I started reading this book because the film is going to come out soon and i was quite excited for it. I'm glad the film prompted me to read this book because its quite good and i really enjoyed it. This book is written in the form of letters and the language and writing style are all quite simple, so its pretty easy to get into it and it can easily be read in one sitting. The book has lots of mini plot lines and it contains lots of different issues like homosexuality, rape, abortion, abuse and drugs. None of them are explored in much detail, but enough to satisfy the reader and not be too much. 
 Charlie's character was likeable most of the time and it was easy to empathise with him. He was quite nice and thoughtful and caring. However, occasionally, i wished he would be a bit more dominant and not just act like a sidekick to the other characters. Patrick and Sam were both great and i loved each of their personalities. The rest of the characters are pretty cool too and they made for an enjoyable cast. Overall, it was a great book and its made me that much more excited for the film.