Before reading this article, I would heavily recommend either reading the book, or watching the movie, as I go in depth into scenes and the plot, if you wish to avoid spoilers!

Whether you have read it, watched it, or not, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a title you have probably heard of before. Stephen Chbosky was originally a film writer in Chicago, but he is most likely known best for writing his first novel, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, published on February 1, 1999. The novel became a quick success and was being read by thousands of people, and the book was even added to reading lists in schools. However, different counties in several states have been challenging and banning this book from their schools since 2003, and the ban remains in effect to this day. The reasons vary specifically, but they all stem from similar reasons in that the topics discussed in the book are too dark for young readers. Topics mentioned in the book include LGBTQIA+ content, sexual assault, being sexually explicit, underage drug use, profanity, abortion, smoking, drinking, and others, which is why the book is “disgusting.” However, it is these topics that create the heartbreaking, emotional rollercoaster that the readers and characters experience through the book, which creates a beautiful story that I loved.

From the first page of the novel, you understand that the story is told through an almost diary format known as epistolary fiction. The novel is meant to be read as a group of letters that Charlie, the main protagonist, has sent to this anonymous person, whom he feels comfortable with because he was told by a girl that this receiver would listen, understand, and not sleep with a certain person at a party. The identity of this reader remains unknown for the rest of the novel, and I would assume that the receiver never sends Charlie a letter back. I like to believe that the author intends for the reader to become the receiver for two reasons. This is a Young Adult, coming of age, novel, and Charlie is a freshman at high school; therefore, the author’s intended audience would most likely be around the same age. Therefore, the reader can imagine themselves being in high school and experiencing these similar events and being able to put themselves into this world. The other reason is that, just like the receiver, we don’t get to interact with Charlie. We get to hear from him and follow his journey through the school year, but we have no guide in where he goes and only listen to his story, like Charlie says the receiver would. Whether my conspiracy is correct or not, it was this mindset I went with while reading that had me immersed in this narrative. As a listener, I did my job, and I listened to Charlie tell his story because this story alone is what makes this book so incredible and exciting.

Charlie is a very tragic character who is trying to understand love and friendship. His aunt Helen was a very special person to him, as he always talks about her and reminisces back to when she was alive. Charlie’s birthday is the day before Christmas, and she was the only one who would go out and get him a second gift for his birthday. Unfortunately, while she was out, she was hit by a car and died. Along with his aunt’s passing, Charlie’s best friend, Michael, had shot and killed himself in the 8th grade. This event may be the beginning of showing Charlie’s deep emotional side. He cries a lot as he says in the novel, and losing his friend unknowingly seems to be the start of this sad trend. Later, Charlie goes to a football game where he meets Patrick and his stepsister Sam, who become his best friends, and he develops feelings for Sam that continue through the story. They leave and go to a party where Charlie is introduced to Patrick and Sam’s friend group, and Charlie cries again because he feels special when they dedicate a toast to him. On the way home, Charlie says the iconic “I feel infinite” line as they listen to a great song through a tunnel.

It is revealed at this party, when Charlie walks in on them, that Patrick is homosexual and is in a secret relationship with Brad, the school’s quarterback. Their relationship has a dark past because Brad’s father would basically never be able to accept that he has a gay son. Brad and Patrick both got drunk at a party and fooled around, and would continue to do so. It eventually became a problem when they would only hang out in private after they were drunk, Brad even saying he could never remember what they’d do. Patrick got Brad into rehab and was happy to know that Brad didn’t need to be drunk to tell him that he loved him. I see this as a good and sadly probable, realistic inclusion of homosexuality in growing teenagers. Patrick tells Charlie that he cannot tell anyone about this, and he agrees. Patrick tells Charlie that he is a “wallflower” and that he sees things and understands them, but keeps them quiet.

