Every so often I still find an older online reader copy in my saved links. And The Best Worst Camp Out Ever by Joe Cepeda (from late April/early May 2024) is one of them. I honestly do not think I would have liked this book if I had not found (again) and read it on a day in October 2025. I was in the right place and it was the right time for it. Summer was ending, fall was bursting out (minus good color for the leaves in my area) and I was looking for something easy to read.
Nothing was what I expected. I figured things would be one disaster after another and the characters would be annoyed and unable to handle it. Everything was the opposite. Oh, things still went wrong (the father and son can’t get into the campground they want, they forget tent poles, they get visited by smelly friends) but they always make the best of it. If something goes wrong, well that’s okay, they fix it the best they can, enjoy themselves and go onto the next thing and start again the next day.
This approach (actually a mature reaction to a problem) was refreshing. Now, I am not saying BEST BOOK EVER but I am saying, I like this a lot. I like the simple text and illustrations. I like the colors and how they are bright. I like skunks. I like the fact that the characters are worried about things, but they just flow with it. And the fact that the memories made were really the best part of their cool trip was a nice ending.