Raj and the Best Vacation Ever!

by Sebastien Braun, Sebastien Braun (Illustrator)

Overview

Raj and his dad are back! And they know they're going to have the best vacation ever.

Raj and his dad are going camping. They've packed everything they need, and Raj knows they are going to have an amazing time. Once they get there, however, they find they have to contend with wind, rain, and a family of very noisy bears . . . In this sequel to Raj and the Best Day Ever!, Sebastien Braun continues his warm, observant exploration of the relationship between a little tiger and his dad.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781536217056
Publisher:	Candlewick Press
Publication date:	03/30/2021
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	8.75(w) x 11.44(h) x 0.42(d)
Age Range:	3 - 7 Years

About the Author

Sebastien Braun is the author and illustrator of many books, including Raj and the Best Day Ever!, as well as the illustrator of the Can You Say It Too? series. As a child he spent countless hours drawing and filled his homework with doodles and portraits of his teachers. After graduating, he spent a few years teaching art before taking the plunge as a freelance illustrator. Apart from creating pictures, his favorite pastimes are making toys from wood, playing with his children, and riding his vintage road bike through England’s Cotswold Hills.

Editorial Reviews

Young tiger Raj and his father are taking a vacation, a trip that takes days of planning and luggage packed tightly into the car. Vibrant color and digital cartoon art move the action forward, following the pair as they prepare... This title takes readers through the ups and downs of a first camping trip, made even better when everyone works together.
—School Library Journal

Raj the tiger cub and Dad are going camping...But when the tigers finally reach the campsite, things don’t go quite as expected...Braun balances both child-friendly and adult-friendly humor, making it a pleasure for adults and children to read together. The illustrations are teeming with movement, life, and detail, and they are sure to delight children who are close observers...A sweet and satisfying book about a vacation that goes wrong before it goes right.
—Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

02/01/2021

K-Gr 2—Young tiger Raj and his father are taking a vacation, a trip that takes days of planning and luggage packed tightly into the car. Vibrant color and digital cartoon art move the action forward, following the pair as they prepare. Their small, yellow, overflowing car makes its way slowly on a zigzag map past city streets and stores, and after what seems to be a really long, long time, they arrive at their campsite. Capital letters and enlarged font emphasize Raj's opinions. "This is going to be the best vacation EVER!" At the campsite, it's apparent that Dad has done some of his homework, but setting up a tent isn't simple, and working in the dark is a challenge. A series of thought bubbles allows the reader to view his anxiety while trying to solve the complex puzzle of the tent. There's a friendly family of bears who offer to help with setting up the tent, fixing breakfasts, and guiding part of a hike, but—and this is never explained—Dad doesn't accept their offers until he and Raj's lives are threatened. VERDICT A suggested general purchase, this title takes readers through the ups and downs of a first camping trip, made even better when everyone works together.—Mary Elam, Learning Media Services, Plano I.S.D., TX

School Library Journal

2021-02-09
Raj the tiger cub and Dad are going camping.

Raj has read lots of books about camping and knows just what to expect: meals cooked on a camp stove, nights spent in a tent, days spent hiking mountains, and—maybe if they’re lucky—a ride in a canoe. Raj is convinced that this is going to be the best vacation ever. But when the tigers finally reach the campsite, things don’t go quite as expected. Raj’s father has a hard time putting up the tent in the evening and lighting the camp stove for breakfast. When they go on a mountain hike together, the tigers run out of water. The tigers camp near a bear family who all seem to be experienced campers, but Raj’s father constantly turns down their offers of help—at least until the tigers end up taking a wrong turn down the river. Despite all the difficulties they face, Raj is still convinced that their camping trip is the best vacation ever. Braun balances both child-friendly and adult-friendly humor, making it a pleasure for adults and children to read together. The illustrations are teeming with movement, life, and detail, and they are sure to delight children who are close observers. Although the father tiger’s inability to accept help from the bear family feels like a strangely adult conflict in what ought to be a child-centered book, generally the story is entertaining to read. (This book was reviewed digitally with 11.4-by-17.6-inch double-page spreads viewed at 55.1% of actual size.)

A sweet and satisfying book about a vacation that goes wrong before it goes right. (Picture book. 3-6)

Kirkus Reviews