Email Novel Suspects Logo
Hachette provides comprehensive global distribution services in the following territories:
United States flag Switch to United States region United Kingdom flag Switch to United Kingdom region Australia flag Switch to Australia region India flag Switch to India region

Hachette Book Group menu

  • Home
  • Publishers
  • Customers
  • Sustainability
  • Retailer Portal
  • Location
  • Our Culture
  • Our Careers
Go to Hachette Book Group home

Hachette Book Group menu

  • Home
  • Publishers
  • Customers
  • Sustainability
  • Retailer Portal
  • Location
  • Our Culture
  • Our Careers

By clicking “Accept,” you agree to the use of cookies and similar technologies on your device as set forth in our Cookie Policy and our Privacy Policy. Please note that certain cookies are essential for this website to function properly and do not require user consent to be deployed.

Look Out for the Fitzgerald-Trouts

Look Out for the Fitzgerald-Trouts Open the full-size image

Loading

Contributors

By Esta Spalding

Illustrated by Sydney Smith

Formats and Prices

On Sale
May 10, 2016
Page Count
256 pages
Publisher
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
ISBN-13
9780316298599

Price

$6.99

Format

  1. Audiobook Download (Unabridged)
  2. Trade Paperback

Format:

  1. ebook $6.99
  2. Audiobook Download (Unabridged)
  3. Trade Paperback $13.99 $18.99 CAD

Buy from Other Retailers:

  • Amazon
  • Apple Books
  • Barnes & Noble
  • Google Play
  • Ebooks.com
  • Kobo

Kim Fitzgerald-Trout took to driving with ease–as most children would if their parents would ever let them try. She had to. After all, she and her siblings live in a car.

Meet the Fitzgerald-Trouts, a band of four loosely related children living together in a lush tropical island. They take care of themselves. They sleep in their car, bathe in the ocean, eat fish they catch and fruit they pick, and can drive anywhere they need to go–to the school, the laundromat, or the drive-in. If they put their minds to it, the Fitzgerald-Trouts can do anything. Even, they hope, find a real home.

Award-winning poet and screenwriter Esta Spalding’s exciting middle grade debut establishes a marvelous place where children fend for themselves, and adults only seem to ruin everything. This extraordinary world is brought to vibrant life by Sydney Smith, the celebrated artist behind Sidewalk Flowers.

Genre:

  • Children's Books
  • Juvenile Fiction
  • Family
  • Siblings

  • "These kids are witty, full of heart and genuinely fun to read about."
    The New York Times Book Review
  • "Have you ever wanted to live on an island filled with selfish grownups and blood-sucking iguanas hiding in a dark and mysterious forest? Me neither. But the brave and inventive Fitzgerald-Trouts have such fascinating lives that I just might reconsider--as soon as I read this glorious book again, at least twice. I salute thee, Fitzgerald-Trouts!"
    Lemony Snicket, author of the bestselling series A Series of Unfortunate Events and All the Wrong Questions
  • "Spalding's playful tone takes the edge off the neglectful parents and dire circumstances, largely thanks to the plucky, self-reliant kids who know (rightly) they are better off on their own."
    Booklist
  • "A touch of Everything on a Waffle weirdness; a touch of The Willoughbys sendup; and a warm, genial, wholly original voice."
    Horn Book
  • "The Boxcar Children meet Dahl in a Hawaii-like setting here and it's all sorts of fun, with just enough snarkiness to add edge to the charm and wonder. A clever but subtle twist at the end adds even more amusement, and the overall effect is as pleasing as a tropical breeze."
    The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
  • "Readers will root for the spunky youngsters [and] relate to the kids' simple desires for a normal life, complete with goldfish in bowls and room to sleep."
    School Library Journal

You May Also Like

A Sky Full of Song
A Sky Full of Song $8.99 $11.99 CAD
Love Comes First
Love Comes First $19.99 $24.99 CAD
Lulu and Zoey
Lulu and Zoey $17.99 $22.99 CAD
The Superpower Sisterhood
The Superpower Sisterhood $18.99 $23.99 CAD
Black Brother, Black Brother
Black Brother, Black Brother $8.99 $11.99 CAD

Esta Spalding

About the Author

Esta Spalding grew up on a tropical island where she never wore shoes. She has since lived all over the world. When she’s not writing, she kayaks, bakes, and assembles whale skeletons with her husband, a marine biologist.

Learn more about this author

Sydney Smith

About the Illustrator

Learn more about this illustrator

▲
HBG Distribution logo
  • FAQ
  • Vendors
  • Cookie Policy
  • Report Piracy
  • Fraud Alert
  • CPSIA
  • GPSR
© 2026 Hachette Book Group | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Contact Us | Do Not Sell My Personal Information