This book sat on my "please read me soon" bookshelf for AGES - and after reading it, I honestly can't tell you why I waited so long! Sometimes book hype is a real and scary thing, and it's not really warranted ... but in this case, I compel you to give in because I definitely think it's worth it! 
 The story, in and of itself, is basically this - a teenage boy comes out anonymously to one other individual that he found through a tumblr post ... but this boy just so happens to go to his high school. They communicate for months through email, both knowing that the other is walking the same hallways, but avoiding divulging any details that might give themselves away - until circumstances change and they start to figure each other out. The hope that the real life versions of themselves will match up to what they've presented through email is really an oh-so-understandable touch to this book that already has so many other things going for it! 
 I loved Simon; his voice was absolutely perfect to carry both this narrative and the reader's interest. All of the side characters were nuanced, interesting, and three dimensional - even if you only see them a few times throughout the book, you are interested in their lives and what their stories add to Simon's overall story. Honestly, the only thing I would have liked is maybe more closure with one particular character, the one that was blackmailing Simon through most of the book (oh, did I not mention that part?) (Yeah, that totally happens.) 
 I really loved the societal undertones of what it is to be straight, to be gay; to be black, to be white; what is assumed as you grow up and what you have to announce, and the various shades of gray that exist for different individuals as they grow up. All of us definitely do not have the same experiences in puberty, middle school, or high school - and I liked the attention the author drew to that. 
 All in all, this was an adorably shippy book and OH MY GOD when things really start happening and they find out who the other is, just. WOW. It's 100% everything you want it to be, I promise! *flails*