Goodreads Synopsis: Caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it, Charlie is navigating through the strange worlds of love, drugs, "The Rocky Horror Picture Show", and dealing with the loss of a good friend and his favorite aunt.
My Confession: If you put a gun to my head and asked me what my favorite book was, this would be it. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a cross between two other fantastic books: The Catcher in the Rye and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime. This is an epistolary novel--told entirely though letters. Fifteen-year-old Charlie writes letters describing his everyday adventures to an unknown recipient. We're never told who this person is, but in the first line of the book, Charlie tells us why he is writing to this person.
"I am writing to you because she said you listen and understand and didn't try to sleep with that person at that party even though you could have...I just need to know that someone out there listens and understands and doesn't try to sleep with people even if they could have. I need to know that these people exist."
It's clear right from the beginning that Charlie is not your average teenager. The book takes place over the course of a year, Charlie's freshman year of high school, to be exact. More happens to this boy in one year than most people experience throughout all four years of high school. But this book has the curious way of staying firmly rooted in the real world; not once did I stop reading, put the little lime green book down, and think, "Gee, this is just too out-there for me."
Charlie's voice is bright and honest, naive and unassuming at best. He's sheltered, slow, different, weird. He sees the world from a true outsider's perspective, because he's never been invited in. This makes him a true "wallflower." His fresh and startlingly honest perceptions are what makes this book so brilliant. It's an anthem for anyone who has ever felt out of place or out of touch. It's a generational tale, but told in such an unusual, captivating way, that it's carved out its own niche as a classic.
Being Infinite: "And in that moment, I swear we were infinite." Even if you've never read this book before, chances are you've heard this line, quoted among many a yearbook and Facebook page. It's the kind of euphemism that you feel like you've heard forever but wish you'd come up with first. There's something about the scene that precedes this moment for Charlie. The carefree, wind-in-your-hair feeling of being infinite. Like nothing can touch you because you're encased in a protective bubble of pure bliss. That one moment that we can look back on and point to as a defining moment in our lives. That's the way that Charlie looks at the world in this novel. It'll leave you feeling infinite too.
Recommendation: It's a short book, and it can be a quick read. Take it slowly. Each letter, each page holds a revelation, an account so honest, so true, that you'll want to take your time. It's the kind of book that can be read over and over again, and you'll still find something new to marvel over. But that first time's the charm. Don't rush it.
Rating: 5/5
213 pages, published by MTV Books and Pocket Books (Feb. 1, 1999)
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