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Kenny's Reviews > The Perks of Being a Wallflower
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
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by
“And in that moment, I swear we were infinite.�
The Perks of Being a Wallflower ~~ Stephen Chbosky
Passivity vs. Passion �
Yes Charlie ~~ I know all too well what it’s like.
Charlie is an outsider ~~ a typical wallflower. He gets bullied at school and prefers taking the forty minute walk home instead of the school bus. Written in the form of letters from Charlie to an anonymous recipient, it is a compelling read. Don't let its simplicity fool you, as this book has much depth. Readers learn that Charlie has many secrets that have been entrusted to him; one in particular has caused him to become a quiet person without a voice, letting people do what they want to him. (view spoiler) These things upset Charlie, but he internalizes them. Sam, the girl he desires from a distance, encourages Charlie to form his own opinions, speak his mind, and to show passion about his desires.
Charlie himself is a mystery. He has mental problems, gets angry, sees things and then passes out and cries. Right before he started high school his best friend shot himself, but there is also another, worse reason for his problems. At school Charlie meets Patrick and Sam, both of whom are outsiders too, just cooler ones. Patrick is gay and before his stepsister Sam introduced him to "good" music, he was a popular kid. They introduce Charlie to all kinds of new things. Parties, drugs, Rocky Horror, Billie Holliday and rock music become new parts of Charlie's life. For the first time in his life, Patrick knows what it really means to have good friends.
Charlie's immediate family is loving and supportive. Charlie's friend Patrick is gay and in a relationship that is accepted in their social circle. Homophobia is present, however--a boy is beaten by his father for being gay after he’s caught being intimate with Patrick, and Patrick is in turn beaten by his boyfriend and the football jocks at school.
Aren’t we all too familiar with the set-up where the loser turns out to be the really cool, popular guy? Well, all this is true too for The Perks of Being a Wallflower but just wait and you will find so much more. This book is going to catch and surprise you every time you turn a page.
In a series of letters written by Charlie and sent to an anonymous person we learn about his life, his new friends, his family and especially Charlie himself. He writes about school and his English teacher, Bill, who gives Charlie extra books to read. Charlie then writes essays about them. He would like to become a writer someday.
What makes this book so special and authentic is its reality. As an adult it takes you back to when you were a teenager, as a child it shows you what lies ahead and as a teenager it inspires you. And as we all know there is no other time when finding out who you are and where you belong to is more immediate than when you are a teenager.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower ~~ Stephen Chbosky
Passivity vs. Passion �
Yes Charlie ~~ I know all too well what it’s like.
Charlie is an outsider ~~ a typical wallflower. He gets bullied at school and prefers taking the forty minute walk home instead of the school bus. Written in the form of letters from Charlie to an anonymous recipient, it is a compelling read. Don't let its simplicity fool you, as this book has much depth. Readers learn that Charlie has many secrets that have been entrusted to him; one in particular has caused him to become a quiet person without a voice, letting people do what they want to him. (view spoiler) These things upset Charlie, but he internalizes them. Sam, the girl he desires from a distance, encourages Charlie to form his own opinions, speak his mind, and to show passion about his desires.
Charlie himself is a mystery. He has mental problems, gets angry, sees things and then passes out and cries. Right before he started high school his best friend shot himself, but there is also another, worse reason for his problems. At school Charlie meets Patrick and Sam, both of whom are outsiders too, just cooler ones. Patrick is gay and before his stepsister Sam introduced him to "good" music, he was a popular kid. They introduce Charlie to all kinds of new things. Parties, drugs, Rocky Horror, Billie Holliday and rock music become new parts of Charlie's life. For the first time in his life, Patrick knows what it really means to have good friends.
Charlie's immediate family is loving and supportive. Charlie's friend Patrick is gay and in a relationship that is accepted in their social circle. Homophobia is present, however--a boy is beaten by his father for being gay after he’s caught being intimate with Patrick, and Patrick is in turn beaten by his boyfriend and the football jocks at school.
Aren’t we all too familiar with the set-up where the loser turns out to be the really cool, popular guy? Well, all this is true too for The Perks of Being a Wallflower but just wait and you will find so much more. This book is going to catch and surprise you every time you turn a page.
In a series of letters written by Charlie and sent to an anonymous person we learn about his life, his new friends, his family and especially Charlie himself. He writes about school and his English teacher, Bill, who gives Charlie extra books to read. Charlie then writes essays about them. He would like to become a writer someday.
What makes this book so special and authentic is its reality. As an adult it takes you back to when you were a teenager, as a child it shows you what lies ahead and as a teenager it inspires you. And as we all know there is no other time when finding out who you are and where you belong to is more immediate than when you are a teenager.
