The Perks of Being a Wallflower: the most moving coming-of-age classic

This book really moved me, and is now high up on my list of all-time favourites. I recognised glimpses of myself in it, enjoyed the tone and voice of it, and found myself thinking about it even when I wasn't reading it. A wonderful book indeed. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is constructed as a series of letters from Charlie, a high-school student, to an anonymous `friend' who apparently doesn't actually know Charlie at all. The result is a narrative which is both personal and unashamedly honest. Charlie isn't unhappy, these letters are not pity-seeking; rather he is deeply thoughtful and reflective, trying to figure out life and how to make the most of it. He is intelligent and hard-working, loyal and thoughtful and caring, but shy and not socially confident. He admits that he'd like to have friends but is accepting of his lot in life. Then he meets Samantha and Patrick, a sister and brother a little older than him, who show Charlie what friendship means. They both initiate him into and help him navigate a world of dating, drama, drugs and desire. In some ways, I felt I found a kindred spirit in Charlie: someone who thinks too much and perhaps participates too little, who listens well but doesn't talk much. His letters are disarmingly honest and deeply affecting, articulate and peppered with some sweet turns of phrase. One minute he is a teenager describing what it feels like to be high, the next he is a boy practising the use of a new word he learnt at school. His letters cover everything from family dramas and his relationships to his thoughts on the books he's reading, and poor Charlie faces things no teenager should have to face (including the suicide of a friend, abortion, and the death of a much-loved relative). Nothing is censored and, while some things come as a surprise, it is all authentic. I felt so much empathy towards Charlie throughout; it is a sad story at times but never tragic, because Charlie isn't self-indulgent and is so matter-of-fact about things, understating some of the huge things he experiences and the creeping depression that starts to take hold of him. Charlie is the star of this novel, and a character who is easy to take to heart. But the other characters are deserving of mention too. Sam and Patrick are immediately endearing because of their ability to see what is special in Charlie, their willingness to invite him into their world but to take him as he is without trying to shape him into something else. It's easy to see why Charlie falls for them, and the relationship that develops between the three of them is beautiful to observe. I also enjoyed Charlie's accounts of his anonymous family, partly because they are so real: his parents bemuse and infuriate him at times, his sister and brother aren't always there for him the way he wants them to be, but he still loves them and isn't afraid to tell them so. Charlie is not unrealistically innocent - he is a teenage boy with teenage boy desires and compulsions - but he is sweetly naive and hasn't yet learnt to suppress his emotions the way many of his peers have. There are similarities in genre to other coming-of-age stories I've read recently, such as 600 Hours of Edward, The 10PM Question and The Most Beautiful Thing. But The Perks of Being a Wallflower affected me much more than any of those, with its beautiful writing, beautiful characters and understated narrative. I've heard good things about the film version, but I don't think I want to see it and risk it spoiling the pictures painted in my head by the novel.

"He's a wallflower... You see things. You keep quiet about them. And you understand." I've never met a single person - friend, blogger, librarian or bookseller - who has read 'The Perks of Being a Wallflower' and not fallen in love. This is such a wonderful book, and it's perfect summer reading too. It's the coming-of-age story of a fifteen year-old boy called Charlie, told entirely in epistolary form via letters to an unnamed friend-of-a-friend. Quiet, introspective and naive, Charlie is surely one of the most loveable and achingly sweet characters I've ever come across in my reading life. It is his freshman year, and to his surprise his largely solitary existence is turned upside down when he is 'adopted' by worldly older stepsiblings Patrick and Sam. At the same time his English teacher, Bill, begins to draw him out of his academic shell with some well-timed encouragement. Slowly, his new friends nudge Charlie out into the big wide world, into a bountiful land of music and books, love and longing, parties and 'The Rocky Horror Picture Show' - and stand beside him through the hardships that teenage life and his own past conspire to throw his way. This is definitely going to be one of my favourite books of the year. I adored Charlie and found myself underlining things on almost every page as his thoughtful exploration of the world around him prompted me to stop and reflect. I also noted down dozens of movie, book and music references to check out later, which was a bit of an unexpected bonus! Through his letters we can see Charlie's style mature as he does, and our involvement becomes deeply personal because it feels like he's writing just for us. Chbosky's characters are complex and painfully real, and no one is all good or all bad, even Charlie himself. I think Patrick was my favourite, because he was all heart even when he wasn't necessarily doing the right thing! I loved Bill too - I think every student should have a Bill to see their strengths and provide a shining light of knowledge and hope during the difficult school years. Some really serious teen issues are discussed throughout the book - rape, drugs, gay identity, abuse - without ever feeling too heavy or gratuitous, and I can well understand the reputation it has gained as a positive, even life-saving cult classic for young readers. The only thing I didn't like - and the reason for the half-star drop - were those occasional moments when I felt like my heart would break because SURELY no one could be so naive at fifteen? The book becomes quite difficult to read at times as Charlie's naivety is stripped away - this is the true meaning of the word 'bittersweet'! But it really is an unmissable novel. Charlie is such an intuitive character, and the writing is beautiful; he thinks outside the box and it's a pleasure to read! He is inspiring and generous, and accepts everything with a high level of tolerance and emotional intelligence, even if he is very childlike in other ways. There is something for everyone here, whether you are 15 or 50 - and I can't WAIT until 2013 when Chbosky's adaptation finally hits the big screens. I'll be first in line to laugh and cry all over again... :)

