Mary Miller is a highly regarded American author, well-known for her novels and short story collections. She has penned several successful standalone novels, with her work often focusing on coming-of-age stories. Some of her most popular works include "The Last Days of California," "Biloxi," "Always Happy Hour," and "Big World."
"The Last Days of California" was Miller's first full-length novel and was published by Liveright publishers. The story follows a 15-year-old girl who embarks on a road trip with her family, traveling from the South to California at the behest of her evangelical father. Upon its initial release, the book sold all 25,000 copies of its first print run. Additionally, "Big World" sold around 3,000 copies by the beginning of 2014. Miller's "The Last Days of California" received recognition from several newspapers, including the New York Times, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Los Angeles Times, and Oprah's Book Club.
Miller's fiction has been featured in numerous prestigious publications, such as The Paris Review, the Oxford American, McSweeney's Quarterly, American Short Fiction, and New Stories from the South. She has also contributed nonfiction pieces to the New York Times Book Review, American Book Review, The Rumpus, and The Writer. In addition to her writing, Miller has held esteemed positions such as the James A. Michener Fellow in Fiction at the University of Texas and the John and Renée Grisham Writer-in-Residence at the University of Mississippi.