Amelia's Are-We-There-Yet Longest Ever Car Trip

Amelia's Notebooks #3

by Marissa Moss

Amelia may not be thrilled about sharing the backseat with her sister—but no family road trip is too long when a best friend visit is the destination!

When Amelia and her big sister Cleo share the backseat of the car for a family road trip, there are fights to be had, sights to be seen, and friends to be visited—because at the end of journey, Amelia gets to spend time with her best friend Nadia!

Genres: Childrens, Middle Grade, Picture Books, Fiction, Graphic Novels, Young Adult, Juvenile

40 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Marissa Moss has written more than seventy books, from picture books to middle-grade and young adult novels. Best known for the Amelia's Notebook series, her books are popular with teachers and children alike. Her picture book Barbed Wire Baseball won the California Book Award gold medal. Moss is also the founder of Creston Books, an independent children's publishing house.

Reviews

[Rachel Kopel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really love the Amelia books. Written in the style of a maybe sixth grader, Amelia and her mom and her awful sister Cleo set out on a car trip. In her faux-composition book, Marissa Moss captures their adventures in the sort of brilliant illustrated travel journal I keep striving for. We have just arrived at the Grand Canyon.

I finished this one the other night, such a nice pre-bedtime story. We have been to Death Valley, which I too have visited, Manzanar (a nice way to let kids know that yes, this really happened,) Yosemite, and finally to her old home town and the special visit with Nadia, who is indeed still her best friend. This is just a sweet story, well except for the parts about Cleo. :-)

[Savannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up from a school book fair when I was around the 3rd or 4th grade... 1998-ish? I loved it then. And I still have it stowed away in a box, where I frequently take trips down memory lane. As a young girl who loved writing in my diary and drawing my thoughts onto paper... this set of books was perfect. Amelia is the perfect companion for a young girl who loves to read, write, and draw; And she will be inspired for years to come.

[Annika M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book Amelia Hits The Road was a very interesting book. It was interesting to me because Amelia got to see her best friend and I have not seen my best friend in a while so I had a text to self connection. Some of the strengths of this book is that she was not the only character that the book was centered around there were other people in the book that she acknowledged. Some of the weaknesses is that it felt like in the book she was going from one place to the other and didn't really explain herself. I would recommend this book to a classmate because it is very interesting and eye catching. This book is part of a series, I will not conclude the series.

[Lisa M. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read these as a kid. While shopping for picture books for my friend's child I found this and bought it again. I loved the interactive aspect of this series as a child--all the interesting details encourage exploration and fun. This was still really fun! Ultimately I love the 'handmade' journal format. I appreciated the book overall although it felt dated/problematic in some aspects. Other than that, this was enjoyable to revisit as a child and I'll pick up more in this series if I see them at the used bookstore!

[Angela David · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book when I was a kid! All the little doodles everywhere, and Amelia's commentary were my favourite sort thing in a book. The chaos of it made me want to make my own journal.

[Kyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I remember reading this book in elementary school and loving it. Didn’t really bring back as much nostalgia as I thought it would. C+

[CB · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book a lot! The Amelia notebooks have grown to become a favorite of mine since I read some when I was a child and one in adulthood that I forgot to catalog on my Goodreads page (oops.) The sibling rivalry is funny and relatable. The mention of internment camps teaches kids something without being too heavy. The locations were recognizable and fun. The drawings as always are cute. And ultimately I would say this book is entertaining. Amelia worries Nadia (her long distance bestie) will have changed since she saw her last and is uncertain about their friendship. It wraps up nicely in the end. I like the quote from the short story Amelia wrote “sometimes she missed having a puppy, but mostly she loved having a dog.” The puppy was cute but wild and the adult dog was more relaxed and demure but less adorable looking. The moral of that story is: there’s something to love about every stage in life, and also you can’t hold onto moments for more than the time you exist in one… until it’s gone. But that being said change isn’t always bad. Good for all ages! I recommend it! Not 5 stars because I like some of the other Amelia books just a lil more.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I remember this being a lot more charming when I read it as a kid. Maybe it's just that it's almost too realistic--the kids who are so mean to each other and almost never get along take up most of the written space. A theme of the book is time and change. But there isn't really any on display for the characters, which is realisticfor a week-long trip but kind of dull to read. I also don't remember being so bored on my own big long road trips; we were well-supplied with books, notebooks to draw and color in, and clay to sculpt using the notebooks as a table in our laps. Still, the pictures are fun and this is a great example for kids who might want to make their own notebooks. I do have find memories of these books when I was the age of the target demographic.

