Oh, how I love him.
From Publishers Weekly:
The truth is, despite my insecurities, those rich kids did care about my story. So did inner-city kids in San Francisco, middle-class kids in the Chicago suburbs, and kids from the reservation, barrio, farm town and every other region of the country. Why have teens so embraced my book? I think it's because teenagers, of every class, color and creed, feel trapped by family, community and tribal expectations. And teenagers have to make the outrageous and heroic decision to re-create themselves.
I should probably read his grown-up books, huh?