'The Perks of Being A Wallflower' by Stephen Chbosky Review

  

   Another review ready and waiting to read :)

Rating: 

   3/5 – I watched the film and thought it was a really good storyline so I was going in with high expectations but I was a little disappointed with the book. It addressed very sensitive but very real issues and I do appreciate that but it didn’t develop enough for me.

Who I think it's for:

   If you’re a fan of realism and young adult fiction, then this book fits those genres. It contains offensive language and mature/adult issues so I’d say it’s for 14 years + It’s also about the life of high school students, so obviously high school students easily relate to this.

"There's nothing like deep breaths after laughing that hard. Nothing in the world like a sore stomach for the right reasons.”

Plot Summary: 

   Charlie is a wallflower. Shy, clever, awkward, he starts his first high school year and has to deal with new friends, family problems and finding himself. In a world of new things, he is standing at the edge, observing rather than ‘participating’. However, at some time, he must try a different perspective from the centre of the stage.

The Character that stood out most:

   Charlie, the narrator, is unique and he tells the story through his eyes well. Though the use of letters he writes is also unique, I’d prefer it not to be in this form because it feels as though Charlie doesn’t interact with the other characters as much as it would if the story was told from a normal first person view. So, I think that the story doesn’t develop as much as I would like.

   Patrick, Charlie’s first friend when he starts high school, stood out the most to me because Charlie talks about him a lot in his letters and their experiences together. We find out that he is openly gay a little way in to the novel but not straight away. He appears carefree and friendly and supportive but we learn that he is also vulnerable and troubled, so he develops very well throughout the story and stands out as an interestingly complicated character.

Why I read it:

   I watched the film and thought it was very moving and relatable in how high school is about trying to find yourself in the world and prepare for your future. Some of my friends recommended the book as well, so I asked for it for Christmas and recently got round to reading it this summer (school gets in the way a lot!).

   I went in with high expectations, perhaps too high, but I think that I should have been neutral. Maybe this just wasn’t my type of genre, but I felt that some of the issues the book deals with could have been developed further along with some of the characters. (Alice was part of the ‘gang’ Charlie hung around with but she was hardly ever mentioned which annoyed me.)

 

Why you should read it:

 Overall, I think that it’s a good book and I would recommend it to anyone I knew who likes that genre. It is considered a must-read for high school students in YA fiction so I think that, if you like that genre and types of books, this book will suit you.

   Have you seen the film or read the book? Which one do you think is better? If you’ve done both, did you read the book before the film or the other way round? Did you think it affected your opinion at all? Share your thoughts in the comments! :)



~White Ravens~
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