[Steeplechase and BWF] The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky- 4 stars

[Jen K]

Charlie is about to enter high school. In an attempt to process this next step in his life, he writes letters anonymously to unknown friend of a friend. Charlies start at school is a bit tricky. He doesn't always pick up on social cues and his closest friend meets a traumatic end but one day he meets two step-sibling seniors, Patrick and Sam, who take him into their self proclaimed group of oddballs and wallflowers. Finally Charlie has a group of friends to make connections, attend parties and to try and participate in his high school years.

Of course being high school there are ups and downs as Charlie makes his way with the friend group, his own family and academics. That time of life is tricky and Chbosky did a great job. I especially appreciated the relationship between Charlie and his siblings and how it evolves. This is a lovely and solid coming of age story with deeper issues throughout the year.

Steeplechase: Letters x 58; Coming of Age x 2,376
BWF Tenacious Trailblazers: Letter C bonus