The last days of California, by Mary Miller

At times this reads like a young adult novel because the protagonist is a 15 year old girl, and it certainly might be enjoyed by that age group as well as adult readers.   Jess’s father, an evangelical believer, has loaded his family into the car to drive from their home in Alabama to the coast of California.  In addition to his wife and Jess, there is an older daughter, Elise, who is 17 and, unbeknownst to her parents, pregnant.   He believes The Rapture is at hand and believers will ascend to heaven at the End of Days.  California is at the end of the time zones, so he wants to be there to witness all of it.  Although why, as Jess wonders, God would pay any attention to time zones is just one of many unanswered questions she has.  Elise is beautiful and popular, a bit of a wild child.  Jess is in her shadow.  As the family travels across the country, staying in cheap motels, or at the end of the journey in an expensive casino because the credit card will never come due, Jess and Elise squabble and gossip in the back seat, eat a rather remarkable amount of junk food, sneak out to meet boys and drink, and worry about their futures.  Less concerned about the end of the world than whether she will ever fall in love, Jess is a unique voice and it’s an enjoyable ride.  233 pp.