Passport to Fun

Destination: Space Travel
Space. Word is it’s the final frontier, at least according to Captain James T. Kirk, U.S.S Enterprise. (Never heard of the guy? Ask your parents.) The distance from the Earth to the moon is 253,000 miles at its longest point; it’s ninety-three million miles to the sun. Space is a pretty big place, so it’s hard telling what’s really out there. Here’s a question: Which is bigger, space or your imagination? Launch yourself into the stars and find out.

Star Wars: A Pop-Up Guide to the Galaxy by Matthew Reinhart
It’s not quite fair to call this a pop-up book. More engineered than bound, it’s a fantastic, 3D encyclopedia of all things Star Wars, featuring thirty-six main pop-ups and also mini pop-ups that are tucked away in tiny flaps. Age 6 and up

Team Moon: How 400,000 People Landed Apollo 11 on the Moon  by Catherine Thimmesh
Maybe Neil Armstrong took the first “giant leap,” but thousands of others made it possible. With behind-the-scenes accounts (even with the space suit designers and seamstresses) the book chronicles the first landing on the moon and includes period photos and interviews. Age 9-12

A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula Le Guin
In this coming-of-age tale, young Sparrowhawk learns that he has fantastic powers while defending his village against enemies. Though he becomes a wizard’s apprentice, Sparrowhawk yearns to learn faster, so he
enters a wizard school where he makes a mistake that imperils the land. Age 12 and up

The New Policeman by Kate Thompson
Music was a way of life in fifteen-year-old J. J. Liddy’s Irish village,
but the townsfolk don’t have the time to play anymore. In search of more time, J.J. stumbles onto a land of eternal youth, just as the town’s mysterious new policeman does. Age 12 and up

Destination: America
Even if you were born in the United States, chances are your ancestors came from another land. Since the country’s beginning, people have risked their lives to come to America. Why? And what about the lives and the people they left behind? The United States is called the “home of the brave” for a reason. See for yourself.

America, My New Home: Poems by Monica Gunning, illustrations by Ken Condon
Short, simple poems tell the story of a young girl who has left her home in
Jamaica to come to the United States where fond memories of her homeland meet exciting new discoveries. Age 7-12

Honeysuckle House by Andrea Cheng
Victoria and Chinese-American Sarah are best friends who play together in an imaginary honeysuckle house until Victoria moves away one day. Tina, a new arrival from China, doesn’t want to live in the U.S. and Sarah doesn’t want to be associated with her. These two girls eventually become friends in a story that delves into their cultural differences and how difficult it can be to acculturate. Age 8-12

Ask Me No Questions by Marina Budhos
The Hossain family leaves their home in Bangladesh, dreaming of a new life in America. After arriving in New York City they find that gaining citizenship is a bureaucratic nightmare and they decide to stay with expired visas until the aftermath of 9/11 forces them to flee for Canada. The story is told through the eyes of fourteen-year-old Nadira. Age 10-14

American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang
Jin Wang, the lone Chinese-American teen at his new school and the target of ridicule from fellow students, falls in love with an All-American girl. Chin-Kee is an ugly stereotype come to life. A kung-fu master called the Monkey King is the most powerful monkey on earth who longs to be a god. These three separate tales come together in one very cool graphic novel. Age 12 and up

Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata
Kira-kira means “glittering” in Japanese. It is also Katie Takeshima’s
first word, taught to her by her older sister, Lynn. Katie uses it to describe practically everything. The word becomes more meaningful after the family moves from their Japanese enclave in Iowa to Georgia’s Deep South and Lynn develops lymphoma. Age 10-14

Destination: The Open Road
Short jaunts or adventurous journeys filled with unending miles, road trips give you a glimpse of somewhere else and how others live. With any luck, the change of scenery helps you view your own life (and the people in it) from a new perspective. At the end of a really good trip, you dust yourself off and tell stories about the trip–and about yourself.

Up North at the Cabin by Marsha Wilson Chall
A young girl journeys from her city home to a summer cabin in Lake Mille Lacs, Minnesota, and back home again in this serene picturebook. Age 5-10

I’ll Ask You Three Times, Are You OK? Tales of Driving and Being Driven by Naomi Shihab Nye
A collection of fictional accounts, Nye writes of connections made with drivers of all types from her travels around the globe. The chance
encounters with strangers are telling as her tales of backseat shenanigans, of driving others, and her premise that the journey is often more intriguing than the destination. Age 12 and up

The Mystery of the Third Lucretia by Susan Runholt
Lucas has a photographic memory and when she sees a man copying a Rembrandt in London’s National Gallery, she immediately remembers him doing the same in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts. What gives? Lucas and her friend Kari take off on a globetrotting adventure to find out in this new release. Age 8-12

Hit the Road by Caroline B. Cooney
Brit possesses a newly earned driver’s license when she’s dropped off at her grandmother’s house for two weeks while her parents go on vacation. But Nannie is bent on attending her sixty-fifth class reunion three states away and she enlists young Brit as her driver. Age 12 and up