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Reading Progress
February 25, 2013
–
Started Reading
February 25, 2013
– Shelved as:
favorites
February 25, 2013
– Shelved
February 27, 2013
– Shelved as:
young-adult
February 27, 2013
–
Finished Reading
January 16, 2015
– Shelved as:
desert-island-books
September 18, 2016
– Shelved as:
queer-lit
Comments Showing 1-23 of 23 (23 new)
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by
Larry
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rated it 5 stars
May 23, 2017 05:57PM
Great review, Kenny! This is one of my favorite books of all time.
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Larry wrote: "Great review, Kenny! This is one of my favorite books of all time." Thank you Larry
Seth wrote: "Wonderful review, Kenny. I've lost count of the number of times I've read this book (8? 10?) because it never disappoints. It's also one of those rare first-person novels that captures the narrator's voice perfectly. With the possible exception of Jane Eyre, I don't know of another book that pulls this off quite so masterfully."
Thank you for your kind words, Seth! I agree with your comments regarding first-person narrator and Jane Eyre. I've always thought Jane Eyre to be nearly perfect.
Great review. I need to reread this one.
I found the plot disorienting and unrealistic, the characters were... not bad per se, but certainly something you wouldn't find in real life. Charlie is a weird kid. He's somewhat a nerd, yet he goes to parties and takes drugs and the like. Then his voice sounds like a little kid speaking in a pleading tone to parents, throughout the whole book. And the prose is just... not. No vocabulary is used, good and bad, happy and sad, yes he's a kid, but he's been reading books all year! He's like a 5 year old stuck in a 15 year old's body with puberty and is completely unrelatable.
jaroda wrote: "Great review. I need to reread this one."Thank you.
Rodney wrote: "I found the plot disorienting and unrealistic, the characters were... not bad per se, but certainly something you wouldn't find in real life. Charlie is a weird kid. "I appreciate your sharing your opinion. While I view this book quite differently, I think you have raised some very interesting points for my future rereading of this.
I think this was the first book in English I read. And the first one I remember crying to. It was such a special experience, and yeah, you're right, it captures pretty well what being a timid teenager feels like.
Nice review. Such a good book.
Kenny wrote: "Rodney wrote: "I found the plot disorienting and unrealistic, the characters were... not bad per se, but certainly something you wouldn't find in real life. Charlie is a weird kid. "I appreciate ..."
As a teenager I relate at none to this and I laughed out loud at the back of the book, when the summary said "it will take you back to the wild days you know as youth." Maybe it's just that I've never seen illegal drugs in my life, do not associate with people who get drunk and the like at parties, get good grades, and shelter myself to this stuff in general. Because this book is the prime example to me of an adult pretending to be hip with the teens by introducing all these problems we supposedly have. Bullying is virtually non-existent now with all the measures made by teachers against it... but Canada is different than the States so by all means, I understand if others enjoy this book more than I do. Just my opinion though.
What an interesting review, Kenny. Like Rodney, I know nothing of problems like these. They seem very American.
A different generation, just after WWII, a different country (Austria in my case).
Gabriel wrote: "I think this was the first book in English I read. And the first one I remember crying to. It was such a special experience, and yeah, you're right, it captures pretty well what being a timid teena..."This is a great book to start with in English.
Joshua wrote: "Nice review. Such a good book."Thank you.
Rodney wrote: "As a teenager I relate at none to this and I laughed out loud at the back of the book, when the summary said "it will take you back to the wild days you know as youth." Maybe it's just that I've never seen illegal drugs in my life, do not associate with people who get drunk and the like at parties."Well, not all books will be liked by all people.
Markus wrote: "What an interesting review, Kenny. Like Rodney, I know nothing of problems like these. They seem very American.
A different generation, just after WWII, a different country (Austria in my case)."
Thank you for sharing your thoughts here.
"I know these will all be stories some day, and our pictures will become old photographs. We all become somebody’s mom or dad. But right now, these moments are not stories. This is happening. I can see it."------ is this dialogue there in the book?
Debagni wrote: ""I know these will all be stories some day, and our pictures will become old photographs. We all become somebody’s mom or dad. But right now, these moments are not stories. This is happening. I can see it."------ is this dialogue there in the book?"Yes, it is.
Still one of my favorite reviews. I really need to reread this one soon.
jaroda wrote: "Still one of my favorite reviews. I really need to reread this one soon."Thank you
Marvelous review!
s.penkevich wrote: "Marvelous review!"Thank you! For a number of reasons, which you know some of, I really felt this book. Charlie shook me.
Kenny wrote: "s.penkevich wrote: "Marvelous review!"Thank you! For a number of reasons, which you know some of, I really felt this book. Charlie shook me."
Makes sense. What did you think of the film? I remember being underwhelmed but I’ve been really wanting to revisit it
s.penkevich wrote: "Makes sense. What did you think of the film? I remember being underwhelmed but I’ve been really wanting to revisit it"I loved the film, but I saw it before I read the book. I thought the casting was perfect.
