated. So I sneeze again — I cover up this time — and I tell her that I am also here checking out the University of Washington, only I call it U-Dub so she knows I know people call it that.

And I say it with a straight face. As if I believed they would let me into the University of Washington. For actual college.

That's the first of my lies as I try to convince beautiful and brilliant Wendy Martinez that my parents are doing great. Xochitl's got a great music career going and she's doing awesome in art school. And I'm carefully considering my many college options before making my decision.

The thing about Wendy — besides her smile, her hair, her not-skinny curves, and those smart-girl glasses — is she is so full of caring. Like when the subject of Manny comes up and I tell her how bad I miss him. How scared I am he might never come back. Wendy looks me in the eyes as I talk. Touches my hand to make a point. Asks me if I'm okay — like really okay.

And when a stupid tear slips when I say I miss him, she acts like it's nothing. She just reaches over and wipes it away with a finger midsentence and says she can't imagine how stressful the waiting must be. How difficult it must be on all of us that Manny keeps getting redeployed. How much she hopes he makes it back.

When people try to make us feel better about Manny, they say, Everything's going to be okay. God has a plan. Everything happens for a reason.

Wendy doesn't say any of that BS. She gets that it's way more complicated. And that makes me like her even more.

In a minute, Wendy's mom walks our way. Rebecca O'Brien acts thrilled to see me. She asks how the family is and I keep my lies straight as Wendy takes off running. We watch her go and I'm about to ask, but Rebecca sighs and says, "You never know with that girl."

Rebecca tells me Uncle Frank misses us terribly. She says it'd be great if we all spent a week in Florence, like old times. I tell her I'll let Mami and Papi know.

Pretty soon, Wendy's standing there again, one hand hidden behind her back.

Rebecca edges away and it's clear they have to go.

I don't want this moment to end, so I say, "Wendy, being here, soaking this place in, I think this old U-Dub might be tops on my list."

"That's awesome," she says. "It'd be great if we both went here."

Then I totally lose it and I tell Wendy if she comes here, I'm coming here.

Product details

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B078X19SZF
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Henry Holt and Co. (BYR) (September 18, 2018)
• Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 18, 2018
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• File size ‏ : ‎ 6398 KB
• Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
• Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
• Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
• Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 336 pages
• #53 in Teen & Young Adult Hispanic & Latino American Fiction eBooks
• #105 in Teen & Young Adult Fiction on Depression
• #115 in Teen & Young Adult Fiction about Mental Illness

About the author

Patrick flores-scott.

Patrick Flores-Scott was, until recently, a long-time public school teacher in Seattle, Washington. He’s now a stay-at-home dad and early morning writer in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Patrick’s first novel, Jumped In, has been named to the 2014 YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults list, an NCSS/CBC Notable Book for the Social Studies, a Bank Street College Best Books of 2014 list and one of five finalists for the National Council for the Teachers of English Walden Award for YA Book of the Year for 2014.He is currently working on his second book, American Road Trip.

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