A wallflower is a good way to describe Charlie’s character. There are many instances throughout the novel where Charlie sees things but doesn’t speak about them; some things help grow his relationship with others. Charlie and his sister have a weird relationship, but through secrets, they grow closer. Charlie watched his sister’s boyfriend smack her, and it upset him, but she begged him not to tell their parents. Later, that same boyfriend gets her pregnant, but refuses to take accountability. Charlie helps her sister to a clinic for her to get an abortion and they agree not to tell their parents that he smokes cigarettes and that she got an abortion. Also, Charlie tells a story about a time when his family was watching a show that made everyone cry. His dad had left to make a sandwich, and when Charlie went to check on him, even he was crying, and it remains a secret between them, even when he retells the story later.

Towards Christmas, Charlie shows his appreciation for his friends by getting them all a gift, even if they didn’t get him one. For Sam, he gave her a record of “Something” by the Beatles that his aunt gave him. He says that the song is so beautiful that he will give it to someone who is just as beautiful as it. Sam takes him back to her room, where she gives him a typewriter, and he shares a kiss with Sam after she reveals that she was raped by her father’s friend when she was 7. My favorite quote from this book is from Sam in this scene when she says, “I want to make sure that the first person you kiss loves you. Okay?” I think that is a strong, powerful, gut-wrenching line, especially here, and it shows that while Sam is seeing someone, she still loves and appreciates Charlie, and that they are closer than he may think. If you are looking for a romantic book to read, this is the one, and it only gets juicier.

I’d like to mention that Charlie’s friends are all a part of a Rocky Horror Picture Show group, which I have personally seen and enjoyed, but could be “disgusting” to others. After Charlie performs in it, Mary Elizabeth, one of the other friends in their group, asks him out to a dance, and he agrees. However, he is still in love with Sam. They go on more dates, and all Charlie can do is complain about her. He feels like he has trapped himself in this relationship and that she is taking control over him, but he is a wallflower and won’t say anything. Later, Craig, Sam’s boyfriend, invites them all over, and they play truth or dare. Patrick dares Charlie to kiss the prettiest girl in the room, and with no hesitation, he kisses Sam. Everyone is shocked, but maybe mostly me. My jaw dropped! This then leads to a lot of drama, and ultimately, Patrick tells Charlie that he should stay away from them, and it is so sad. You feel bad for Charlie because he lost his friends, but then again, he should have said something sooner, so he wouldn’t be in this mess.

After this, Charlie goes through a rough time, starting to smoke and being alone again. He finds out that Brad’s dad had walked in on him and Patrick and beat Brad. Later in school, Patrick tries to talk to Brad, but he ignores him. Brad calls Patrick a certain homophobic slur, and then his friends jump and beat Patrick. Charlie decides to jump in and defend Patrick, ultimately winning back his old friends for saving him. This part of the story is pretty sad. Patrick was a confident, charismatic, funny character, but now, with his breakup, he is having a hard time and is trying to recover from the abuse. Charlie, being his friend, decides to spend more time with him, going out to eat, driving, the golf park, telling stories, and Charlie even lets Patrick kiss him, because “that’s what friends are for.” Charlie really does love his friends and tries to be there for them and make up for the damage he’s done, but again, he kind of just lets things happen and doesn’t speak up for himself and what he wants.

Prom is coming up, but Charlie will be busy meeting up with Bill, who shares a lot of gossip about the drama that went down. All his friends would be attending prom, and he says they all looked beautiful, but Craig had worn a tuxedo instead of a suit, and he rented out a suite for him and Sam to stay in when she wanted to go to the after-party. Those were just teasers. According to Peter, Mary Elizabeth’s new boyfriend, Craig, had been cheating on Sam ever since they first started talking. He even cheated on her the afternoon of the prom. That is insane! Peter heard Sam talking about how she would work long-distance with Craig, and so he felt he had to tell her the truth. Charlie admits that when he found out, he shouldn’t have taken advantage of anything, and that he realizes that Sam is hurt and that he basically just wants her to be happy because he really loves her.

