Coast to Coast by Betsy Byars

I hope everyone is having a nice summer and keeping cool in this heat (if you are living in a hot place as I am.) I was thinking of Betsy Byars (1928-2020) because I recently read a children’s book by her which I had not read before. It is called Coast to Coast and was originally published in 1992. The story centers around a girl named Birch and her family as they go through changes brought on by the death of her grandmother. Birch is close to her grandfather, and “Pop,” as she calls him, has decided to sell his antique Piper Cub airplane, as well as move out of his home into a retirement community. Birch discovers some old letters written by her grandmother as she and her mother are helping to clean out Pop’s house. The discovery of the letters brings a mystery into focus for Birch about her birth. As Birch struggles with her confusion about information in her grandmother’s letter, Pop is sad, not only because of the recent death of his wife and upcoming move, but about the impending loss of his airplane. He has always wanted to fly from coast to coast in his Piper Cub. Suffice it to say that Birch and Pop decide to take the trip together without asking Birch’s parents. Ms. Byars and her husband were licensed pilots and they actually flew coast to coast in a Piper Cub. As you can well imagine, the descriptions of Birch and Pop’s trip feel authentic and are clearly drawn from experience, albeit fictionalized to fit the story. It was fun to see how Pop and Birch dealt with whatever difficulties they encountered in their travels. Because of the limited amount of gas the airplane holds, their trip required multiple stops along the way. The copy I borrowed from the library lists the reading level as 4.7 and recommends it for ages 10-14.

I have focused on one of her books, rather than the author, so I will tell you a little about the author now. Ms. Byars was the author of many children’s books during her lifetime, more than sixty, according to this article published in the New York Times, following her death at age 91. She was the author of The Summer of the Swans, which received the Newbery award in 1971. It traces the story of an adolescent girl’s sometimes strained relationship with her mentally handicapped brother, and the subsequent guilt and emotional struggles when he goes missing.

Ms. Byars was also the author of several series, including the Blossom Family book series and the Bingo Brown book series. To see a list of all her books, see her website here.

I hope you’ll take the time to find and discover some of the books that were written by Ms. Byars, and share them with a child. Happy Reading!