This book really did take a little time for me to get into, I was very unsure about the way it was written in letter form to begin with. However as the story comes to a close you realise that this is the best way to be able to really see the story through Charlies eyes. In this way, he details only the aspects of his life that he deems important or relevant, which you later come to realise is half of his problem; that he does not understand everything about his own life in the way that he should. I will admit that Charlie is not a very likeable character, in fact he is annoying and pathetic at lots of points. However, it also becomes clear that Charlie does not really like himself that much, and this is when you start to warm to him. The story is strangely compelling throughout and when I did get to the end I really found I wanted more letters from Charlie! I feel that the mark of a good book is whether or not you miss the characters, which I certainly did! I actually found that when I got to the end I wanted to go back and look at the letters again and to understand them a second time in the light of the things you learn about Charlie throughout the book. I will definately be reading again.

It's better than the movies to be honest.

The product came in perfect condition in the estimated date. The story is short but really enjoyable and deals with taboo topics in a way that your heart will be touched really easily. Also if you have watched the movie sure you'll like much more the book.

Reread after a long time. The story of Charlie stays timeless and hope-instilling ever after. Funny, dark, emotional, sad, it has it all. Love always!

Damn, this book was amazing. And it's not one of those books where you figure out how amazing it is at the beginning, or even through the first half. It slowly creeps up on you. Or at least is slowly crept up on me. And the more I read, the more I loved it. And now that I've read it, I can safely say that this book definitely will go on a list of my favorite books ever. And another thing I should mention is that I've been avoiding this book for a while. One of the reasons was because I thought it was over-hyped (silly me). But then, finally, we had to read this book for University, and I'm so glad that the professor choose this book. It was the first book which I had to read, that I absolutely loved. And I haven't seen the movie, so I didn't know anything about the plot. And I'm glad that that was the case. The Perks of Being A Wallflower is a coming-of-age story. But it is also so much more than that. It is a story about a boy named Charlie who just started high school. Because he felt alone and scared, he started writing letters to... well to whoever is reading this book. At the beginning, I didn't quite like Charlie as a character. He cried way too much, and was a bit weird. But as the book went, I started liking him more and more. I also stared understanding him, and actually relating to him. Also, I liked most of the other characters (some more, some less). Yeah, they all had some flaws, and they all did some things which I sometimes didn't understand why, but we all act like that sometimes. One more thing that I absolutely loved was the friendship between Charlie, Sam and Patrick. I really wish I had a friendship like they did, in my own high school. It would certainly made things easier. I also loved that this book felt so nostalgic. Even though I finished high school not that long ago, it still brought me back to days when I just started school. And I loved that it did. So many times I've read a quote that described perfectly how I felt back then (or sometimes even now), which I couldn't find words to describe. But Charlie described it perfectly. Now, I should probably stop here and end this review, before I get too emotional. So in conclusion, I loved this book, and I can't say how much I'm glad that I've finally read it. And I'm sure that I'll re-read it many times in the future.

ottimo