The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky
Hi! My name is Lila and I am 14 years old. I like baking, painting, and playing volleyball, but I especially love reading. I always enjoy getting good book recommendations so I thought I would write one.
The Perks of Being A Wallflower is a realistic young adult novel that starts with Charlie Kelmickis writing to an anonymous friend. Charlie is a socially awkward teen with scarce friends, but he hopes to meet some during his first year of high school. One big problem is that he’s a wallflower. He sits and observes but never takes action to strike up a conversation. This changes when he meets Sam and Patrick. They break him out of his shell and inspire him to have the confidence he has never felt before. Charlie’s new friends help him fall in love with the world, music, and being more adventurous.
But, as Patrick and Sam (who are seniors) start preparing for college, the reality of being alone again crashes down on 9th grade Charlie. He relives past experiences with his family and new realizations come to the light that affects his mental health. He works through his trauma and forms a new kind of bond with his family.
I enjoyed this book because of how realistic Charlie, his friends, and the school environment felt. Even if you can’t connect to what is happening to Charlie, you will still be able to grasp the plot in a touching way because Stephen Chobsky (the author) writes so descriptively that it feels like the reader is living in the book. If you end up liking the novel as much as I did, I would also recommend watching the movie. It portrays the book in an amazing way and doesn’t stray from how the story is written.
