I finally finished The Perks of Being a Wallflower. This book has been on my list of books to read for a long time now. I finally picked it up on a whim at the bookstore a few days ago. It's a short book, but it took me a while to read because I'm also going through a book of short stories by Neil Gaimen (Smoke & Mirrors).
The story is about a boy named Charlie, who is a High School freshman during the 90's. The Perks of Being a Wallflower are written from his perspective in the form of letters sent to an anonymous person who is never identified or named. Charlie tells about his family, and his friends, the crush he has on his friend Sam, and how he deals (or doesn't) with his depression and anxiety. Ultimately, he uncovers locked memories about his past, and learns how to truly heal from it.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower reads like a modern Catcher in the Rye. You become attached to Charlie quickly, and feel protective of him throughout his troubles. As he begins to uncover problems with his family and his past, you feel the anxiety and upset as Charlie does.
The writing is very easy to get into and follow along with. Charlie's "voice" develops over the course of the novel, and you can see influences in his writing after he reads a new book given to him by his English teacher. The character development of the other characters is also really well done, with each person having their own history and voice, and you feel like you know who they are.
I give this book a 5 out of 5.
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