[michele · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't believe there are 29 books in this series! I think I only got up to the 4th book as I think I was reading them as they were coming out (??). I loved how fun these books (or should I say notebooks?) were to read. Opening them up it felt like you were reading someone's journal. Lined paper, handwritten font, illustrations, objects that were taped to the pages (drawn to look like such with tape and shadows), all came together to really create the feel of a real journal. And Amelia was such a fun narrator. I'd definitely recommend this series!

[Riska (lovunakim) · Rating 5 out of 5]

-Short Review-
Amelia's Are-We-There-Yet Longest Ever Car Trip by Marissa Moss

Buku ini bikin aku semangat buat lanjutin jurnalku lagi. Aku jg pengen gitu nulis surat dan saling berkirim Postcard seperti Amelia. Amelia menuliskan pengalaman yg ia lalui melalui buku ini dan membuatku seperti membaca jurnal miliknya.

Membaca buku ini membuatku masuk ke dunia Amelia yg begitu menyenangkan dan seakan dibawa traveling bersama Amelia dan ibunya serta saudaranya.

Ilustrasinya menarik seperti tulisan dan gambar anak-anak. Lucu sekali.

[Violet · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m adoring re-reading these books from my childhood. This series especially has a special place in my heart because my best friend moved away at the same age, but unfortunately unlike Nadia and Amelia we weren’t able to keep in touch (Still miss you, Mari!)

The heart and creativity in this series just can’t be beat, even if some of Amelia’s digs at her sister Cleo feel cringey through an adult’s eyes.

[ShaeDuke | Upstate NY · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great trip down memory lane from elementary school.

Amelia's notebooks become more interesting with history and geography facts interspersed throughout. The facts are simple and not embellished - encouraging children to learn something new, while keeping them short so the story can progress.

Love all the little drawings and tidbits on the page side, they always help to break up the longer paragraphs of text.

[Pauline · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maybe I'm biased because I first read this at such an impressionable age, but I think this might be the greatest Amelia book of all time. She made me desperately want to be a hardcore journal keeper. And this book made me want to get in a car and drive everywhere. A+ five stars!!!

[Don Gubler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice template for your own child's adventure, otherwise not a stand alone book.

[Amelia · Rating 5 out of 5]

So nostalgic!

[Margaret Chind · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is leftover from my childhood. So far, my daughter enjoys it just as much as I did as a girl.

[Tony Tagialuchi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Boring.

[Leah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't know why I liked these so much when they first came out. Now that I'm re-reading this as an adult, Amelia is really mean to her sister. I don't much care for that.

[anja · Rating 5 out of 5]

one of my fav books ever since i was little tiny. i have to revisit it at least once a year

[Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amelia is the friend I wish I could have had growing up. I love these books so much! 4.5/5

[Mervyn Ceridwen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I ADORED this series when I was younger after picking it up from the Scholastic Book Fair in the 90s. I finally found the authors name!

[Fatou · Rating 5 out of 5]

(This book doesn't have page numbers so I have to guess the page number or assume the page number.)1) I like this book because this girl(Amelia)has a journal and writ things down about her vacation.For example on pages 1 and 2, she starts writing down everything that they packed for the trip to the Grand Canyon.I like this because she can look back at the notebook and if she goes back for another trip to the Grand Canyon, she will know what to bring.Another example is on 128 where she goes to visit her friend and she writes down all the things that she remembered about her friend Nadia.I like this idea of writing about Nadia because then when you need to talk to her and forgets how she looks, you look back and you can remember.

