The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Summary: Charlie is fifteen years old and has had a difficult end to middle school, as his best friend recently committed suicide, and he is still grieving over the circumstances surrounding his Aunt Helen’s death years earlier. In order to cope with these experiences and his anxiety over beginning high school, Charlie begins to write to an unidentified “friend,” and so the novel unfolds as a series of letters. As Charlie makes friends, he begins to discover more about himself, his family, his past, and what it truly means to take hold of your life and live. 

Critical Evaluation: The Perks of Being a Wallflower has long been hailed as a quintessential account of what it’s like to grow up and the American high school experience, however besides this honestly towards adolescence, Stephen Chbosky’s chosen style and tone, and his willingness to explore taboo topics is what really makes this novel as incredible as it is. 

The reader experiences Charlie’s life through a series of letters that Charlie writes to an unidentified friend. We know this person is somehow connected to his life through people they know in common, but we are never introduced to or explained who this friend is, so the novel reads more intimately, almost as if Charlie is keeping a diary. This first person point of view combined with the main character feeling compelled to share his deepest feelings, allows the reader to experience Charlie’s deepest thoughts, wants, and confusions. This allows the reader to not only relate to Charlie, but empathize with him during the harder parts of his story.

Chbosky isn’t afraid to delve into taboo topics, such as sexual abuse, abortion, and mental health. He does so with a frankness that will immediately endear the readers to the characters, and is a pro at “showing” as opposed to “telling.” What Charlie discovers and realizes, the reader discovers and realizes along with him. Chbosky’s exploration of the complicated nature of high school friendships, relationships, and even the dynamic between siblings is one that readers of any age will be able to recognize in their own life. 

Life is full of beautiful and hard moments, and Chbosky is able to use Charlie’s growth to put this on full display. Despite the trauma he and his friends endure, they come through on the other side of the novel having experienced pain, but still appreciating the wonders of being alive. As adults, whether young or not, read this novel, they will feel understood for their pain, and inspired by the call to recognize the miracle of existence. “But mostly, I was crying because I was suddenly very aware of the fact that it was me standing up in that tunnel with the wind over my face...I was really there. And that was enough to make me feel infinite” (Chbosky, 1999, p. 213). 

Reader’s Annotation: Charlie is a wallflower-shy, quiet, and afraid to make too much of an impact. As he starts high school, makes friends, and comes out of his shell, will he be able to overcome past traumas and take hold of his own life?