My American Adventure (Hardcover)

by Amy Burritt (Author), Kurt D. Burritt (Photographer), Amy S. Burritt (Author), Deborah Hawkins (Author), Lynn Bowers (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal
Grade 6-9-In the summer of 1995, 12-year-old Amy Burritt, her parents, and brother left their home in Traverse City, MI, and began an American odyssey that would culminate a year later at the Republican National Convention in San Diego, CA. In that year's time, Amy's dream was to visit all 50 states, meet all 50 governors, and obtain their signatures on her and Jon's sweatshirts. A part of Amy's homeschooling project was to keep a journal that eventually would become My American Adventure. Readers who travel vicariously with the Burritts cruise through New York City in a jeep, walk the path of George Washington at Valley Forge, and attend David Beasley's Christmas Open House at the governor's mansion in South Carolina. They also accompany Amy to Hawaii where she swims with Atlantic bottle-nose dolphins and to Alaska to see the Mendenhall Glacier. Although many of the girl's adventures are interesting, they read like a series of well-written, strung together "What I Did on My Summer Vacation" essays. Her descriptions of disappointing experiences such as rain at the Grand Canyon border on adolescent pouting. In the early chapters, readers have to wonder how much of the project is truly Amy's idea and how much of it is the ambition of her mother. The portrayal of Mrs. Burritt raising a ruckus in the office of the governor of Vermont is decidedly unpleasant. Still, youngsters should enjoy learning about Amy's sojourn and her many adventures.
Jerry D. Flack, University of Colorado, Colorado Springs
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
Fifty states. Fifty weeks. Fifty governors.

Taking all that in would be a lofty goal by anyone’s standards. But that didn’t stop 12-year-old homeschool student Amy Burritt from setting her sights on what would become the adventure of a lifetime.

It began when Amy’s father, determined to devote time to his family, sold his business to tour America with his wife and children by motor home. Their journey grew into Amy’s personal goal to meet every governor of every state. In My American Adventure, Amy chronicles her incredible, year-long odyssey.

Threading from the forests of the Great Lakes, across deserts, over twisting mountain passes, through urban jungles of the east, giant redwood groves of the Pacific coast, and past Southern battlefields, My American Adventure takes in our nation’s panorama through the eyes and mind of a girl on her road to becoming a young woman.

The view can be dramatic—at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean with the oxygen cut off, or plummeting towards a waterfall in Vermont. It can be moving, as Amy relives American history with her impressions of a pilgrim on the Mayflower, a girl on the Oregon trail, or a Civil War soldier in the thick of battle.

And then there are Amy’s meetings with the governors: men as diverse in temperament as this warm, aloof, tough, tender, eminently complex culture. Some open their hearts to Amy; others are cold; a few refuse her request to meet them. Yet in the end, Amy’s dream is wonderfully fulfilled—proving, as Amy says, that “if you can dream it, you can do it.”

First brought to national attention by CNN, C-SPAN, and MTV, Amy Burritt’s extraordinary story is told here in its entirety. My American Adventure shines with Amy’s strong Christian faith, zest for life, love for family and friends, and compassion for others. Filled with black-and-white snapshots, here are a teenage girl’s firsthand stories of the people, the places, and the nation she discovered on her American adventure -- Publisher --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 254 pages
• Publisher: Ironwood Press (MI); First Edition edition (May 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0966284003
• ISBN-13: 978-0966284003
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,280,858 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book--great stories, great insights!, October 6, 1999

By	B. Krueger "BKrueger" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: My American Adventure (Hardcover)

Our whole family thoroughly enjoyed this book. It was written by a 13-year-old, which gave it interesting insights, yet was extremely well written. We read it aloud during a recent 1,000 mile trip and were inspired by Amy's courage and dedication. The ending was truly inspirational. It's a great book to give to any teenager (my 13-year-old daughter did most of the reading) to inspire them to have goals and reach out to achieve them. Highly recommended!

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Persistent geographer, lucky kid!, September 21, 1998

By A Customer

This is a nice book for teens and adults about a year-long tour around the fifty states by a pre-teen in an RV with her folks and younger brother. Amy's tour teaches her about geography, the confort of home, the jealousy and withdrawal of friends, and the value of persistence when governors of the fifty states cannot meet with her. I will not tell how she finally gets the last five governors to sign her sweatshirt mementoes of the trip, but her determination and luck pays off. I am a church librarian and bought this book because it has many lessons and is just plain fun reading for our teens. I hope I can get them to read it--they need a lot of pushing to read any kind of material. The fact that Amy mentions her religion throughout the book helped make the sale for me. I am always lookiing for books that have a religious backfround without hitting you over the head with it. This book fits the bill. Thanks, Amy, for an outstanding book.

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing, June 11, 2006

By	Ashley Shore "Ash" (MI USA) - See all my reviews

Amy is my cousin and I must say her book is great. She is very creative and humorous, and her writing proves this. Amy is very talented.