Journey to an 800 Number by E.L. Konigsburg

Journey to an 800 Number is a junior fiction novel by the late E.L. Konigsburg. E.L. Konigsburg was a Newbery Award winning author. This particular book is lesser known and was published in 1982, but it was republished with a new cover about ten years ago.

Maxmillian (also known as Bo) is spending the summer traveling with his father while his mother is on her honeymoon with her new, rich husband. Bo's father, Woody, travels around the country with his camel, Ahmed. On their journey, Bo meets many interesting people and learns that having class isn't just about having money.

Sex: Bo's father has "sleepovers" with a female friend during one of their stops. Bo's godmother is a singer in a Vegas show that features topless dancers.

Language: Moderate. I say moderate not because of the frequency, but because when the language is used, it's pretty strong.

Drug/Alcohol Use: Bo tries a beer from his father's fridge. A few other mentions of drinking in passing.

Violence/Gore/Frightening Scenes/Death: A group of boys try to attack Bo and his father at a car wash.

Final Note: I typically love E.L. Konigsburg's books. The story line in this novel wasn't particularly bad, but I feel like the content should be categorized as YA instead of junior fiction. In fact, I thought I was reading a YA book until I went back and checked. It's not likely that younger kids will pick this up, just because it's over 30 years old and not very popular, but it was a unique story.

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