4 Audiobooks Perfect For Your Family Summer Road Trips

Photo by Vova Kras

Summer days are upon us. For most families, this means the pace has slowed, the days seem to stretch longer, and for the literarily inclined, summer reading plans have commenced.

It’s also likely that a road trip or two is on the horizon. If your children are anything like mine, audiobooks are the saving grace for the hours spent trapped in the car. There is nothing like an engrossing story to ward off back-seat bickering.

Our family dynamic includes three sons in their mid to late teens and a nine-year-old daughter. Choosing an audiobook to gratify all ages and tastes can be challenging. The following audiobooks are selections our entire family has enjoyed in recent years, or in the case of a few titles, listened to by my daughter and myself as I shuffled her to various activities during the school year.

I personally loved each of these books as much as my children, making them heartily adult-approved. As C.S. Lewis said, “No book is really worth reading at the age of ten which is not equally (and often far more) worth reading at the age of fifty.”

01 | The Vanderbeekers Series by Karina Yan Glasser

After listening to the initial title, The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street, we were utterly hooked and committed to this series. The first story introduces readers to the charming Vanderbeekers, a family who lives in a Harlem brownstone in New York City.

When the future of their beloved home is threatened, the four Vanderbeeker children embark on an adventure of mishaps to save the day. Consequent titles share a similar plot line—a dilemma within the family or community arises, and the kids must overcome a myriad of challenges (often of their own making) to reach a solution.

Themes of family, community, and home are predominant throughout all the books. Coming a bit late to the series, we binge-listened to the first 4 titles, then anxiously awaited Books 5 and 6. We are counting down the days to the September release of Book 7.

02 | A Duet for Home by Karina Yan Glasser

This is a standalone title by Karina Yan Glasser, but also an excellent listen. Like The Vanderbeekers, this story takes place in New York City and has predominant themes of home, community/friendship, and family. Though the subject matter is heavier as the story's setting is a homeless shelter, Yan Glasser handles a weighty topic in a gentle and approachable manner.

A Duet for Home follows the friendship of June and Tyrell, sixth-grade residents of Huey House as they seek to save their shelter’s future. The story is both sweet and compelling. Additionally, it provides a path to a meaningful conversation about an issue few children face, but one that requires compassion and understanding.

03 | Sweet Home Alaska by Carole Estby Dagg

Sweet Home Alaska is a delightful story centered on a family’s relocation to a new colony in Alaska during the Great Depression. The protagonist, Terpsichore, is the oldest daughter in the family and the narrative follows her experience as she forges new friendships, starts a library in the colony, and seeks to convince her reluctant mother to embrace their new home.

Based on an actual historical event spurred on by FDR’s New Deal, this would also be a great starting point for a casual summer unit study for homeschoolers.

04 | A Place to Hang the Moon by Kate Albus

My daughter and I listened to A Place To Hang the Moon this past year, and I can easily say it has moved to one of my top favorites in contemporary children's literature. Set during World War II in England, readers are drawn into the lives of the four Pearce children who have recently lost their last living relative and, like so many children of the era, are sent to the countryside at the onset of The Blitz.

The difference, of course, is that they haven’t a place to return at the end of the war. Desperately needing a new legal guardian if they are to remain together, the children hope that a temporary living situation due to the evacuation might turn into a long-term solution.

While some of the narrative is sad, the writing is beautiful and the characters are endearing. The joy-filled ending is worth walking alongside the hardships of the children.

In short…

While our family has enjoyed other audiobook titles over the years, The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall, just about anything by Kate DiCamillo, and of course, The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis are other favorite listens. May your summer travels be friction-free and rich with stories.