The Perks of Being a Wallflower - Stephen Chbosky

http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-0671027344-0 - Raz gave me this one for Christmas - it is a quick read, written in the format of letters from the main character - Charlie - to an unidentified friend. The books takes us through Charlie's freshmen year of high school where his best friend has just commited suicide and Charlie appears to have no other friends. The book is very simply written - to the point where I often assumed Charlie was supposed to be slightly mentally retarded. But, given his performance in school and special attention from teachers, it is more likely that he is incredibly intelligent and just completely socially inept. While the book has no amazing revelations, it is very beatifully written - and often painful in its truth. I really enjoyed reading this - though the ending was a tad bit depressing.