Sitting at home reading on my uncomfortable leather couch, I ignored a new movie trailer as it danced across the television, making noise in the distance. I continued reading my book, but was abruptly intrigued by the catchy alternative music and golden one liner said with an innocent, witty, charming voice. “We accept the love we think we deserve.” Astonishingly enough, the trailer was for the New York Times Best Seller I was reading Stephen Chbosky’s best seller, “The Perks of Being a Wallflower.”
While reading this book, “The Catcher in the Rye” lingered closely in the back of my mind because both stories take the reader through the process of overcoming problems. This short read consists of letters written by the narrator/ main character named Charlie to an anonymous .friend.
As a freshman, he is naturally an outsider dealing with the complications affiliated with his first love, the suicide of his best friend, and surviving his endeavor in pinpointing where he fits in while submerged in high school’s judgmental atmosphere. While he is discovering who he really is and where he belongs, two seniors named Patrick and Sam show him the ropes and suddenly introduce him to an unfamiliar world.
Readers observe the lives of Charlie’s friends and family through his eyes, making it possible to understand the different perspectives of each character introduced to the story. Because of Charlie’s persona of soaking in situations and being an observant character, it forced me to associate it with Nick’s character in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, “The Great Gatsby.”
One can easily begin to pick out characters they are able to relate to on an emotional level, which builds a bond between the reader and the book, drawing you in to the point where you cannot put it down. “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” consists of themes such as music, love, sex, drugs, alcohol, family and friendship making it possible for nearly any student to relate to.
This book gave me the opportunity to explore millions of emotions from front to back as the nonchalant dialogue dives into a serious tone and then ricochets back into its occasional hipster slang, immediately lightening the mood. It is a steady paced, intriguing refresher with the ability to open the reader’s eyes to either a new angle of the high school experience or one that is all too familiar.