The Perks of Being a Wallflower (213 Pages)

I decided to reread this book for two reasons: 1) it has just been made into a motion picture and 2) I hadn't read it since 1999. Charlie is probably a little nerdy; he's certainly naive. Author Stephen Chbosky introduces the reader to some of the many obstacles in a teen's introduction to the rough waters of high school. Charlie becomes friends with two people, Patrick and Sam, who are part of the "in crowd". They are step brother and step sister, and Charlie is infatuated with Sam- even knowing he hasn't got a prayer of the feeling being mutual. Through letters written to "Dear Friend" Charlie communicates his feelings about his family, his friends, about sex, drugs, and school. He learns that at least one teacher recognizes him as being brilliant, and throughout the book there are references to the many books the teacher gives him to read and discuss with him. It's an interesting book- one that I think many of our students will enjoy. Some parents may voice concern- it is one of the most contested books in the YA category. SO, teachers, remember to offer it as a "choice read" and that will not only protect you, if it becomes a contested topic, simply tell the student to choose a different book. (Of course, this will only make the book much more desirable to the student(s)!