Road-trips and read-alouds

Are you headed on a family road-trip? Activities and snacks are important for fun times in the car, but don’t overlook finding the perfect read-aloud companions for your miles on the road. 

Curating a reading list that complements your travels is an exciting way to bring tales and historical figures to life while also connecting on a deeper level with the region you are visiting. Sharing a common story helps to build up family culture and might even curtail a few sighs of, “Are we there yet?” 

Northern United States 

For travelers enjoying the Great Lakes, Finger Lakes, and the Adirondack region of the northern United States, Paddle to the Sea by Holling C. Holling is the book for you. Following the journey of a hand-carved wooden canoe from the Great Lakes, over Niagara Falls, down the Saint Lawrence River and into the Atlantic Ocean, this book has stunning illustrations, a captivating story, and a geography lesson that doesn’t quite feel like a geography lesson. 

If your trip takes you through Wisconsin, adding Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder or Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink would be excellent additions to the reading list. 

Road-tripping farther east into New York state, Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder is a must-read. If you’re already a Farmer Boy fan, a trip to his beautifully preserved boyhood home in Malone, New York, is well worth the detour. 

Pro-tip: The Little House series narrated by Cherry Jones on audiobook are phenomenally done, and include Pa’s fiddling!

While in New York, research the lives and martyrdoms of St. Isaac Jogues and his companions and St. Kateri Tekakwitha. Saints Alive and The Saints podcasts have great audio content and resources for children to learn more about these great heroes of the faith. 

Additional read-aloud suggestions for the Great Lakes and upstate New York region: 

• Sport: Ship Dog of the Great Lakes by Pamela Cameron
• The Great Lakes by Barb Rosenstock
• Out of School and Into Nature by Suzanne Slade
• The Erie Canal by Peter Spier
• The Amazing Impossible Erie Canal by Cheryl Harness
• Over and Under the Pond by Kate Messner
• Crossing Niagara by Matt Tavares
• The Great St. Lawrence Seaway by Gail Gibbons

Southwest and Great Plains 

Are wide open Plains or beautiful deserts on your itinerary? If so, Tree in the Trail by Holling C. Holling is the perfect book companion to complement traveling near the Santa Fe trail through Kansas, New Mexico, Colorado, and Oklahoma. 

Travelers in the Great Plains might enjoy Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder and Under the Wild Western Sky by naturalist Jim Arnosky. Both books paint a vivid picture through words and illustrations of the great, expansive plains. 

If you’re enjoying the deserts of the southwest, Roxaboxen by Alice McLerran is a picture book worthy of your bookshelf. With illustrations by the renowned Barbara Cooney and prose that captivates the imaginations of children and adults alike, Roxaboxen is a must-read for desert explorers. 

Further reading suggestions for Great Plains and southwest travelers: 

• Brighty of the Canyon by Marguerite Henry
• Over and Under the Canyon by Kate Messner
• The Book of Cowboys by Holling C. Holling
• The Book of Indians by Holling C. Holling
• Cactus Hotel by Brenda Guiberson
• A Desert Scrapbook by Virginia Wright-Frierson
• Buffalo Bill by Ingri and Edgar Parin D’Aulaire
• Grandfather Buffalo by Jim Arnosky

Historic Virginia and Washington, D.C.

With America’s milestone birthday celebration this year, your family might want to dive deeper into the founding of our country. A trip to Jamestown, Colonial Williamsburg, Mount Vernon, and Washington, D.C. would be the perfect way to celebrate this exciting year for our country. 

There is no shortage of books focusing on the history of the United States of America. The series of historical biographies by Ingri and Edgar d’Aulaire are beautifully written and stunningly illustrated stories for children. Perfect for an all-American road trip are the biographies on Pocahontas, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Benjamin Franklin. 

American history read-alouds for a trip to Virginia and Washington, D.C.: 

• The American Doll Felicity series by Valerie Tripp
• George Washington by Demi
• Mary Geddy’s Day: A Colonial Girl in Williamsburg by Kate Waters
• Dear Mr. Washington by Lynn Cullen
• The Declaration of Independence by Sam Fink
• The Star Spangled Banner by Sam Fink
• The Great George Washington by Katie Broussard

Wherever your travels take you, there is a perfect literary companion for you and your children to enjoy. Time to hit the road and hit the books!