The Absolutely True Story: How I Visited Yellowstone Park with the Terrible Rupes

by Willo Davis Roberts

Lewis and Alison's vacation should be lots of fun. Driving to Yellowstone in a motor home, seeing all the fantastic sights, getting to know their new neighbors...the trip should be a blast. It turns out to be anything but.
First they discover their hosts, the Rupes, have no interest in nutrition, manners, or their own children. Even worse, two strange men seem to be following them. Could they have something to do with the one-hundred-dollar bills little Billy Rupe keeps finding in the motor home? Lewis is afraid the answer is yes -- and he should be.

Genres: Childrens, Fiction, Mystery, Juvenile, Young Adult

160 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1994

About the author

Willo Davis Roberts was an American writer chiefly known for her mystery novels for children and young adults. She won Edgar Allan Poe awards in 1989, 1995, and 1997 for best juvenile and best young adult mysteries. Her books included The View from the Cherry Tree, Twisted Summer, Don't Hurt Laurie, Megan's Island, Baby-sitting is a Dangerous Job, Hostage, The Girl with Silver Eyes, The One Left Behind and Scared Stiff.

Reviews

[Douglas Larson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Willo Davis Roberts was known for her children's literature where her protagonist(s) have to solve some significant problem in their lives. This is another one of those stories and while I did find it enjoyable to a point, it isn't the best written of Roberts' work. I have read about 6 or so of her books. Most of those I have read have a better story line and better character development than this one. I would say that this book does have merit but not as much as other notable examples from Roberts' canon.
Roberts passed away some years ago so we will, alas, no longer get these enjoyable children's stories.

One point I find interesting is that Roberts, before her death, lived in the San Juan islands of Washington. So her stories would often use place names and locales from Washington. Since I live here that added to my interest in her stories as I read them.

[Beth Gordon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been wanting to catch up with Roberts' backlist. This is a fun, not-scary novel about twins Lewis and Alison who are enlisted to go along on their new neighbors' summer vacation. The neighbors rented an RV. Lewis is accompanying their 12-year old son Harry, and Lewis's twin Alison is going to look after Harry's little brother and sister. The Rupe parents are disengaged; the husband is a horrible driver and doesn't listen while the wife doesn't care what the kids do or eat; she just wants to smoke. Lewis and Alison have to take care of the hellions, and they quickly figure out a car is following them and figure out what's going on. Light mystery for younger readers. Felt like several things were summarized versus being actually shown.

[Jennifer Denney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lewis and Alison are thrilled when their new neighbors, The Rupes, invite them on a 9-day road trip to Yellowstone National Park. The trip gets off to a rocky start when they realize the Rupes pretty much let their kids do whatever they want, Mr. Rupe is a horrible driver, and there are men following them! Lewis and Alison learn that the men who are following them have hidden some stolen cash on their motor home and they're trying to retrieve it. In fact, the kids are on the "finders keepers" kick and want to keep the stolen money! This book was written for a younger crowd, maybe 4th-6th graders who are interested in a simple mystery without any mature content.

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a great kids mystery. So gripping and exciting and believable! Also got to re-live travel in a motor home and a trip to Yellowstone National Park. No wonder it won an Edgar Allen Poe Best Children’s Novel 1994!

