Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

From Back Cover:
It is the story of what it's like to grow up in high school. More intimate than a diary, Charlie's letters are singular and unique, hilarious and devastating. We may not know where he lives. We may not know to whom he is writing. All we know is the world he shares. Caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it puts him on a strange course through uncharted territory. The world of first dates, family dramas, and new friends. The world of sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, where all you need is that perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinite.

I sailed through this book. I feel like I would have enjoyed this book more if I had been younger when I read it. I just couldn't latch onto it in the way that I latched onto the movie, which was also written and directed by Chbosky (isn't it odd when the writer of a book writes a script for a movie that tells the book's story so much better?). Since I'm almost 24, it's been a while since graduating high school, but I can tell you that I was a misfit all through high school. I really felt for the character of Charlie, and found he was a compelling narrator. I liked how it was written in epistolary form, with Charlie writing letters to an unnamed, never-seen, "Friend". In doing so, we do not see all the details of what Charlie is describing them, as he is recounting them after they happened, and are forced to fill in the blanks.

Of the coming-of-age stories I've read, this one is a bit more bleak and gritty. I mean, Charlie doesn't have to fight a bear and discover he's a man, but the topics addressed in this book are darker than most contemporary novels. Topics addressed include sexuality, assault (both physical and mental), suicide and drugs. It's an interesting read, and I found the characters to be as well-rounded as could be, considering we are seeing them only second-hand through the words of Charlie's letters. I did find this to be an effective book in having Charlie learn about himself and come into his own. None of it felt unrealistic or contrived in that sense.

All in all, this was an OK book. I liked the characters and the emotional journeys they go on, but I think I might have been too old reading this, and would have connected to it more at a slightly younger age. I found the writing style to be well-done; Chbosky is a good writer and creates a mostly realistic world of navigating high school and yourself. I'm going to give Perks of Being a Wallflower a 3.5/5; it wasn't a bad book and it dealt with trauma and self-discovery in a believable way. It was a good read, but not great.