Set in the early 90's, The Perks of Being a Wallflower outlines the experience of high-schooler Charlie through the style of an epistolary novel. What is an epistolary novel, you ask?
“An epistolary novel is a novel written as a series of documents. The usual form is letters, although diary entries, newspaper clippings and other documents are sometimes used.” (wikipedia.org)
Okay, so Charlie is writing these letters, which make up the body of the novel, to a friend that he has who we never really learn the true identity of. We see how Charlie's experience as a freshman in high school is especially challenging, and throughout the course of the novel it is difficult not to get very attached to Chbosky's extremely well developed protagonist. The final few letters by Charlie serve as an insight into the mental and emotional turmoil experienced by many teenagers, and I truly believe that any reader could not only relate but also feel comforted by the moving representation of the difficulties of being a teenager. The novel's realistic voice and popular culture references draw the reader in and allow for interaction with the text and even ownership.
I would suggest this coming of age story to any of my students regardless of their interests or ability level. I think that any kid who has ever felt left out, awkward, scared, lonely, ANYTHING, would find something in this novel to relate to or learn from. I have often heard this book be connected to The Catcher in the Rye, and I am curious to read the canonical text and see how it relates to this book.
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