A Hero's Guide to Summer Vacation
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  • Published: 4 June 2025
  • ISBN: 9780451479754
  • Imprint: Kokila
  • Format: Hardback
  • Pages: 288
  • RRP: $39.99

A Hero's Guide to Summer Vacation

  • Pablo Cartaya
Formats & editions
EBook
6 May 2025
Audiobook
6 May 2025
Hardback
4 Jun 2025
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An instant New York Times bestseller!

Reality proves more epic than fantasy in this family road trip story starring a reluctant young hero and his curmudgeonly grandfather.

An instant New York Times bestseller!

Reality proves more epic than fantasy in this family road trip story starring a reluctant young hero and his curmudgeonly grandfather.

Gonzalo Alberto Sánchez García has never considered himself the hero of his own story. He’s an observer, quietly snapshotting landscapes and drawing the creatures he imagines emerging from them. Forced to spend the summer with his estranged grandfather, Alberto William García—the very famous reclusive author—Gonzalo doesn't expect to learn that heroes and monsters are not only the stuff of fantasy.

But that’s precisely what happens when Gonzalo’s CEO mother, Veronica, sends Alberto on tour to promote the final book in his fantasy series for children and Gonzalo must tag along, even though he feels no connection to his grandfather or the books. Together, they embark on a cross-country road trip from Mendocino to Miami in a classic 1968 Oldsmobile Cutlass S convertible named Mathilde. Over the course of ten epic days on the highway, they will slay demons, real and imagined; confront old stories to write new ones; and learn what it truly means to show up for your family.
  • Published: 4 June 2025
  • ISBN: 9780451479754
  • Imprint: Kokila
  • Format: Hardback
  • Pages: 288
  • RRP: $39.99
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Praise for A Hero's Guide to Summer Vacation


SELECT ACCOLADES FOR PABLO CARTAYA:

A Hero's Guide to Summer Vacation
An instant New York Times bestseller

Curveball
2024 ALA Best Graphic Novels for Children Reading List Selection
2025 Texas Little Mavericks Graphic Novel Reading List Selection

The Last Beekeeper
Jane Addams Children's Book Award for Younger Children Finalist
Texas Bluebonnet Award List 2022-23

Each Tiny Spark
2020 Schneider Family Book Award Honor For Middle Grade
A Georgia Children’s Book Award Nominee

Marcus Vega Doesn't Speak Spanish
14 state lists, including Florida Sunshine!

The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora
2018 Pura Belpré Author Honor Book
E. B. White Read-Aloud Middle Reader Award Finalist
An Amazon, Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, Bank Street, CPL, and NYPL Best Book 
15 state lists, including Texas Lone Star and Florida Sunshine!


SELECT ACCOLADES FOR PABLO CARTAYA:

A Hero's Guide to Summer Vacation
An instant New York Times bestseller

Curveball
2024 ALA Best Graphic Novels for Children Reading List Selection
2025 Texas Little Mavericks Graphic Novel Reading List Selection

The Last Beekeeper
Jane Addams Children's Book Award for Younger Children Finalist
Texas Bluebonnet Award List 2022-23

Each Tiny Spark
2020 Schneider Family Book Award Honor For Middle Grade
A Georgia Children’s Book Award Nominee

Marcus Vega Doesn't Speak Spanish
14 state lists, including Florida Sunshine!

The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora
2018 Pura Belpré Author Honor Book
E. B. White Read-Aloud Middle Reader Award Finalist
An Amazon, Kirkus, Publishers Weekly, Bank Street, CPL, and NYPL Best Book 
15 state lists, including Texas Lone Star and Florida Sunshine!

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