Zigzag

A summer disappointment turns into a cross-country discovery. Robin can't believe it when her boyfriend, Chris, tells her that his parents have enrolled him in a summer program in Rome. It's their last summer together before he goes away to college, and now they won't even have that time together. It feels like the worst thing that's ever happened to her. Since Chris is leaving, Robin agrees to join her aunt and cousins on a cross-country road trip, in spite of her reservations -- she and her younger cousins have never really gotten along, and since their father's death they've become even more problematic than before. Soon the four of them are zigzagging through the West on an eye-opening journey. They explore parts of the country Robin never dreamed existed -- and she discovers inner resources she never imagined she had.

Robin can't believe it when her boyfriend, Chris, tells her that his parents have enrolled him in a summer program in Rome. It's their last summer together before he goes away to college, and now they won't even have that time together. It feels like the worst thing that's ever happened to her.

Since Chris is leaving, Robin agrees to join her aunt and cousins on a cross-country road trip, in spite of her reservations — she and her younger cousins have never really gotten along, and since their father's death they've become even more problematic than before.

Soon the four of them are zigzagging through the West on an eye-opening journey. They explore parts of the country Robin never dreamed existed — and she discovers inner resources she never imagined she had.

Publishers Weekly

A 17-year-old takes a zigzag route to L.A. with three less-than-desirable companions. The heroine's conflicts and romantic notions will strike a familiar chord, and readers might glean some inspiration from her epiphanies, said PW. Ages 12-up. (Feb.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

A high-school junior makes a trip with her aunt and two cousins, discovering places she did not know existed and strengths she did not know she had. The party was to celebrate my boyfriend Chris's high school graduation, no occasion for rejoicing as far as I was concerned.