But adventure quickly turns to uncertainty: G'ma keeps changing the license plate, dodging Scoob's questions, and refusing to check Dad's voice mails. With G'ma's old maps and a strange pamphlet called the 'Travelers' Green Book' at their side, the pair takes off on a journey down G'ma's memory lane. So when G'ma, Scoob's favorite person on Earth, asks him to go on an impromptu road trip, he's in the RV faster than he can say FREEDOM. Anyone who enjoys middle grade books about boys, grandparent stories, mysteries, road trip books, and historical fiction will love this one.About the Book 'For the life of him, William 'Scoob' Lamar can't seem to stay out of trouble-and now the run-ins at school have led to lockdown at home. This book also provides insightful details about segregation in the US South, especially with the Green Book and the limits on Black people’s freedom of movement.

Overall: Clean GetawayĬlean Getaway, Nic Stone’s middle grade debut is a fast-paced, clever story full of twists and a sense of adventure. G-ma is definitely a more laid back, albeit also more scandalous in general. The two butt heads a lot but I like the way the story resolves the issues in their relationships. Scoob’s mother’s rocky past means that she’s not in his life and he’s being raised single-handedly by his ever responsible, seemingly stoic dad. One narrative arc that tugged at my heartstrings is that of Scoob and his father. I was thrilled to hear of a companion novel, Fast Pitch - coming this fall - about Scoob’s crush Shenice. Still, Nic Stone manages to show us enough that we have a good idea the kind of kid Scoob is. Instead G-ma tells us a lot of the past stuff - and boy is she a good storyteller!Īlthough Scoob is huge on the cover of this book, there isn’t so much about his day to day in the story. I also love the way it includes history without necessarily alternating between past and present. This was one of those books with surprising twists and turns. I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book. At first he’s happy to be spending time with this G-ma, but soon, he realizes that this isn’t quite the trip he expected.Īs Scoob and G-ma travel through the US South, G-ma lets him into family history: his grandfather’s life, G-ma’s misdeeds and what life was like when Black people needed the Green Book to move through the US.

Especially because his dad is mad at him after an unpleasant school incident and subsequent suspension. William “Scoob” Lamar is hoping to make a clean getaway with his white G-ma.

Clean getaway by nic stone