Quirky Girls' Guide to Rest Stops and Road Trips — Karen Rivers

A high school graduate, wannabe writer, and proud owner of a VW van, Haley decides to hit the road in search of good material  -- after, of course, getting her driver's license. Finally, license in hand, she concocts a story for her hapless, hippie dad and heads to California with her enemy-turned-friend, Izzy Archibaud. Along the way, they break down, get lost, end up in strange towns with even stranger people, and discover that "Life with a capital L" may be complicated, but it's never boring. Written as a shared travel diary, The Quirky Girls' Guide to Rest Stops and Road Trips is both a road novel and a coming-of-age story. As she's forced to make her own decisions, Haley's voice gradually shifts from that of a vain, anxious adolescent to a slightly-less-vain, slightly-less-anxious young woman. From realizing that her first boyfriend isn't the one to recognizing that her friends are beginning to have their own lives, Haley's journey is one that resonates with young adult readers.