this is the story of Charlie, a 7 year old boy .... wait,


he's 15???

Well... You could have fooled me!
Let me give you a few examples as to why Charlie's age came as a bit of a surprise to me:

example 1): what 15 year old boy does not know of masturbation??

And we are not even talking about reasons for not practising it, we are only talking about KNOWING of it. I doubt there is many...

example 2): what 15 year old boy cries several times a DAY, often in public, for random things?
My bet?
Not m More...

If, like me, you lurk on frequent tumblr, you will have realised that there is only so far you can scroll before you hit something like this:



Stephen Chbosky’s epistolary novel has something of a cult following, and the quotes that litter the internet seem almost anthemic, given the passion with which they are re-blogged, quoted, slapped across artfully light-leaked photographs and “liked”.

A generation appears to have adopted The Perks of Being a Wallflower, and by extension it’s narrator Charl More...

Wallflower (noun)

a shy or retiring person who remains unnoticed at social events, especially a woman without a dance partner

I decided to read this book not because there was going to be a movie coming out soon.
It one of the reasons but then again it wasn’t the main one.
I wanted to read it because the word “wallflower” caught my attention.

I was a wallflower.
I was not one of those kids people notice immediately.
I was one of those people who blends in very well that I was no longer noticeable.
I wa More...

*UPDATE:* I went and saw the movie today and it was a very good movie. Stephen Chbosky directed the movie and it was very true to the book, I would say almost exact. So if you liked the book I would definitely recommend going to see the movie, you will enjoy it!


I have been struggling with how to rate this book since I finished it. I loved this book but then at the same time it was just okay. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that I am finally secure with who I am… but in high school that More...

There may be a book in the world that can address, just within very few pages, suicide, molestation, domestic abuse, homosexuality, drug use, mental issues, first sexual experiences, rape, abortion, etc., and not sound like a Lifetime movie, but The Perks of Being a Wallflower is not an example of that.

For me, the straw that broke the camel's back was when I realized that, to add to all of the above mentioned melodrama, the narrator was either emotionally or mentally handicapped. It appeared, C More...

3. 5 stars.

I almost didn't finish this book. The main character was so hard to figure out. He was supposed to be intelligent but he was so naive. I get being book smart but dumb streetwise, but it was basic social and life knowledge that he didn't get. One minute he seemed wise beyond his years and the next he acted like a child thrust into a teenage life.

There were also a couple of scenes that I didn't think were believable. I almost put the book down (view spoiler)[at the rape scene. There is no way a guy an (hide spoiler)] More...

The most interesting and relatable parts of this book—for me anyway—were the parts about his sickness, whatever that ended up being, exactly. It’s always interesting to me that a book which is ostensibly about a “wallflower”, an outsider, has sold over half a million copies and is considered to be one of the most popular YA novels out there. Either people who read are going to be the types who relate to Charlie anyway, or that we all feel like outsiders in our own skulls, viewing the world from More...

1.5 ( To be read as 1 ) stars.

I GIVE UP !



My high expectations wore off in the first few pages itself but I tried, really really tried to like it, owing to it's high ratings and the fact that it has been made into a movie.

With a completely preposterous plot, and a boring protagonist mewling every few pages.. I just cannot continue.

This is more of a "I can't believe I read this crap" rant with the sentences to gif ratio of 1....than a review.

READING THIS WAS:



I was halfway ( A big feat in itself More...

February 25, 2013

Dear Charlie,

I am writing to you because I feel like you're the only one that would listen to me right now. From all the friends that I have made you are the one that's the most understanding. I guess what I'm trying to do is thank you for being there for me these last couple of days. I didn't expect to learn from you as much as I have. My mom always says that you can never really understand a person until you walk in their shoes, but I guess getting to know you and reading your More...

Drugs, abuse, child molestation, anything that would make people cry & be traumatizing for a teenager, it's all here in overdose, injected wherever possible into every character's life. How can the author be such a douche.

I felt emotionally manipulated by this inconsistently written, I'm-trying-to-be-deep-and-real-and-strike-emotional-chords crying fest.

So I Hulk-smashed it into the recycling bin.