2) You would like this book if you like to read books about other people's vacations.You would like this book if you like reading about other people's vacation because this whole book is about a little girls vacation.I like reading about other people's vacation because it gives me a chance to learn about other countries or cities.

3)One challenge of this book was understanding why Amelia and Cleo would fight and then start laughing and dancing together.The characters are counfusing.They are nice to each other one minute and mean to each other the next.

4) I would describe Amelia as kind because even though she fights with her sister Cleo, she still has fun with her.For example on page 7 she starts dancing with Cleo and admits it's fun even though she was just fighting with her.This shows that she really loves her sister.Another example is on page 20 where Amelia starts telling/teaching Cleo life things.This shows that Amelia wants the best for her sister Cleo.

[Patricia Stephens · Rating 4 out of 5]

I used to read Amelia's stories when I was younger and I always loved them, and that still hasn't changed. They are entertaining and very detailed even though the the story and language is simple and informal. This one was about Amelia's trip to visit her best friend from her old town and all of the places that she stopped to see on the way. Amelia struggles with change, and wonders if her best friend has outgrown their friendship since she no longer sees her all the time. "Writing letters and talking on the phone is not the same as being with someone." Amelia eventually learns a very touching lesson about true friendship when she is reunited with Nadia.

What caught my eye when I opened up the book is that the peritext looks exactly like a notebook with the whole schedule chart on it and the spaces to put your name and address. What was fun about it was that all of Amelia's information was written in and it related to the story. For example, on the address line she put "on the road!" since the story was about her road trip. The writing looked like it had actually been hand written in ink into the notebook, even though it wasn't. This made it very real which I thought children would really enjoy. The pictures were also great. The whole story was formatted as a journal, like how a child would actually write in a notebook and record experiences. All over the papers were doodles as well which were very interactive with the text. There were labels and pictures that complimented the story (or what Amelia was writing down). Overall, it was a very fun and playful book that had a great lesson about friendship to conclude the story.

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved reading through the road trip again, and Amelia realizing that even though she's far away, her and Nadia's friendship hasn't changed.

[Evie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember reading this series when I was around... 8 years old? Maybe younger? I absolutely loved the layout and pictures, and the voice that Amelia has. It inspired me to buy my own notebook and start jotting things down, even drawing little pictures in the sides. The thought had never occurred to me: that you could not only write in your own book, but design it to whatever you needed it to be. Even with my creative childhood, school hadn't allowed me to be that creative in my own notebooks. Read this book and BAM, there you go. Creativity, and the fond memories of reading something that was purely for fun.

[Ma.cox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once again, Marissa Moss is a wonderful writer. In my review for "The All New Amelia" I said I would continue to read the series, and I am. I rate this book a 4 out of 5 because their are many details and I enjoy knowing EVERYTHING! I didn't give this book it's last star because, I wish the book would be a little more organized. In a book there shouldn't be words everywhere filling up the whole page, even the margarine's. Otherwise, this book is a pretty good book, I do recommend this book or series to all my classmates. I hope they enjoy the book and continue to read them.

[Amanda]

I bought this at a half-price book sale because it looks so cool- like a travel/trip journal. I'll definitely read it before I eventually give it as a gift. I'm thinking a little girl who's heading on a trip would enjoy it. If I remember right, the trip Amelia takes is to the Grand Canyon from somewhere in California... (there's a map in the front cover)

[Riegs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amelia was one of the most important characters I connected to in my middle-grade years. I love that she has an artistic spirit, and a desire to reflect on what's most important to her. As a librarian, I love sharing her with a new generation of girls who dream.

[Abbie Arensdorf · Rating 2 out of 5]

Do not like this book because it has a lot of words all over the pages, it takes a lot of time to get through it and is not a good book to read in the classroom. This would be for a child that is reading on his or her own.