The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Author	Stephen Chbosky
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Young adult novel/Epistolatory novel
Publisher	MTV Books/Pocket Books
Publication date	February 1, 1999
Media type	Print (Paperback) and Audiobook
Pages	256 pp (first edition paperback) 224 pp (regular edition paperback)
ISBN	0-671-02734-4
OCLC Number	40813072
Dewey Decimal	813/.54 21
LC Classification	PS3553.H3469 P47 1999

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is an epistolary novel written by American novelist Stephen Chbosky. It was published on February 1, 1999 by MTV. The story is narrated by a teenager who goes by the alias of "Charlie"; he describes various scenes in his life by writing a series of letters to an anonymous person, whom he does not know personally.

The story explores topics such as introversion, teenage sexuality, abuse, and the awkward times of adolescence. The book also touches strongly on drug use and Charlie's experiences with this. As the story progresses, various works of literature and film are referenced and their meanings discussed.

The story takes place in a suburb of Pittsburgh during the 1991-1992 school year, when Charlie is a high school freshman. Charlie is the wallflower of the novel. He is an unconventional thinker, and as the story begins he is shy and unpopular.

Chbosky names J. D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye as an inspiration,^[1] and he pays homage to Salinger's work by naming it as one of the books that Charlie's English teacher, Bill, gives him to read. As of December 2005^[update], Chbosky has been working on a screenplay for the novel.^[2]

The book was sixth on the American Library Association's list of the top ten most frequently challenged books of 2008, for reasons including the book's treatment of drugs, homosexuality, sex, and suicide.^[3]

Charlie's lists

Books

In the novel Charlie's teacher, Bill, assigns him various books to read. Charlie describes them all as his favorites.

• To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
• This Side of Paradise by F. Scott Fitzgerald
• Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie
• The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
• A Separate Peace by John Knowles
• The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger
• On the Road by Jack Kerouac
• Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs
• Walden by Henry David Thoreau
• Hamlet by William Shakespeare
• The Stranger by Albert Camus
• The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand

The book also references a book of poems by E. E. Cummings, The Mayor of Castro Street by Randy Shilts, and it contains a poem by Earl Reum^{[citation needed]} entitled "Person/A Paper/A Promise". The poem is also credited to Patrick Comeaux under the title "A Person/A Paper/A Promise Remembered".^{[citation needed]}

Films

The novel references these films and television shows:

• Rocky Horror Picture Show
• The Graduate
• Harold and Maude
• My Life as a Dog
• Dead Poets Society
• The Unbelievable Truth
• A Perfect Paradise
• It's a Wonderful Life
• Reds
• The Producers
• Hannah and Her Sisters
• M*A*S*H
• Saturday Night Live

Songs

The novel references these songs:

• "Asleep" by The Smiths
• "Vapour Trail" by Ride
• "Scarborough Fair", a traditional folk song popularized by Simon and Garfunkel
• "A Whiter Shade of Pale" by Procol Harum
• "Time of No Reply" by Nick Drake
• "Dear Prudence" by The Beatles
• "Gypsy" by Suzanne Vega
• "Nights in White Satin" by The Moody Blues
• "Daydream" by The Smashing Pumpkins
• "Dusk" by Genesis
• "MLK" by U2
• "Blackbird" by The Beatles
• "Landslide" by Fleetwood Mac
• "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana
• "Another Brick in the Wall Pt. II" by Pink Floyd
• "Something" by The Beatles
• "School's Out" by Alice Cooper
• "Broken Wings" by Mr. Mister^[4]

References