A Trio of Trips

As luck would have it, I recently read three great middle-grade books that have school trips abroad as the backdrop for the story. Getting to travel with your classmates — whether all the way to a foreign country or the nearby amusement park — is always a memorable experience. These books make the most of the heightened emotions and new experiences to weave captivating tales.

Ellen Outside the Lines by A. J. Sass (2022)

Ellen, who is on the autism spectrum, is going to Barcelona with her Spanish class, including her dad (as chaperone) and her best friend Laurel. Their exploration of the city is designed as a scavenger hunt, and when Ellen and Laurel aren’t on the same team, they are sorely disappointed. Ellen’s team, however, turns out to be pretty cool. They don’t mind helping Ellen when she is overwhelmed by noisy places, and they work well together to solve the clues. Bringing in elements of Judaism, neurodiversity, gender diversity, homosexuality, and more, this book covers a lot while embracing the joy of one’s first big trip.

School Trip by Jerry Craft (2023)

Part of the New Kid graphic novel series, School Trip sees Jordan and friends from RAD traveling to Paris for an eighth-grade trip. Jordan loves drawing all the things he sees, but even when the trip doesn’t go according to plan (with a chaperone mix-up and a light-hearted lack of funds), he feels gratitude for the experience of travel.

A First Time for Everything by Dan Santat (2023)

A fantastic graphic novel memoir, A First Time for Everything recounts Santat’s middle-school trip all over Europe. Given remarkable freedom (it was the 80s!) and with the support of friends, he starts to come into his own. He takes risks, tries new things, and even falls in love. A joyous and exuberant tribute to the benefit of travel.