The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Entertainment Value – A+ Readability – A+ Overall Value – A+


Perhaps there are times when we wish to divulge into the magical realm of fantasy with dragons, magic, etc. Sometimes, you need a change of pace. In this YA masterpiece, the main character Charlie is starting his first year of high school. Charlie, the wallflower, struggles to make friends at the school and also has to deal with his family: a popular older sister, a football star of an older brother, and his quiet but loving parents. He befriends seniors Sam and Patrick, brother and sister, at the annual homecoming football game. With them, he discovers the social scene of parties and begins to feel a strong connection with his new friends. The novel is structured as a series of letters written by Charlie to an anonymous other, who Charlie admires and thinks will listen. Through these letters, the novel explores the life of the modern teen, trying to fit in with the crowd and moving forward from the mistakes of the past...

With this book I did something I hardly ever do: I read it in a day. Sure, this has to do largely with the book's straightforward readability but it is also because the prose is engaging with a constantly changing and adapting plot line. The style of the writing accurately reflects the mindset of a teenage boy, and does not try to implant adult thoughts into a boy's mind. This might be a deterrent for older readers in enjoying this novel, as the style and structure is simplistic. But do not let this stop you, I recommend this book completely to anyone that wishes to re-experience the disillusioning days of high school and live through the eyes of a wallflower. Even if you have seen the movie adaption of this novel, which I have not seen, I would recommend that you still read this book. I am not one to say that books are always better than movies, because I feel that it is impossible to create the magic of a book entirely in a movie. It would not work the other way either, a book simply would not be able to adapt the cinematic genius of movies like The Graduate or The Godfather. Back to this novel, I enjoyed it thoroughly for the reason that I have seen that many current YA novels are either science fiction of a dystopian variety or tries to enhance the thought process of the characters beyond that which is reasonable for a teenager. In simple terms, I feel that this is the most authentic piece of fiction that encapsulates the thought process of the teenage boy, and handles topics that are realistically ones that most boys face.