December 7, 2008

December 7, 2008
Dear Friend,
For the past few months I have been reading a book called, “The Perks of a Being a Wallflower”. As lame as it may sound, this book was by far one of the best teen books I have read. All of the drama that is discussed, the heartbreaks people went through, the deception and constant hiding, everything about this book reminded me so much of high school. Not for me, personally, but for the people I saw who went through pretty much everything Charlie and his friends had to go through.
In the book, Charlie, the main character, begins writing letters to an anonymous person, discussing in detail the days he’s had, the people he had met, and his life in general. One scene in particular really hit home in my mind for some of my friends. During this past semester there have been quite a few pregnancy scares among my roommates. I haven’t had any, but I am sure the way Charlie’s sister felt was the same way they felt; scared, alone, and helpless. As real as it was, the thought of being pregnant seems to be one of the hardest concepts to have to grasp. I was please to see this as one of the challenges Charlie had to face. It’s real and it’s scary, especially for teenagers, and to read about it through the perspective of a brother was a nice change because even though the person who may be possibly pregnant is scared out of their mind, Charlie’s sister, the same feelings are being shared with their loved ones, a.k.a. Charlie. One other scene that stuck with me was in chapter two, when Charlie talks about the time Patrick told him the story of him and Brad. Apparently Patrick had been really popular before he met Sam, and being so had to hide a lot about himself. Turns out Patrick and Brad were really into each other, but because of whom they were to their fellow peers and the place they were in, high school; their relationship had to be kept confidential. Patrick goes on to tell Charlie that it is easier for them to act as if they are just friends around their “friends”, and if things do get sexual at parties or around unwanted company, Brad claims he was too drunk to remember anything. Later in the book, Brad and Patrick are in the lunchroom and Brad calls Patrick a “faggot”. Brad’s friends started laughing, and then Patrick started throwing punches. Charlie steps into to help Patrick because Brad does nothing. During these scenes, I think Charlie begins to realize that no one can be themselves, which is one of the problems he has in this book. He is trying to find himself and seeing how hard it is for others to be themselves, creates a sense of hopelessness. A lot of teenagers go through this. I wouldn’t say it’s healthy for us to act this way and hide who we truly are, but society has made it that much harder; high school being the worst place of all. I like that these scenes were put in the novel because they are realities people experience every day, and it’s nice to see that they are acknowledges, that not everyone has it easy.
Significant moments happen a lot in this book because everything is so new to Charlie and creates a huge impact on him. One of these moments was when Charlie was saying goodbye to his teacher, Bill. Of all people who had helped him get through this year, I feel Bill had made one of the biggest impacts. Always giving Charlie books to read, subconsciously done to keep his mind off of the negative things around him, consistently reminding Charlie of how special he was, and how everything he told Charlie was positive. These encouragements gave Charlie the boost he needed when he wasn’t with Patrick or Sam. I was happy to see that Charlie had one of these teachers to help him. I don’t think, however, that Charlie realized how much Bill had been helping him until he had said goodbye to him. I also feel that even though Bill’s help was completely sincere, accepting it was hard for Charlie. It was mentioned in the book that the only other person to call Charlie “special” was his Aunt Helen. I like how the author put this twist in there. It opens the reader’s eyes and let’s them see how difficult it is for Charlie to ever be able to let someone come that close to him or even to accept a compliment such as being called, “special”.

The end of the book was a real surprise. I had known that something was going on with Charlie from the beginning. His constant trips to the psychiatrists, the way he reacted to sexual situations, just a bunch of little things. I also knew that his Aunt Helen had something to do with his problem. Never would I have ever of thought that his Aunt Helen had molested him as child. It all makes sense now, especially going back through and reading about the times he was with Mary Elizabeth and Sam. Every time they made a motion anywhere below his waistline, Charlie would become very uncomfortable and would start crying or get really angry.
It is books like these that give people a real eye opener. Molestation is real. Pregnancy is real. All of the problems we face are real and the only way to fix them is to deal with them. Hiding like Patrick did about being gay, and Charlie’s sister hiding the fact that her boyfriend abused her, puts too much pressure on any one person. We need to vent whether it be through a psychiatrist, a journal, or writing to someone you don’t even know. Reading this novel is another way to release. One can really relate to Charlie whether they are in high school or college. This book is just one of those easy reads that holds so much within, and makes you wonder how you got through life. I loved it and would highly recommend reading it.

Love always,
Brover