TRIPPING

A satisfying, entertaining and engaging story about six Canadian teenagers who travel by van from Toronto to Vancouver Island as part of a highly selective “annual, school-sponsored, eight-week study/camping trip.” It’s told from the point of view of 17-year-old Rainey, quick-witted and observant, an artist in search of a “practical/lucrative future” who, in spite of wearing a “swanky new prosthesis” on her left leg, doesn’t let anything hold her back. Her summer is unexpectedly complicated by the news that her estranged mother has resurfaced after 16 years, lives in British Columbia and wants to see her. The self-named “Six-Pack” are mostly smart, interesting and diverse: Alain, a hockey-playing photographer, Meena, a wannabe veterinarian, etc. Family issues abound, overflow and sometimes tip into melodrama, but Waldorf’s imaginative, often funny and breezy style makes for a captivating read instead of a teen soap opera. First love, first sex, roughing it, danger in the wilderness, group living and traveling across the country and back together contribute to Rainey’s believable, growing sense of self. Teen readers will eagerly hitch a ride on this cross-country adventure. (Fiction. 14 & up)