Picture Credits: rionanichole
Popular content has deemed high school as a stepping stone for better things in life - an intermediary custody where everyone’s trying to fit in, completing which, you get to be the person you truly are. High school is merely portrayed as something to be tolerated, and just maybe, you’ll learn a thing or two from these unwelcome experiences.
You countdown through these days, but there’s always those little things that make you feel right at home - your friends, for instance. They shine light on your day each day and give immense sweetness and excitement to your bitter and dull moments. The question is, how far can they help you survive this apparent nightmare?
Introduction
Book’s Name- The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Author’s Name- Stephen Chbosky
Genre- Young Adult Fiction, Epistolary Novel
Language- English
Synopsis- Spoiler Alert!
Charlie is an introverted freshman, who is anxious about beginning high school. He soon befriends two seniors - Patrick and Sam (who are step siblings), and subsequently their friends, Bob, Alice and Mary Elizabeth, who he later dates. However, he has been in love with Sam ever since he met her.
Charlie accidentally gets high during a party, whereby he reveals that his middle school best friend, Michael Dobson, killed himself. This provides readers an in-depth view into Charlie’s extraordinary thinking and empathy and where it stems from.
He is also close with his English teacher, Bill, who he eventually tells the story of his sister, Candace being slapped by her boyfriend, leading to a turmoil in their relationship.
Patrick’s sexuality and his secret relationship with Brad, the football quarterback is also one of the events that largely affects the plot of the novel as well as Charlie’s relationship with the rest of the group. His crush over Sam is also one of the central plots of the book. What seemed to be a bonding experience for them, could now just tear them apart.
About the Author
Born on 25th January, 1970, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Stephen Chbosky is an American novelist, screenwriter and film director. He has been deeply influenced by the work of J. D. Salinger, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Tennessee Williams.
He also wrote another novel titled Imaginary Friend, published by Grand Central Publishing in October 2019, which couldn’t gain the popularity of his former book.
Chbosky wrote the screenplay for Disney’s 2017 adaptation of Beauty and The Beast, with Evan Spiliotopoulos. He also directed the film Wonder in 2017, starring Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson.
About the Book
Stephen Chbosky developed The Perks of Being a Wallflower through a period of five difficult years of his life. The book is semi-autobiographical, inculcating both fictional and personal aspects. The book was written as an aftermath of Chbosky’s unpleasant break up, and was written through his college years, based on an idea he had in high school.
The book was first published by Pocket Books on 1st February, 1999, through its MTV Books imprint. It has been highly compared to J. D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye (1951) for the similar style of writing, and even been criticized for the same.
It was on the American Library Association’s list of 10 most-frequently-challenged-books six times and has even been banned by some American schools because of its sensitive content.
Chbosky directed a film adaptation in 2012, starring Logan Lerman (Charlie), Emma Watson (Sam), Ezra Miller (Patrick) and Paul Rudd (Bill). The film was highly successful and led the novel to The New York Times Best Seller list.
Psychological Analysis
Almost every character, ranging from Charlie and Sam to Patrick and Candace show various psychological scars. While Patrick goes through great emotional turmoils in living with his closeted romance and taking derogatory remarks from the person he is in love with, Candace tries to sustain a relationship with Derek, who slapped her during an argument.
On the other hand, Sam and Charlie are both child sexual abuse survivors and telling her secret to Charlie is seen as a moment of deep affinity for them. The entire novel is a letter Charlie writes to an imaginary friend, as he gets into high school, makes friends, loses them, wins them back.
He discovers the unconsciously repressed thoughts of his favourite aunt, Helen molesting him as a child, being taken to a correctional facility for PTSD and finally, meeting Sam and Patrick when he gets out. Him stopping to write the letter can be seen as a sign of him getting better and more equipped to deal with his emotions.
Famous Quotes
“We accept the love we think we deserve.”
“You can’t just sit there and put everybody’s lives ahead of yours and think that counts as love.”
"And There Are People Who Forget What It's Like To Be Sixteen When They Turn Seventeen."
"We Can't Choose Where We Come From But We Can Choose Where We Go From There."
"We Are Infinite."
The Bottom Line
The Perks of Being a Wallflower is hands down, one of the most honest and sincere high school stories ever written. It has immense insight and sensitivity in dealing with several heavy topics like drug usage, abuse and sexuality.
Here’s a book if you’re looking for a great laugh and a great cry, all at once!
My Ratings for the book - 5 on 5
You can buy a copy from Amazon - The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Written By - Kristi Mazumdar
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