If I were 16 or 17, this book probably would have gotten 5 stars. The author is excellent at capturing the mindset of a smart, somewhat hapless teenager. I read parts of it thinking, "My mind doesn't work that way now, but I remember it working that way when I was in high school."

Basic synopsis: main narrator, who remains nameless throughout the book, gets his boring little world turned upside-down when he starts dating Anna, an eccentric, fascinating, magnetic new girl in his school. He can't understand why on earth she likes him, but he goes with his good fortune. She introduces him to a lot of new books and music and ideas, pushes his boundaries and makes him think about things differently - and he likes it. Then she disappears, and he has to deal with the fallout of that, trying to figure out what happened to her.

It's a short book, and always interesting, but the pace really picks up after Anna disappears. I had a really hard time putting it down after that point. They characters are outstanding, I think. I found them all very interesting and well-developed, even several of the minor characters. My anal, OCD side was sort of disappointed in the ending, which I felt left too many unanswered questions, but my more creative and spontaneous side kind of likes that, likes that it's not all tied up in a neat little package. Overall, I did really enjoy the book, and think I would have thought it was the best book ever written as a teenager.

A word for the concerned parents and teachers: there is sex in the book, but not graphic or anything - they just mention that two people had sex and that's kind of it. And there is a little underage drinking, but not much underage drunkeness - there's numerous instances of adult drunkeness, though. The only drugs I remember come in the form of the narrator's best friend, who is the school's drug dealer (and is quite a likeable character for the most part) but admits at one point that he mostly just sells people sugar pills. I don't remember much, if any, cursing - any obscenties are fairly mild, I think. As a former teacher, I would certainly feel comfortable handing it to ages 15+ to read.