The Griswolds drive to Disneyland.

(from Zoetrope All-Story Summer 2008)

Obviously, this is the story that would become the Chevy Chase comedy “Vacation,” and most of its major plot points were already familiar to me from seeing the film about a hundred times. But the differences were noteworthy. Told from the son’s perspective, the adventure has a touch of that A Christmas Story nostalgia vibe to go with all the mayhem. The whole thing is wacky, even wackier than the movie, but Hughes (who wrote the screenplay) really sells it by keeping the pace fast and the jokes sharp. More stories should be this fun to read.