Musa and his sister travel to a Zanzibar beach in a shared minibus which, despite Musa's protests, gets loaded with everything from a man and his bicycle to ten swimmers.

Carrie Watts begrudgingly lives with her busy, overprotective son, Ludie, and pretentious daughter-in-law, Jessie Mae. No longer able to drive and forbidden to travel alone, she wishes for freedom from the confines of the house and begs her son to take her on a visit to her hometown of Bountiful. When he refuses, Mrs. Watts is undeterred and makes an escape to the local bus station, where she befriends Thelma, a young woman traveling home.

The seventh graders of McQuarrie Middle School and their Star Wars-inspired origami finger puppets go on a field trip to Washington, D.C., on what proves to be a very long trip full of shifting alliances, betrayals, carsickness, and sugar rushes.

"Nature is a capricious architect. One wonders what mood she was in, that time she invented chipmunks. Whatever temper inspired her, it was decided that, on completion of their seventh week, all chipmunks must leave their mother and set out on their own into the big unknown. But Nature's fickle moods change faster than the weather, and if pride won't ever let her go back on her decisions, conscience would always prompt her to make up for her shortcomings....

"An adorable and informative photo-essay about Eclipse, a dog who rides the bus to the dog park herself, became a viral sensation on social media and TV, and has become the mascot for the Seattle Transit Authority."--