Are We There Yet?

You know that question that your child asks, 45 minutes into your 12 hour summer vacation drive? You know the one..."Are we there yet?" Taking children on long car trips can test your patience and dampen the spirits of everyone involved. We found a simple solution to this problem with a visit to the McKinney Public Library before the trip. My 16 year old son and I were scheduled to drive to Florida together and keeping a teenage boy cramped up in a car for 16 hours was a daunting task. Before the trip, I decided to check out a book on CD at the library. I found a recently released story for young adults called "Ready Player One" by Earnest Cline and decided to give it a try. We started the CDs as soon as we hit I-20...16 hours later, we were about 10 minutes from the end of the story when we arrived at our Florida destination. My son made me drive around the block a few times so that we could finish it! Rarely does a book provide an interesting story line for both teen and adult. This story is about an 18 year old boy, maneuvering his way through a futuristic world where almost every aspect of life is conducted online, through a personal avatar that you create. This is not what led me to choose this book. The part that caught my attention and gave me 16 hours of entertainment, were continual references to the '80's created in the mind of a mad genius who created the video game in which this boy lived and worked. This book turned out to be a fantastic distraction and actually made it difficult to want to stop for breaks on the road! Next time you have a long car ride planned, choose a book on CD to share with your family. The right story can turn a long, boring car trip into a memorable experience!