The Key to the Golden Firebird

Maureen Johnson is one of my favorite young adult authors, and this book is no exception. Actually, I really liked this one because there are three main characters as opposed to the usual one.
There were also some really funny little dictionary-ish entries in this book, which reminded me kind of like the excerpts in Queen of Babble by Meg Cabot where there's bits of the fashion thesis paper between chapters. Here's one of them:
"Firebird, golden"
[largous automobilus yellowish]
1. A car manufactured by Pontiac. In this particular case, a car painted a color called Signet Gold and built in Lordstown, Ohio, in 1967. Almosy sixteen feet long, with extremely poor gas mileage and no modern amenities. Has a cream-colored interior and black convertible top and belches clouds of instant-cancer fumes whenever started. Attracts an unreasonable amount of attention from car buffs [for its collectability] and others [because it's brightly colored, noisy, and as big as a battleship].
2. A mythical creature prominently featured in Russian folktales. Possesses magical powers. Wherever the Firebird goes, princes, princesses, kings and mad wizards are sure to follow.
3. Presumably, any golden bird that's on fire."
(pg. 1)
That's how the book starts out, with these excerpts. So we can tell the title refers to the car that this family owns. So who are the characters?
Brooks: The eldest, a junior. When her father dies she starts drinking, lets her grades slip even farther than usual, gives up softball, and starts dating a juvenile-delinquent-in-the-making.
Palmer: The youngest, a freshman. Has no idea how to interact with people other than through her pitches on the softball field, has gifted softball skills just like her older sister. When her father dies, she retreats into watching TV with the volume up LOUD and following her pitching practice religiously.
May: The middle sister, and also the responsible one. Is working in a coffee shop and working her butt off to get good grades in AP classes for a scholarship to a good college so she can make something of herself and escape her dysfunctional family. Is good at passing every test but sucks at baseball, which creates a huge barrier between her and her sisters. This book is mainly about her and how she cannot pass the driving exam, so she can't get her license. Until her longtime friend/prankster/nemesis Pete Camp starts to teach her how to drive, but then everything changes.
This book is a little weird with the whole omniscient third-person-point-of-view thing (look at me, big vocabulary words!) but it was a good story and I like the ending, it reminds me a lot of Little Miss Sunshine.