In this delightful romantic adventure, a 16-year-old overachiever learns how to seize the day.
"I've got my entire life planned out for the next ten years - including my PhD and Pulitzer Prize," claims 16-year-old overachiever Vassar Spore, daughter of overachiever parents, who in true overachiever fashion named her after an elite women's college.
Vassar expects her sophomore summer to include AP and AAP (Advanced Advanced Placement) classes. Surprise! Enter a world-traveling relative who sends her plans into a tailspin when she blackmails Vassar's parents into forcing their only child to backpack with her through Southeast Asia.
On a journey from Malaysia to Cambodia to the remote jungles of Laos, Vassar sweats, falls in love, hones her outdoor survival skills - and uncovers a family secret that turns her whole world upside-down.
Vassar Spore can plan on one thing: she'll never be the same again.
"The locale, Vassar's gaffes, and quirky characters--especially Grandma Gerd and Hank--are what set this book apart."
VOYA
"As the setting shifts, so does the story's tone, from Vassar's stilted home life and stuffy parents to a vividly described environment and array of colorful characters . . . Suspenseful and wonderfully detailed, the well-crafted story maintains its page-turning pace while adding small doses of cultural insight and humor."
School Library Journal, Starred Review
"This is self-confessed travel junkie Autumn Cornwell's first novel--and she's hit one out of the park . . . Cornwell genially skewers both Ivy League-obsessed nerds and the Lonely Planet crowd."