[Brandy Sharpe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay, so here lately I've been foregoing the reviews. I kind of decided against it on this one for one sole reason: the first half of the book... I hated it.
This was, in essence, a "mom group" from Facebook in book form. I feel that it stretched the boundaries of belief that this was written by a child and not the author unleashing her absolute judgy hate through her child narrator. And when she failed to convince us through the first half, she added small legitimate things like to make us hate the Rupes- inconsiderateness, Mr. Rupe being an irate prick, being somewhat neglect of their guests, Mrs. Rupe marking her book place with a cigarette (that one was a pretty obvious ploy.) Like, I thought the people we're supposed to hate are the antagonists??
This book's crowning achievement and saving grace, however, was the second half in which the mystery actually becomes interesting and relevant. It's still cheap and poorly done.
Boo.
Whenever I worry about whether or not my book will make it... I'm going to remember that this book made it publication.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute little YA story. Bad parents, bad kids (the Rupes) and good kids (Lewis and Alison). Yellowstone National Park, with bad guys following, bad driving on Mr Rupe's part, obnoxiousness from Mr Rupe, lazy Mrs. Rupe had to be seen to be believed, $100.00 bills hidden in the RV, junk food galore, Little Billy's klepto tendencies, and good babysitting from Alison. Lewis and Allison were responsible and smart and honest, a good example for kids reading this! It was a pretty fun story, but not magical for an adult. I finished it in just a few hours.

[I.D.M · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love this book because it show what will be the effect to your children on your parenting skills.

I really recommend this book for parents so they can see what will happen if they become like an Rupes.

Even im only 16 years old i already know how important is parenting because of this book even i don't have plan to be an parent.

[Scott Gillespie · Rating 2 out of 5]

A YA novel about two young siblings accompanying their new neighbors on a road trip that sounded at first like an amazing adventure, but becomes an unpleasant exercise in endurance for them. The adults are vapid and the kids spoiled. They all become embroiled in an ominous mystery. A breezy read, but the family’s ignorant antics frustrate.

[Miri · Rating 4 out of 5]

I never read this one as a child like most of the others and I feel I missed out. This would have been a fun read for 10 year old me. The rupes are terrible, the Yellowstone trip is fun and the rv trip was pretty entertaining.

[Sue Schleeter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this author, she is great.

[Matthew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Surviving Summer Vacation was my first time reading anything by Willo Davis Roberts. Initially published in 1994, the version I read seemed to have been revised/edited to allow for certain technological advancements. For instance, they talk about the blu-ray player, which I'm guessing was actually a VCR player back in the 90s. No matter, this was an entertaining mystery novel for kids. I was impressed.

The plot was pretty good, at least it's one of those setups that would catch my attention anytime. Lewis is a middle schooler who's thrilled to have new neighbors move in next door. Harry is Lewis' age and the two get along fine. When Harry's parents ask Lewis and his sister, Alison, to accompany them and Harry's two other younger siblings on a summer road trip to Yellowstone, Lewis is excited to accept the invitation, but things start going downhill from there.

To begin with, Harry's parents are the absolute worst, both neglecting the children, especially their own, Harry's mom is a smoker, and Harry's dad is the worst motor home driver and totally inconsiderate of other people. When one of the younger siblings, Billy, finds a one-hundred-dollar bill in the motor home. When he refuses to tell Lewis where he got it from. Then Lewis starts to notice a car following them from camp site to camp site and is convinced that these men are following them and perhaps for the money, especially when he notices them snooping around at various campsites. Only Alison starts to wonder but is too busy taking care of Harry's younger siblings to help much.

This was a very fun read. Willow Davis Roberts does an excellent job combining mystery, suspense, and humor in this work. She is a good balancer of plot and character that kept the book moving. I would put her up there with Judy Blume, in the case of being very readable, not very dated (outside of technological advancements), and highly enjoyable.

It also felt realistic for the most part. In many cases, I've read books where children do everything, solve everything, take on adults, etc. To the point where it all feels very fake, which in some cases is a good thing. Outside of the parents being very negligent to their children, it felt real, and maybe there are those types of parents out there. I feel like I read or hear about them more than I ever thought. I believe it was R.L. Stine who said that when writing for children you have to make sure they know it's not real so that they don't take it seriously, which is interesting considering his Goosebumps series back in the 90s were some of the most widely banned books. With Roberts, she does the opposite, which I appreciated. She put her younger characters in real predicaments without seeming false or outside the realms of the real world but didn't make them superheroes. I felt this helped heighten the suspense element.

