Dave Petzold is an author and illustrator whose picture books include The Kindness Club, written by Kate Bullen-Casanova, and his own Seven Seas of Fleas and We Live in a Bus. He lives on Bundjalung country in New South Wales, Australia.

A child chronicles a family's adventures over the course of a year as they journey in their converted bus. . . . The book exudes a strong sense of community as the family learns, plays, and gets help from friendly people along the way. Petzold's writing is lyrical and sensory, sprinkled with the sounds of calling birds, crackling campfires, and honking horns. In this quiet, slice-of-life story, it's the art that propels the page turns, thoughtfully shifting perspective by zooming in on crawling caterpillars, pulling back to create a sense of awe under tree canopies and starry nights, guiding the eye down into gorges and up to red-tailed hawks. The rustic illustrations complement the family's laid-back, nature-forward lifestyle. . . . An idyllic slice of traveling life.--Kirkus "February 15, 2026"

A family of four lives happily in what appears to be a retrofitted bus, tricked out with a compact kitchen, bunk beds, and solar panels. They travel from site to site--swimming holes, sunflower fields, wildlife parks. . . it's evident from the cheerful narration and curiosity-filled mixed-media art that this family's time in and around nature provides welcome opportunities for them all to wonder, explore, and flourish. Illustrations that, through varied perspectives, ably conjure feelings of big and small (e.g., when the family is looking at a parade of furry caterpillars in close-up or gazing at the trees or the stars) particularly capture feelings of appreciation and awe. . . the book is alive with atmosphere, and those curious about #vanlife especially will feel reinforced by the implicit messages of letting go and living in the moment.--Horn Book "May/June 2026"

Publisher: Beach Lane Books

Pub date: 2026-04-07

Length: 40 pages