Title: The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Author:
Stephen Chbosky
Publisher: MTV Books
Publication Date: 1999
Pages: 256p
ISBN:
0-61-0274-4
Summary/Review
The Perks of Being a Wallflower tells the story of a 16-year-old teenage boy , Charlie
,who writes letters to an anonymous friend, sharing his heart and
soul, almost like he is writing his letters to us, his readers. He writes about how it is like to grow up in
high school, how he hated going to his
first day in school and how he navigates his way out of the awkward stages of
adolescence.
Charlie, the main character, is described by
other people as too shy, socially awkward, and an unconventional thinker, hence
the “wallflower” title. Wallflower is someone who is too awkward or too bland
to be worthy of noticing, going through life like a bystander. A lot of
teenagers could relate and connect to
Charlie, feeling like wallflowers.
The novel captures the confused and bemused life
of an adolescence and all the things that come with growing up. The author
explores briefly topics such as suicide, drugs, smoking, molestation, and friends.
The plot takes place in the suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania during
the 1991-1992 school year, when Charlie is a freshman in high school.
I can attribute the popularity of this novel to
the story’s theme which is full of teachable nuggets and life lessons. Examples:
“Things change, and friends leave. Life doesn’t
stop for anybody.”(page 145)
“But even if we don’t have the power to choose
where we come from, we can still choose where we go from there” (page 211)
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