It’s towards the end of the school year now, and Charlie meets up with his English teacher, Bill, who has been assigning him extra books to read and essays to write for each one. Bill is very fond of Charlie and especially his dedication to literature. He tells Charlie that he is very special and that he felt he should tell him because he doesn’t know if anyone else has told him that, and that he would be around next year if Charlie ever needed him or more books to read. This is a very sweet moment because Charlie’s friends will all be graduating so to know someone appreciates him and his talents is very endearing to him.

School is basically over for everyone this year. All the seniors have graduated and are celebrating their graduation parties. Charlie gives Patrick and Sam all his favorite books because he will miss them, and Sam reminds him that they still have a week together, so they should make the most of it. The night before Sam leaves for her summer program, she asks Charlie to help her pack her bags. Sam asks Charlie why he never tried to ask her out, and he says he wanted her to be happy. Sam goes on a rant about how Charlie is too sweet and that he always is there for her and their friends, but he doesn’t do what he wants to make him happy. He puts other people’s happiness and wants over his own. So finally, he kisses her, and it is so sweet, and I just feel happy for Charlie. However, when they start to get touchy, he stops her but doesn’t know why. Then the biggest plot twist ever happens.

Sam takes Charlie down on their couch when he starts to feel weird and cry. He goes to sleep and has a dream of what he and Sam were just doing, except it wasn’t Sam… it was Aunt Helen. Charlie says that he is starting to feel bad again, and he drives home and hears things that aren’t there and watches the TV, but it’s turned off, and wonders if what he dreamed was real and his psychiatrists weren’t just asking him weird questions, and he thinks about Aunt Helen and his sister’s boyfriend hitting her. His parents found him lying on the couch naked and unresponsive.

Like I had said from the start, Charlie is a tragic character who has been traumatized for a long time and is trying to understand love. He had been sexually abused by his Aunt from a very young age and was most likely unaware. His aunt could have been manipulating him into thinking that all she did to him was out of love, and so he looked up to her so much because he thought they were close. Charlie is a loving character, and we know how much he truly loves Sam. We also know that Sam would never abuse Charlie like that, as she was also abused, but when they share a passionate moment that comes from love, his body responds to it as trauma, and it brings back all the memories of his aunt and what his doctors have been explaining to him. The book ends with Charlie explaining how where trauma comes from can be hard to pinpoint, and that it shouldn’t matter, and how he won’t tell his children that other people have it worse and will attend to their problems at hand. Sam and Patrick take him through the tunnel on the back of their truck, and he feels infinite again, being with the friends he loves.

Overall, I personally love this book and would recommend anyone to read the book or even watch the movie. The movie isn’t as good as the book because of limited time, but it is directed by the same author, Stephen Chbosky, and is fantastic. I really feel like the story itself is what makes this book as good as it is, because that is what it is. This book is a story of Charlie’s life, and there really are no dull moments. Charlie makes this book so emotional, and just to learn about everything he goes through just makes you so sad, that whenever he is doing good, it makes you so happy for him. Yes, the story does talk about some heavy topics, sexual abuse being the major one, but I believe that these are necessary topics that should be addressed, and people can learn about how it affects them. You can talk about dark topics and use tragic characters to tell beautiful, emotional stories, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower may be the best representation of that I have ever read. There is also a great inclusion of music in this novel, and you can find the exact playlist that Charlie makes on apps like Spotify if you search “One Winter.” This novel may genuinely have the best story I have ever read.

References & Works Cited

Chbosky, Stephen. The Perks of Being a Wallflower. WordPress. https://meridian22highelibrary.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/the-perks-of-being-a-wallflower.pdf

Weebly. History & Connections. Perks of Being a Wallflowers. https://perksofbeingwallflowers.weebly.com/history–connections.html

Banned Books 2025- The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Marshall University. https://www.marshall.edu/library/bannedbooks/the-perks-of-being-a-wallflower/