The Perks of Being a Wallflower Options

[nightsong]

I will be impressed if you take the time to actually read all of this.

Dear friend,

I am writing to you because she said you listen and understand and didn't try to sleep with that person at that party even though you could have. Please don't try to figure out who she is because then you might figure out who I am, and I really don't want you to do that. I will call people by different names or generic names because I don't want you to find me. I didn't enclose a return address for the same reason. I mean nothing bad by this. Honest.

I just need to know that someone out there listens and understands and doesn't try to sleep with people even if they could have. I need to know that these people exist.

I think you of all people would understand that because I think you of all people are alive and appreciate what that means. At least I hope you do because other people look to you for strength and friendship and it's that simple. At least that's what I've heard.

So, this is my life. And I want you to know that I am both happy and sad and I'm still trying to figure out how that could be.

Full Excerpt

I walk around the school hallways and look at the people. I look at the teachers and wonder why they're here. If they like their jobs. Or us. And I wonder how smart they were when they were fifteen. Not in a mean way. In a curious way. It's like looking at all the students and wondering who's had their heart broken that day, and how they are able to cope with having three quizzes and a book report due on top of that. Or wondering who did the heart breaking. And wondering why.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower = One of my favorite books

I recommend this book to anyone who hasn`t already read it.

Did anyone else like this book/fall in love with the main character?

xo, Pauline

[HakunaMatata]

OOOOKAY.

So after much delay and procrastination (redundancy ftw!), I finally read the book. I think it was a very memorable book, but not a very good one. I hated, absolutely hated the ending. I thought it was terrible that the author would have Aunt Helen of molested Charlie - that's just dumb. Yes, it fits because she was molested when she was younger and blah blah blah, but it was just so inconsistent - with the brother and the sister in the house? Really??

Oh, and the writing style bugged me, too. It just got annoying. My friend said that it really is like how a friend would write to you, but I'm sorry, maybe it's just me, but I know absolutely no one who writes like that. Really.

The name Patrick irked me, too. At the beginning, Charlie says he'll use generic names, not the real ones. And yet Patrick already has a nickname - Patty. I don't mind the nickname Nothing, that's fine, but it just seems really weird to me that the author could be "using generic names" and yet Patrick, which isn't his real name, already has a nickname?

But but but, I will say that the book made me sob. I think what's great about the book is that it has great insight, the best parts of the book for each person are the parts they can relate to. When Charlie is describing the memories of Aunt Helen, Chobsky did they very very well, and I cried at nearly every Aunt Helen moment [except for the her molesting Charlie thing].

And, as Tina pointed out in another thread, there were very cute amusing moments.

"Masturbation is when you rub your genitals until you have an orgasm. Wow!"