“And in that moment, I swear we were infinite.”

“The Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky tells the story of a freshman named Charlie who writes letters to an anonymous friend about his first year of high school in the early 1990s.  No one really understands Charlie. His best friend Michael committed suicide, and the only relative that really understood him was his Aunt Helen who passed away when he was seven years old. He confides in an anonymous friend about his life and along the way he befriends two seniors named Sam and her step-brother, Patrick.

To describe Charlie, I would use words like awkward, shy, and passive. For most of his life, Charlie is passive and lets his experiences pass him by. But for once, with Sam, Patrick and his other friends, he experiences life and he learns about himself. Patrick was one of my favorite characters in this book. He was an honest, funny, and helped Charlie grow as a character. Sam was Patrick’s stepsister. Charlie soon falls hard for her because she’s smart and beautiful.

“Perks” was a great read. It was funny and unlike anything I’ve ever read. I like the idea that his whole story was told with letters to an anonymous friend, and  this book also brought up serious topics that should be discussed such as domestic violence, abuse, and drugs. Chbosky did an excellent job of discussing these sensitive themes. Another thing I really enjoyed about “Perks” is that it’s so realistic. I’ve read countless girly books about the girl with the terrible life who meets the perfect boy and they live happily ever after, blah, blah, blah. But “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” was more realistic about love and can teach everyone that love hurts, and it’s not always happily ever after but takes strength and willingness to go through it.

Everyone can learn something different from this book. Aside from sending a powerful message about love, “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” stressed the importance of having a loving family to be with you through hardship, and only when you’re truly happy and with the people you love, you can feel infinite.

It was recently produced into a movie. To read the review, click here.