RV THERE YET?

Bumps in the road, literal and otherwise, await a newly blended California family bound for Yellowstone National Park in a borrowed camper.

Drawing from childhood experiences, Nelson pitches a large cast of sympathetic, relatable figures into situations ranging from hilariously chaotic to (briefly) frightening. Hopes of reuniting with friends at summer camp crushed by her newlywed mom and stepdad’s surprise announcement that they’ve decided to replace their honeymoon with a “familymoon,” 12-year-old Charlotte “Cricket” Merrivale unhappily finds herself packed into a 25-foot RV. She’s accompanied by her younger brother and sister, two younger stepbrothers, Archimedes the sheepdog, and a stowaway snake. Cricket’s distress as she too often finds herself having to ride herd on three active boys, including reckless, angel-faced, 6-year-old troublemaker Newt Buckfort, is easy to understand. Readers with younger siblings will easily connect with her—especially after Cricket herself connects with sensitive and sensible Egnacio “Ecko” García, a fellow park visitor from Texas who’s home-schooling while on a monthslong cross-country road trip with his moms. Nelson handles the crises and frictions with a light touch: Spats and confrontations eventually lead to apologies and mended fences, and mishaps ranging from falling off a horse into a pile of bison poop to finding a bear inside the camper are more comical than scary. By the end, the Merrivales and Buckforts, who present white, have cemented their bonds and are ready for more adventures together.

A rip-roaring road trip.