Realistic Fiction: The Perks of Being a Wallflower

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Evaluation of the book:

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is the first person account of young Charlie’s adventures as a freshman in high school. Written in the form of letters, Charlie’s weirdly simple language is at first hard to follow and seems unnatural. However, once you get used to it, it becomes a mesmerizing look into the head of Charlie, who turns out to be a fascinating observer of the world around him. In the beginning, Charlie seems dumb or mentally slow. However, Charlie’s intelligence becomes more and more evident as the pages go on. His intelligence is revealed both explicitly, as the reader reads his grades and his teacher’s compliments, and implicitly, as the reader begins to understand the depth and accuracy of his simple observations of day to day life.

Each page of The Perks of Being a Wallflower is filled with great one-liners (“I think it would be great if sledding were always enough, but it isn’t” p.74) and stunning observations of real life (“It’s like when you are excited about a girl and you see a couple holding hands, and you feel so happy for them… And all you want is to feel happy for them because you know that if you do, then it means that you’re happy, too” p.96). Although Charlie seems weird to the casual reader; he proves himself to be an incredibly smart young man. As the pages go on, the reader finds himself/herself agreeing more and more with Charlie’s observations and, as a result, thinking of Charlie not as weird, but as relatable.

The letter form of the novel cements the relationship between the reader and Charlie. The letters are addressed simply “Dear friend;” the recipient is anonymous. As the reader begins to relate to Charlie’s observations of the world, he/she also begins to put himself into the shoes of the recipient. Because of this, when, toward the end of the novel, it’s revealed that Charlie has been abused by his beloved aunt, the reader is in a position to feel pure empathy and sorrow for his/her friend, Charlie.

Response:

As described above, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is perfectly set up for the reader to develop a strong sense of empathy for Charlie. I personally was shocked and horrified to discover what Charlie had endured as a child at the hands of his aunt. I felt as though it was a dear friend of mine who revealed his horrible trauma. I think it’s important for today’s teens to read stories of this nature, about different and difficult situations, in order to learn how to empathize with people who are different. Chbosky does an excellent job of inviting his readers into this type of empathy and teaching them how to feel for these “different” types of people. Although I found the book tricky to read at first, due to Charlie’s strange voice, once I got into the rhythm of it, Charlie’s voice became mesmerizing and his observations beautiful. The whole book is a stunning piece of literature; personally relatable and incredibly important.

Conclusion:

Mesmerizing and relatable, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a must read for teenagers, young adults, and older adults as well. Anyone should read this book simply to have the privilege of witnessing Charlie’s observations of life. Chbosky makes an art out of real life, with all its harshness and pain, and invites the reader in to observe it firsthand.

“I just kept quiet and looked around. And I noticed things.” (p.99)

APA Style Reference:

Chbosky, S. (1999). The perks of being a wallflower. New York, NY: Gallery Books.