7 Road Trip Picture Books & Signed Book GIVEAWAY!

Please welcome today’s guest author, Beth Bacon. Beth and I are not only authors of books for kids, but we are also college classmates! Beth has written about a dozen books for young readers, including her perennial favorite, I Hate Reading, which looks at the world from the silly perspective of a couple of kids who are sick of being bugged about their requirement to read for 20 minutes every day.

Beth’s newest book is not about something you do at school, but something you do on vacation—a trip down Route 66! In her book, kids meet the everyday heroes, dreamers, artists, and athletes who helped make Route 66 one of the most beloved roads in the world. It’s also packed with fun facts. Like… did you know the first-ever gas station was on Route 66? (Before that, people had to buy their gasoline in hardware stores.)

Beth’s book about “the mother road” (as some people call Route 66) is a fun and factual trip from Chicago to Los Angeles. But this isn’t the only wonderful picture book about cars and road trips! Beth has listed some of her favorite picture books for adventurous, traveling families.

To celebrate Beth’s book launch, we are giving away a copy of Route 66: Faces and Places Along America’s Most Famous Road! Beth will sign and inscribe the book to the reader(s) of your choice. To enter, please leave a comment.

Hop in! Read on!

Travel Guide For Monsters by Lori Degman, illustrated by Dave Szalar

It’s not easy to create a rhyming picture book that’s hilarious for both kids and adults, but Lori Degman and Dave Szalay have made a book that’s fun to read aloud, fun for kiddos to hear, and super fun to look at. In Travel Guide for Monsters, readers are treated to a different monster in iconic locations across the USA. My favorite stop on this hilarious road trip is a stop in San Fran: “When riding on a cable car, your monster should be cautious. The ups and downs of Frisco hills can make a monster nauseous.” The monster may be nauseous, but the readers are laughing out loud. [picture book, ages 5 and up]

Road Trip! Camping with Four Vagabonds: Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone, and John Burroughs by Claudia Friddell, illustrated by Jeremy Holmes

Now here’s a trip book that can be enjoyed by both kiddos and grownups—and each for different reasons. Kids are comforted by the theme that different people, with different approaches to life, can be lifelong friends. (Henry Ford loved routines; Thomas Edison ignored them). The quirky, rich illustrations are full of amazing details that will captivate the attention and imagination of any kid. For grown-ups, this book offers a fascinating look at the friendship of four famous men. Who knew the inventor of the lightbulb loved camping? [picture book, ages 7 and up]

Are We There Yet? by Dan Santat

This book is a celebration of creativity. With a storyteller-illustrator like Dan Santat in the driver’s seat, readers are propelled into a journey that answers the question: “What happens when your brain becomes too bored?” Readers literally flip the book upside down, and along with the main character, we are launched back in time and across continents. This isn’t just a road trip book; it’s a book about patience, curiosity, exploration, and time … from dinosaurs to robots. It’s not just a book. It’s an experience. [picture book, ages 4 and up]

Along A Long Road by Frank Viva

This simple story of a far-flung bicycle trip is told in charming pun-adjacent language, full of phrases such as “along a long road” and  “around a round bend.” The rich illustration style complements the spare storytelling style. The graphics are bold and colorful, sophisticated yet accessible, witty, wacky, and whimsical. Simply put (to borrow from Viva’s linguistic style), this book is both full of wonder and wonderful. [picture book, ages 3 and up]

Alice Across America by Sarah Glenn Marsh, illustrated by Gilbert Ford

You may have heard of the first female to pilot a plane across the Atlantic (Amelia Earhart). But do you know the story of the first female to drive a car across the United States? Alice Across America is the true tale of Alice Ramsey. This determined woman drove a roll-top car from New York to California in the early days of the 20th Century. Resourceful Alice didn’t let anything—not flat tires, mud pools, bad weather, barren wilderness, or naysayers—get in the way of her goal. [picture book, ages 5 and up]

Let’s Go For A Drive by Mo Willems

Do we have everything you need for our trip? That’s a question many families ask when preparing for a long drive. In this silly read-aloud, Elephant and Piggie ask this question, too. Kids will giggle as Gerald and his porcine bestie gather up all the essentials. They get a map, sunglasses, an umbrella, a suitcase… but wait! Do they have an actual CAR? Mo Willems’ sing-song-style call-and-response dialog effortlessly invites preschoolers to participate in this read-aloud treasure. [early reader, ages 3 and up]

Signed & Inscribed Route 66: Faces and Places Along America’s Most Famous Road!  GIVEAWAY!

Beth will sign and inscribe the book to the reader(s) of your choice. To enter, please leave a comment. We can only mail to U.S. and APO addresses.