The Perks of Being a Wallflower

For the upcoming film of the same name, see The Perks of Being a Wallflower (film).

The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Author(s)	Stephen Chbosky
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Young adult novel/Epistolatory novel
Publisher	MTV Books/Pocket Books
Publication date	February 1, 1999
Media type	Print (Paperback) and Audiobook
Pages	256 pp (first edition paperback) 224 pp (regular edition paperback)
ISBN	0-671-02734-4
OCLC Number	40813072
Dewey Decimal	813/.54 21
LC Classification	PS3553.H3469 P47 1999

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is an epistolary novel written by American novelist Stephen Chbosky. It was published on February 1, 1999 by MTV. The story is narrated by a teenager who goes by the alias of "Charlie"; he describes various scenes in his life by writing a series of letters to an anonymous person, whom he does not know personally.

The story explores topics such as introversion and the awkward times of adolescence. The book also touches briefly on drug use and Charlie's experiences with this. As the story progresses, various works of literature and film are referenced and their meanings discussed.

The story takes place in a suburb of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania during the 1991–1992 school year, when Charlie is a high school freshman. Charlie is the titular wallflower of the novel. He is an unconventional thinker, and as the story begins he is shy and unpopular.

The book was third on the American Library Association's list of the top ten most frequently challenged books of 2009, for reasons including the book's treatment of drugs, homosexuality, sex, and suicide.

Plot summary

The novel begins in August 1991 with a teenager going by the alias of Charlie, writing to an anonymous "friend" whom he heard someone at school talking about, and decided they sounded like a nice person to write to, on the basis that he or she reportedly did not sleep with someone at a party despite having the opportunity. Charlie states that he does not want the anonymous friend to try to figure out who he is or to find him. Charlie has just begun his freshman year of high school, his brother is at Pennsylvania State University on a football scholarship, and his sister is a senior in high school. We learn that his best—and only—friend, Michael committed suicide prior to the beginning of the book—leaving Charlie to face high school alone. Charlie often refers to his late Aunt Helen and how she was his "favorite person in the whole world" and states frequently that something bad happened with Aunt Helen, which causes Charlie to be unable to talk about her. Soon Charlie makes the acquaintance of Sam, a beautiful senior on whom Charlie develops a crush almost instantly, and her gay stepbrother Patrick, a charismatic student who is friendly to Charlie. Upon disclosing his feelings and sexual confusion to Patrick and Sam, they are not angry with him, but rather advise him how to handle his feelings privately. Sam and Patrick continue their advisory role while introducing Charlie to many people, music artists, and drugs. Meanwhile his English teacher Bill introduces him to books and encourages him to write essays about them that he will grade despite having no bearing on his English class. At the end of the book, Sam and Charlie almost have a sexual encounter, but do not when Charlie says he is not ready. During this encounter, Charlie has a flashback of his Aunt Helen, who molested him when he was younger. When Sam leaves for school, Charlie has a breakdown. The final letter is written after he is released from the hospital after several months after finally coming to terms with everything and preparing for his sophomore year of high school. At the beginning of the book, Charlie is referred to as a wallflower for his ability to observe and understand things, but over the course of a year's worth of letters, Charlie explains the efforts of the people in his life to get him to "participate" or "do things" and the feelings and experiences he has as a result.

Character List

Charlie: He is the main character who writes to his anonymous recipient. And he is the narrator of the story.

His family:

- Mom and Dad

- Aunt Helen: Charlie's aunt in which he considers his "favorite person in the world" but Charlie realizes that she molests him as a child.

- Charlie's Sister: Charlie's older sister who tries not to be noticed with him because it could ruin her popularity.

- Charlie's Brother: Goes off to college at the beginning of the book and Charlie is always compared to him. Star athlete.

His friends:

-Michael: Charlie's best friend throughout school until he committed suicide.

-Patrick: Charlie's Best Friend who helps Charlie Find himself through the novel and encourages Charlie to be himself along with his step sister Sam.

-Sam: Patrick's step sister who is also friends with Charlie and encourages him to do what he can to be himself.

-Bill (English teacher): He is sort of Charlie's role model and helps Charlie escape from the real world through books that change Charlie's life. He sees a lot of himself in Charlie.

Charlie's lists

Literature

In the novel, Charlie's teacher, Bill, assigns him various books to read. Charlie describes them all as his favorites.

• To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
• This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald
• "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
• Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie
• The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
• The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
• On the Road by Jack Kerouac
• Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs
• Walden by Henry David Thoreau
• Hamlet by William Shakespeare
• The Stranger by Albert Camus
• The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand

The book also references a book of poems by E. E. Cummings, The Mayor of Castro Street by Randy Shilts, a book by Anne Rice, and an autobiography of a woman who was a character in Reds, most likely Emma Goldman. The poem "Absolutely Nothing" by Osoanon Nimuss is also mentioned.

Film and television

The novel references these films:

• Rocky Horror Picture Show
• It's a Wonderful Life
• The Producers
• Reds
• To Kill a Mockingbird
• The Graduate
• Harold and Maude
• My Life as a Dog
• Dead Poets Society
• The Unbelievable Truth
• Night of the Living Dead

The novel references these television shows:

• Saturday Night Live
• Love Boat
• Fantasy Island
• M*A*S*H
• Gomer Pyle

Music

The novel references these songs:

• "Where Eagles Dare" by The Misfits
• "Asleep" by The Smiths
• "Vapour Trail" by Ride
• "Scarborough Fair" by Simon and Garfunkel
• "A Whiter Shade of Pale" by Procol Harum
• "Time of No Reply" by Nick Drake
• "Dear Prudence" by The Beatles
• "Gypsy" by Suzanne Vega
• "Nights in White Satin" by The Moody Blues
• "Daydream" by The Smashing Pumpkins
• "Dusk" by Genesis
• "MLK" by U2
• "Blackbird" by The Beatles
• "Landslide" by Fleetwood Mac
• "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana
• "Another Brick in the Wall, Part II" by Pink Floyd
• "Something" by The Beatles
• "School's Out" by Alice Cooper
• "Autumn Leaves" by Nat King Cole
• "Broken Wings" by Mr. Mister
• "I'm Going Home" sung by Tim Curry as Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Other music groups and artists are also mentioned without reference to a specific song, including Village People, Blondie, Jim Morrison, John Lennon, The Slits, and Billie Holiday.

Film adaptation

Main article: The Perks of Being a Wallflower (film)

The production company Mr. Mudd is developing a film adaptation of the novel, with Summit Entertainment to distribute the film. Mr. Mudd's producers John Malkovich, Lianne Halfon, and Russell Smith hired the novel's author Stephen Chbosky to write an adapted screenplay and to direct the film. It has recently finished being shot in Peters Township, Pennsylvania. The production stars Logan Lerman (Charlie), Nina Dobrev (sister), Ezra Miller (Patrick), and Emma Watson (Sam).

References

3. Wordsworth, William. Lyrical Ballads. London: Oxford U.P., 1967.  Print.