From the Bookshelf of EVERYONE Has Read This but Me - The Catch-Up Book Club…

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Stephen Chbosky

Start date: April 1, 2023

Finish date: April 30, 2023

Discussion: MODERN / POPULAR READS

Why we're reading this: April 2023 - Bookshelf Catch-Up Selection
Group pick for Modern Classic/Popular Oct ‘18
[close] April 2023 - Bookshelf Catch-Up Selection
Group pick for Modern Classic/Popular Oct ‘18

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MODERN / POPULAR READS

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What Members Thought

Oct 04, 2011 Stephen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: gay, z-read-in-2011, teen-reads, all-5-star-reads, gay-pg, and-saw-the-movie, broken-winged-birds

A wonderfully moving and endearing but devestating book. I have a special vulnerablity to books centered on damaged and somewhat asperger-like characters and this book falls squarely in that camp. The main character sees himself as a shy wall-flower but in reality he's bewildered by things that his too quick mind observes but he's unable to figure out how to deal with.

This book reminds me a lot of Inside Out by Terry Trueman and the two are both very powerful, thought provoking reads. There are ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Aug 10, 2012 Jen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: young-adult, former-bees, five-star-reads

I really loved this book. It's the first I've read that so clearly and truly captures what high school felt like. Charlie, the narrator, is beginning high school in 1991, so he would have also been my contemporary which I think probably further endeared him to me.

This is a gritty, difficult book topically. While all in all Charlie seems to be pretty happy, he's struggling with a lot, personally, within his family and within his friend group. It's real though. Teenagers deal with all of these is ...more

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Aug 13, 2012 Marla rated it it was ok

Shelves: overrated, award-winner, with-reservations, zz-2013, romance, lgbt, zz-team-2013-challenge-wild-blue-d, new-adult, buddy

Charlie is weird, slow and very observant. He seems dysfunctional and we learn about his life through his letters to an anonymous reader. Book is very slow in places and just a bleak view of teenage life. I had to read a few pages at a time, because I got tired of the strange voice and depressing situations. I think the target audience is misfit teens and it just was not my kind of book.

Charlie's friends initially seemed like good friends to him, but as the book progressed, they became worse and Charlie is weird, slow and very observant. He seems dysfunctional and we learn about his life through his letters to an anonymous reader. Book is very slow in places and just a bleak view of teenage life. I had to read a few pages at a time, because I got tired of the strange voice and depressing situations. I think the target audience is misfit teens and it just was not my kind of book.

Charlie's friends initially seemed like good friends to him, but as the book progressed, they became worse and worse influences.

Likes:
* Patrick's original nickname, Nothing
(view spoiler)

Dislikes:
* Charlie crying all the time
(view spoiler)

With reservations:
swearing, suicide, fighting, sex, drugs, drinking, sexual situations, child molestation, smoking, more drugs, depression, (view spoiler) violence

YA Buddy Readers' Corner Guided Buddy Read ...more

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