"Road Trip" Revelations

It was hard not to be drawn to Gary Paulsen's "Road Trip", as it was on a table next to a plate of sausage and potatoes.  While I tried to get my nose onto the plate, which was just a little out of reach, I noticed that this book had two dogs on the cover, although one seemed to be upside-down.  I don't get that at all, the drool would all go the wrong way!

Gary Paulsen wrote this book with his son, Jim, who I guess is not even a writer.  He sure did a good job, because the book is definitely up to my high standards.  The main characters are a teenage boy and his father, and they are on a road trip to get a Border Collie puppy who needs a home.  The dad is most decidedly unpredictable and things start going wrong right away.  Two wrongs don't make a right, but maybe a lot of wrongs do because this road trip snowballs into an adventure that will not be forgotten.

A man and his son and the family dog in a truck become a "family" that soon includes a tattooed friend trying to turn his life around, a lonely mechanic willing to take a chance, and a smart, tough girl getting away from a bad thing.  Oh, and the truck breaks down and they end up traveling in a big refurbished school bus, which seems to be always driving over the speed limit.

People only show the parts of them they want others to see.  I bet you have things you hide inside, even from your parents and best friends.  Can you ever really know another person the way you know yourself?  You people need to stop blah-blah-blahing and be still.  Take time to use your senses.  Smell the other human, watch for body language, really listen with your fur-free ears.  This school bus is full of people who are caring about each other, but they are hiding their problems and misreading the people around them.  The one who understands it all is Atticus the dog, and every few chapters he gets to have his say and let the reader in on the truth of what is going on with these people he loves.

Gary Paulsen sure knows dogs, and he also knows how to tell a good story that is funny and triumphant all at the same time.  This one is extra special because Jim helped write the story and because there are bits of sausage on the spine
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