Clean Getaway [electronic resource] / Nic Stone

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  • Additional Information
    • Abstract:
      Summary: From New York Times bestselling author Nic Stone comes a middle-grade road-trip story through American race relations past and present, perfect for Black History Month and for fans of Jacqueline Woodson and Jason Reynolds. How to Go on an Unplanned Road Trip with Your Grandma: Grab a Suitcase: Prepacked from the big spring break trip that got CANCELLED. Fasten Your Seatbelt: G'ma's never conventional, so this trip won't be either. Use the Green Book: G'ma's most treasured possession. It holds history, memories, and most important, the way home. What Not to Bring: A Cell Phone: Avoid contact with Dad at all costs. Even when G'ma starts acting stranger than usual. Set against the backdrop of the segregation history of the American South, take a trip with New York Times bestselling Nic Stone and an eleven-year-old boy who is about to discover that the world hasn't always been a welcoming place for kids like him, and things aren't always what they seem—his G'ma included. Real historical elements like the Green Book, the subject and namesake of the recent Oscar winning film, make this an educational and powerful read.
    • Notes:
      Adobe EPUB eBook ebook-epub-adobe 12175944
      Kindle Book ebook-kindle
      OverDrive Read ebook-overdrive
    • ISBN:
      9781984892997
    • Accession Number:
      fay.684816

Reviews

Booklist Reviews 2019 October #2

*Starred Review* Stone's (Odd One Out, 2018) heartwarming, character-centered, and humorous middle-grade debut is a sure-fire winner in this timely story about a boy retracing the South's segregationist past with his grandmother. Black middle-schooler and computer whiz William Scoob Lamar is looking forward to being grounded for the entirety of spring break when his grandmother, an octogenarian white woman, whisks him away in a brand-new Winnebago on a trip to retrace her history. The ways in which G'ma's days of old dovetail with the American civil rights movement do more than teach Scoob about the injustices of Jim Crow and the fight for equality; each stop provides clues to deciphering the mystery surrounding his grandfather's life in prison and estrangement from Scoob's father. Adding Scoob's wry conversational observations about the odyssey to maps and a Green Book, an essential travel guide for African Americans designed to help them find accommodations willing to admit them and avoid towns known for terrorizing Black people, contributes levity and realism to what could have been a topic too emotionally heavy for middle-grade readers. Instead, it explores an integral part of America's past through the lens of one family's journey to mutual understanding and eventual generational acceptance. An absolute firecracker of a book and a must-have for children's collections. Grades 5-8. Copyright 2019 Booklist Reviews.

Horn Book Magazine Reviews 2020 #3

When G'ma asks Scoob to go on "a little adventure" during spring break, he doesn't hesitate to say yes (especially since he's been grounded for fighting at school). Once inside her "sweet ride"-the new RV she bought after selling her house-Scoob isn't so sure he made the right choice. First, there are the people on the road who look at them funny because he is Black and she is white. Then there's G'ma's treasure box, which contains old maps, postcards, newspaper clippings, and a copy of Travelers' Green Book: For Vacation Without Aggravation, 1963. Next, Scoob catches his grandmother changing license plates and refusing to answer Dad's calls. Finally, there's G'ma talking in her sleep about "fixing it." But what is "it"? Scoob isn't so sure he knows who his grandmother is anymore. Young readers will enjoy the mystery and suspense created by G'ma's unusual behavior and the family secrets that are revealed. Occasional maps and illustrations appear throughout, highlighting important moments in each chapter. This middle-grade debut by Stone (Dear Martin, rev. 11/17; Jackpot, rev. 11/19) is an entertaining and unexpected intergenerational caper. Nicholl Denice Montgomery May/June 2020 p.134 Copyright 2020 Horn Book Magazine Reviews.

PW Reviews 2019 October #3

Part history lesson, part road trip, this notable middle grade debut by Stone (Jackpot) stars William "Scoob" Lamar, a biracial, black-presenting 12-year-old, as he heads off on a road trip with his beloved grandmother, G'ma, who is white. He mostly goes to escape a punishment from his father, but as the two make their way through the South, Scoob learns more about the grandfather whom he never met, the interracial couple's 1963 road trip, which G'ma aims to complete, and the ways in which the world has changed and remained the same. As they make their way toward Juarez, Mexico, Scoob begins to suspect that G'ma might be up to something more suspicious than recreating a vacation and becomes torn between contacting another adult and protecting his grandmother. This dual tour through pre– and post–civil rights movement America confronts the country's difficult past, including how fraught with danger travel was to the average black citizen, while raising questions about what progress should look like. A heartwarming, family-centered adventure that will leave readers guessing until the end. Ages 8–12. Agent: Rena Rossner, the Deborah Harris Agency. (Jan.)

Copyright 2019 Publishers Weekly.