The Key to the Golden Firebird is a witty and hilarious story. Maureen Johnson knows exactly how a teenage girl feels while going through her crazy years of high school. Mayzie Gold tries to find her way in coping with her father's tragic death and keeping her family from falling apart. Following Mayzie through her relationship with Pete was memorizing. They use to be enemies, but as he teaches her to drive, they settle their differences and fall in love. If you are looking for a book with a lot of spunk, this is the right book for you.

Mayzie, also known as May, is self conscious about her looks and what she says. All her life she has lived in the shadows of her two sisters Palmer and Brooks. Their father always chose to favor Palmer and Brooks because they had pure athletic talent. May has always been the smart daughter, who was thought of as dull. Her sister, Brooks, is the life of the party. When their father died she turned to drinking as a way to escape the pain. Her life suddenly shoots down hill when her boyfriend cheats on her. Brooks became depressed and lifeless. Palmer, on the other hand, is always awkward. She likes to be alone and blare the television day and night. Even though she is the star pitcher on the girl's varsity softball team, she does not have many friends. Pete Camper is a family friend of the Gold's. When May was younger, he used to play dirty tricks on her. From wiping buggers on her pencil, to telling everyone that she was blind, but got her eyesight back. Now that they are older, Pete begins to respect May and the more they begin to know each other, the more they like each other.

May works at a coffee place called Presto Espresso. Her manager's name is Nell. Nell is a crafty type of girl. She has piercings everywhere and likes the gothic look. May has to get rides home from Pete, because Brooks forgets to pick her up. Pete and Nell have a short relationship that is ruined when May confesses her affection for Pete. May and Pete try going out, but May over thinks what she is doing and suddenly gets angry at Pete. Their relationship is like a roller coaster because you never know what will happen next.

This book is amazing and should be recommend to any teenage girl. They can all relate to the story in some way; whether it's with boy trouble, fitting in, or grieving over the death of a loved one.