I loved this book. I was worried at the beginning of the book that the end line would be Christians = bad and close minded, scientists and liberals = good and desirable. But, I was gratified that Brande treated religion with respect. I came away with the impression that she feels, or at least Mena feels, that it's not religion that is bad and closed minded, per se, just some people's interpretations of it. There are also a lot of little things I loved -- Kayla, Casey's older sister; the puppies; the Lord of the Rings references (watched parts of Two Towers last night because of the book....); and that Brande captured a 14-year-old girl's search to find herself while remaining true to the beliefs she was brought up in. And she does it most excellently.