God.

Resounding accuracy of the voice of a boy teetering on the brink of adulthood, goodreads? Um yeah, maybe if all kids teetering on the brink of adulthood made you question if they were autistic and spent the majority of their free time reading the classics and going to therapy. Don't get me wrong. This book is good. You want to find out what the deal is with the main character for the entire book and at the end, you eventually get a pretty damn good idea. But for the love, this is not the Catcher More...

Actual rating: 4.5 stars

So, I've read this twice now. The first time I read it, I think I was about 14 years old and I believe I originally gave it three stars. But after waiting a few years and reading it again, discussing it with my book group at school, and seeing the movie (which I loved), my appreciation for it has grown immensely. And I think there's a lot of things I missed out on or didn't sympathize with as much when I read it as a younger teenager. Thus, I'm bumping my rating up to 4.5 More...

As much as people say it, this really is one of my favorite books of all time. MTV promoted it, it got a lot of press, so many people shun it and say it is overrated. I disagree.

I didn't read this book until last year, when I turned 21. My boyfriend owned it, it seemed like a quick read, and I wanted to see what all the fuss was about.

Main character Charlie is loveable from the first sentence out of his mouth. There are endless quoteable quotes in this book that had me folding the page over so I More...

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

Just thought we’d get the cliches out of the way first. Actually, I'm lying - this review is probably going to be full of cheesy cliches.

Am I the only person (still technically a teenager) in the world who does not ‘get’ this book? Please tell me I’m not the only person in the world who had a fun time in high school and was actually really happy with my parents and my friends?

That brings me to my main problem with this book: I just don’t get it. More...

If I have one regret about my reading life it’s that I didn’t read this book in 2000.

I was a teenager. I just moved to the US all by myself and was about to attend American High School for a year. My life was a mess and I wanted to start anew. Nothing prepared for what I was about to experience and I did all the wrong things and went the wrong way about the whole thing. If I had only read this book back then maybe I would've gotten my priorities right.

Also it is written in such a simple languag More...

This book is beautiful. It is a classic teenager read. I have probably read this book a million times and it never gets old. I love how honest and deep Charlie is. He will get you thinking about the good things and what really matters in life. I am inspired whenever I read this book and I hope you can get as much out of it as I do each and every time.
This is was my book report for school. Hope it helps!


“We are who we are for a lot of reasons. And maybe we'll never know most of them. But even if More...

"Avrei voluto alzare le spalle davanti alla stranezza di tutti... soprattutto alla mia."

Ciao Charlie,
sai, hai ragione tu. Riguardo alla stranezza delle persone, intendo. Ma anche riguardo a tutte le altre cose. Al modo in cui ci si sente tristi e curiosi guardando la gente, ai genitori che nelle foto sembrano sempre felici e ai figli che guardandoli pensano «anche io voglio essere felice così», all'ultimo libro che abbiamo letto che è sempre il nostro preferito. Alla bellezza del momento in cui More...

"And in that moment, I swear we were infinite." URGH! I hate that quote! It smacks of a forced whimsy and I bet you that nobody actually knows what it means because they don't want to be outed as a non-cool kid, so everyone pretends that it's deep instead of perhaps the matter of the truth - that it probably doesn't make any sense and therefore means squat all.

This quote just makes me think of this: The Infinite Cat Project. But that type of infinity is better because it a) involves cats and c) More...

June 30, 2012

Dear Charlie,

First of all, thank you for sending me your poignant letters. I'm honored you think of me as a person that didn't try to sleep with that person at that party even though I could have. I'm ecstatic you decided to allow me to read your thoughts. I'm glad you proved to be such a great letter-writer/story-teller. I am really quite happy about this.

It was nice receiving letters from you, even though they're dated long ago. I know that I got them for only a couple of months ( More...

"And in that moment, I swear we were infinite."

The Perks of Being a Wallflower doesn’t tackle anything new… drugs, music, sexuality etc have all been dealt with in other books, this book just sets itself apart for me because the protagonist while being absolutely honest is also absolutely naïve. I have no real reason to like him. Other than his being… absolutely honest. BUT it is was also this honesty that had me doubting his authenticity.

