Jellyfish

The thing about The Thing about Jellyfish is that the author, Ali Benjamin, MUST know what it is like to lose a best friend.  I don't know what it is like to have lost a best friend in such a devastating way as Suzy, the main character has, but I do know that loss.  The whole "how does the world go on turning" deal.
I also learned a lot about jellyfish!  I remember being a kid and stopping by a beach in North Carolina (I say "stopping by" because we never stayed at a beach, we were just passing through) and seeing a girl who had just been stung on her side by one.  It just seemed terrible!
This was really, really an excellent book.