I read this because my sister sent it to me years ago and then Kristina decided to read it for the YA book club. It is a really touching story of boy who doesn't fit in, who doesn't really play an active role in his own life. Then he meets two people who help him open up his world. He never seems quite right or normal. You learn two things later on: that he is exceptionally intelligent, that he was sexually molested by his favorite aunt when he was a small boy, and that he blames himself for her death. The book is written all in letters - a one-way correspondence with a person who is never revealed. Only halfway through the book did I realize that he was actually mailing the letters to this person and never revealed himself or his address to this person. Parts of the book are heartbreaking, some heartwarming, some insights into the depth and sensitivity that come with being a wallflower. This is something I could have related to when I was in high school. Even though I always had friends, I never felt like I really fit in. And I became quite a good observer, listener, and empath. This made me special but also made me walk the line between taking up space in my own life versus only existing within a limited version of what everyone around me needed. I still struggle with this to this day. I liked this book because I understood it and related to it.
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