The book is written in letter form to an un-named frien More...

It is possible that the author of this book sat down and thought to himself, "Alright, I have this kid - now let me try to put him through every adolescent situation that a suburban white teen faces." Wasn't this book promoted by MTV? It certainly does have a commercial flakiness - especially with the plot converting well into an afternoon TV special. If it's not sex, it's the drinking or the drugs or the insecurities. Perhaps reading this book is not recommended for those who have already exper More...

Stopped on page 20. Couldn't stand the writing, the main character, or the story.




Update; 3-16-13

I just watched the movie and....I kind of, um...loved it.



I'm gonna be picking this up again because the movie was so good.


After Finishing

3.5 Stars

I honestly don't know what to think of this book. I started reading it a long time ago and stopped because I didn't like the story or the writing. Then the movie came out, and I watched it, and I fell in love with it. So I decided to give the book another More...

Do you remember the ´90s?
Nirvana. Metallica. Red Hot Chili Peppers. U2.& R.E.M.
Thake That, New Kids on the Block, Backstreet Boys & Spice Girls.
Famoust TV-shows: Friends, Step by Step, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air...
Windows 95 was The Best!
We used to listen to the radio all day long just to record our favorite song of all time on a TAPE. Boom boxes and walkmans were such a great thing. We recorded stuff on VCRs and rented VHS tapes, not DVDs.
We were getting up early on a Saturday to wa More...

The Perks of Being a Wallflower: A. Free live sex shows but you are not allowed to tell anyone. B. Free LSD mixed in a brownie. C. Free to make out with girls who take fancy on you because you seem to be harmless. D. Free books because you are autistic hence you can finish a challenging book to read like Ayn Rand’s “The Fountainhead” in 12 days and your English teacher wants to challenge you by giving you more and more books to read. E. All of the above. F. None of the above.

I read this novel More...

This book tells about every teenagers life. For sure a lot of people could relate in this novel especially when they remembered the first time they entered Highschool. You meet new people with different personalities. Everything in Highschool is part of growing up and we learn to make our own choices in the future. A story that involves family, love , and friendship.

Charlie is a wallflower.Freshman student. He's sensitive, emotional and weird. His Aunt's death had affected him, and he is strug More...

I highly recommend The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

*****

I didn't expect to get (magically) swept away. I really didn't. I was expecting a whining, dramatic fifteen-year-old Charlie. But all i encountered was openness and sweet, sweet honesty. Oh, Charlie. You owned me from page one. :)

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a lot of things. It dealt with drugs, sex, abuse, bullying. You might find that negatively intimidating but Chbosky's writing softened the blows that might have stung because of s More...

There are certain nuggets… certain lines or sentiments that I stockpile when I read.. I find them on pieces of paper towels or on the back of notebooks, I’ve stopped writing them on my arms since it grosses my husband out…. but they are still there, those little lines of self therapy that I rely on to further my mental wellness and to avoid those damn co-pays.

So, I’m reading yet another YA book about a teen with issues that seem so prevalent these days, I mean, really, what teen doesn’t have is More...

So happy I decided to re-read this. I missed charlie and the gang.

The two things I enjoyed about this book ---

1. This cheese fest of a quote and probably the most quoted lines by teeny boppers and adult teeny-bopper-child-stars who have read the book:

"When we got out of the tunnel, Sam screamed this really funny scream, and there it was. Downtown. Lights on buildings and everything makes you wonder. Sam sat down and started laughing. Patrick started laughing. I started laughing.
And in that moment, i swear we were infinite."

Deep, right? ...Gosh, I can remember More...

Un ragazzo in guanti di vetro

Non so da dove mi venga quest’espressione. Temo che non esista, e non sono neanche troppo fiera di averla inventata. Però mi sembrava una definizione sintetica di ciò che penso di questo romanzo.
Non è un genere di lettura che mi è abituale. La cosa più simile che mi viene in mente è Speak, di Laurie Halse Anderson, che non mi era affatto dispiaciuto, anche se non so quale sia l’opinione degli “esperti del settore” a riguardo. Dunque, posto che non so nulla di quest More...