I will definitely be reading more from Willo Davis Roberts going forward. If you're looking for an easy, breezy humorous mystery, there's nothing better than a horrible summer vacation gone wrong in Surviving Summer Vacation. My rating - 5/5

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my third Willo Davis Roberts book. I find I'm truly enjoying her children's suspense books. The protagonist of our story is Lewis, a very likable kid that has a good head on his shoulders. The contrast between Lewis and the new neighbor kid his age Harry is night and day. Harry's a cut-up who doesn't care about reading, school, or learning. Lewis likes to read, learn about things, and retains what he's learned. This story written for middle school kids gives you a glimpse into what living with another person's more lax parents could be like. When Lewis is invited on an RV vacation to Yellowstone National Park, he accepts, wishing his sister could come along. When he hears Harry has two younger siblings, he talks about his sister being a good babysitter. This was enough to get Allison an invite too. So, we have five kids and two parents in an RV going to Yellowstone. What could go wrong?

This book is fun all the way to the closing line. Don't read it until the very end.

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Willo Davis Roberts has written a very funny book about two children who are invited to go on a camping trip with their new neighbors, the Rupes. Mr. and Mrs. Rupe are NOTHING like their own parents: the Rupe kids can eat junk food whenever they want, there seems to be no discipline or accountability for the kids, and the parents do want they want, when they want. A dream vacation awaits! Or does it? A mix up with RV's, stolen cash, mysterious men in a blue Crown Victoria, kidnappers . . . and Yellowstone Park make for an exciting adventure. This book is sure to appeal to the 8-12 crowd!

[A. Kuhlii]

Fun & engaging little adventure, but it bothered me that even with almost half of the kid characters female, Roberts chose to give all the agency and action (good and bad) to the 3 male children, while making the 2 females passive, hesitant, scared, devoid of any agency, and firmly in the background. This might be part of the children's publishing industry b.s. pressure to make all the main characters male so male reluctant readers can "relate more" to the story, but I was disappointed in Roberts. I've enjoyed some of her other titles like "Megan's Island."

[Jeannie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Certainly written for a younger crowd, but the story moved along well. One thing I really liked about the book was how the two heroes of the story came to appreciate their own parents and their rules without the message being to "over the top". I think many young readers will relate well to a family that is more "normal" than most families presented in children's lit. A fun story for 3rd grade on up.

[Carole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Twins Lewis and Alison are asked to go on vacation with their new neighbors, The Rupes. They have a son who is Lewis and Alison's age and a boy and a girl below age 5. They go in a rental camper, and the twins end up babysitting the younger children because the parents and the older brother take no responsibility for them. Also, the twins keep seeing the same car following them wherever they go. Are they imagining danger or is it a coincident?

[Jezebel · Rating 4 out of 5]

It has been YEARS since I read this one. I still remember how hilarious and awesome this book was though. It has a colorful (and hilarious) cast of characters. The action never stops and the mystery will keep most kids interested. The overall theme is comedy, but there are some underlying themes such as relationships and loving your family that parents will appreciate.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

YA book- A brother and sister jump at the chance to visit Yellowstone with new neighbors (the Terrible Rupes) in an RV. Quickly realize the parents are irresponsible and 3 kids are wild. Even grow to appreciate the nutritious food their parents serve and how they help them learn. An element of mystery too with mysterious men following them. Light and fun.

[Colleen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not the target audience as an adult (and parent), but going along on vacation with super-lazy parents and hearing constant details about how bad they are at parenting eventually had me rolling my eyes. I can be as judgemental about other parents as most people, but it was exhausting doing it through an entire book, short or not!

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

How to raise children with no boundaries, morals, or good choices. Really dopey, irresponsible parents leave you wondering why they had children. Fortunately, there are a couple very responsible, smart kids leading the way.

[Laura]

I remember really liking this book as a kid, though not sure now why that was!

[Joseph Hodge · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this when I was younger I really enjoyed it.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The kids loved this book!

[Paola Páez Manifiesto Páez · Rating 2 out of 5]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHR9Q...