This Would Make a Good Story Someday

March 15, 2017
Rising seventh-grader Sara Johnston-Fisher's summer journal chronicles a family cross-country trip and her own personal journey from acutely self-conscious preteen to someone -new and improved.- Sara and her friends have grand plans to reinvent themselves in the summer before middle school, but Sara's are derailed when her mother Mimi wins a fellowship to take and write about a family train trip. Sara's mortified by her family--two moms, college-age sister Laurel, who has a tongue stud, Root, Laurel's laid-back California -partner,- and her all-caps-loud little sister--and she's horrified by their New Train Friends: diminutive Travis, his writer dad, and his two nonagenarian -aunties.- The author comments on a variety of social issues through Laurel and Root's social consciousness and warns readers of the lack of privacy on the internet through Travis' computer savvy. Sara includes her own impressions of scenic and historical highlights of the trip as well as notes, postcards, and excerpts from other's writings. But this story is never preachy; it ranges from laugh-out-loud funny to incredibly moving, and the voices are true. Fans of Levy's Fletcher Family novels will be happy to hear more about Frog's friend Ladybug, Sara's little sister. Ladybug is Asian-American, and Travis is depicted as black on the cover; Sara and the others appear to be white. Ignore the title: this is a good story already. (Fiction. 9-13)

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March 1, 2017

Gr 5-8-During the summer before seventh grade, Sara's writer mom wins a monthlong cross-country train trip for the family, the purpose of which is to take notes for a new book. Sara, who had planned to spend her summer break with her friends, is furious. But she has no choice. Sara, older sister Laurel, 20; Laurel's boyfriend Root; younger sister Li, six; and both of Sara's mothers are off to see America. In retaliation, the tween decides not to share her thoughts about the places they visit (she doesn't want to be in the book; her mom's parenting blog is embarrassing enough) or be nice to anyone. The family members are soon joined by the other winner of the trip, an author from Texas; his son, Travis, who is the same age as Sara; and Travis's great-aunt and her friend. Sara escapes by writing in her journal. The story is by turns funny and sad, with a lot of life lessons. The plot drags in the middle as Sara's sulking quickly gets old. Also included are notes and postcards from various characters. Some of the ephemera are confusing; it's not always clear which character is the author of which notes. VERDICT Moody tweens will identify with prickly Sara. Purchase where the author's previous books are popular and for middle school collections in need of fiction featuring realistic family drama.-Nancy P. Reeder, Heathwood Hall Episcopal School, Columbia, SC

Copyright 2017 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from March 15, 2017
Grades 4-7 *Starred Review* Sara Johnston-Fischer had plans for her pre-middle-school summer break. It was going to be a vacation of improvementuntil her moms announced she'd instead be joining them and her sisters on a cross-country train trip. Being stuck in close quarters with her lovable but loud family doesn't stop Sara from trying to improve herself, sometimes in ways she never could have predicted. Levy's novel is charming but not fluffy. Peppered among Sara's journal entries are her big sister Laurel's thoughts on issues ranging from world hunger to the Black Lives Matter movement. Levy doesn't shy away from looking at tough topics through Sara's eyes, either, cleverly contrasting the railway's official fun facts with the not so fun facts she learns about the cities she visits. Sara has a truly unique tween voice, with her concerns about big-picture issues never diminishing the importance of her need for a new hair look or a burgeoning friendship with a fellow traveler. The novel features plenty of family drama and silliness, reminiscent of Amelia's Are-We-There-Yet Longest Car Trip (2006), by Marissa Moss. Though the book can feel a bit disjointed at times, its engaging main character makes it a truly memorable read.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

May 1, 2017
Twelve-year-old aspiring writer Sara is less than thrilled when Mimi, one of her two mothers, wins a writing fellowship that comes with a cross-country train trip for the family. Sara would much rather spend the summer with her friends at home instead of serving as fodder for Mimi's writing and enduring forced togetherness with their New Train Friends (or NTFs), the family of the other fellowship winner. She rebels in true precocious-kid fashion, by writing in her journal for much of the trip rather than being sociable, and the novel is presented in the form of her diary entries plus notes from other characters. Levy (The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher, rev. 9/14, and sequel) once again tells a mostly light middle-grade story about a diverse family, and though the text can get a little preachy as Sara (spoiler alert) comes to appreciate the trip, the occasional discussion of what life is like in a two-mom family feels natural. A loss among the NTFs adds emotional depth, as does a conflict between the moms and Sara's earnest, sometimes over-the-top activist sister and her boyfriend, both of whom are traveling with the family. Overall, though, this is an amusing romp across the country, full of commonly relatable family quirks: stubbornness, in particular, plays a believable starring role. shoshana flax

(Copyright 2017 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)