Dear Lucy,
I am leaving this note taped to your door because we are leaving and it is only 6 o'clock. My mother said even best friends don't wake each other up at this hour of the morning.
I know you will take good care of Buster and Bruno. They are waiting for you on the shelf in the garage. They need to have their bowl cleaned twice a week, and if you sing "God Bless America" to them while you're scrubbing, I know they will appreciate it.
My mother says the next four weeks will fly by and we'll be back in New Jersey before I know it. She's only saying that because she doesn't have to share the backseat with Brian. I'll write you often if I survive him.
Your best friend,
Kate
"Kate's letters to her best friend Lucy chronicle her family's four-week trip by car from New Jersey to Florida and back, visiting 11 states on the trip. Kate tells about the sights they see and adds a few facts such as state birds and flowers for most places. She reports all of the annoying things that her little brother Brian does, but there is a real sense of caring between the two as well. ... Kate's letters are convincingly childlike. She reports those things that would impress a child. Brown's illustrations complement the text well. They have a casual, vacation-snapshot feel, and although facial features are limited to dots and lines, emotions are clear." - School Library Journal
ISBN0-02-714350-3