The recent reinstatement of this title at Glen Ellyn, IL library prompted me to move it up to the top of my reading list, where it has been languishing in limbo for a few years.
From the back cover:
Charlie is a freshman.
And while he's not the biggest geek in the school, he is by no means popular. Shy, introspective, intelligent beyond his years yet socially awkward, he is a wallflower, caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it.
Charlie is attempting to navigate his way through uncharted territory: the world of first dates and mix tapes, family dramas and new friends; the world of sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, when all one requires is that perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinite. But he can't stay on the sideline forever. Standing on the fringes of life offers a unique perspective. But there comes a time to see what it looks like from the dance floor.
Awesome!! Perks of Being a Wallflower RT@ALALibrary Glen Ellyn (IL) board listens to Blume, reinstates YA novel http://ow.ly/lV6qV
Maybe it's good to put things in perspective, but sometimes, I think that the only perspective is to really be there. Because it's okay to feel things. I was really there.
 |
| image source: prinsesamusang.wordpress.com |
And while he's not the biggest geek in the school, he is by no means popular. Shy, introspective, intelligent beyond his years yet socially awkward, he is a wallflower, caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it.
Charlie is attempting to navigate his way through uncharted territory: the world of first dates and mix tapes, family dramas and new friends; the world of sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, when all one requires is that perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinite. But he can't stay on the sideline forever. Standing on the fringes of life offers a unique perspective. But there comes a time to see what it looks like from the dance floor.
“This moment will just be another story someday.”
My thoughts:
I am not going to link the movie trailer here. Not because I think there is anything wrong with the move, I haven't seen it so I can't say either way. I won't be linking it because, for now anyways, I want to preserve the purity of the novel. This book has left a raw, nostalgic aura that is still following me around the house. Had I read this book when I was in high school I think I may have become obsessed with it. Charlie has his own questions and journeys in the book. They are not my journeys. And yet, they are. The specifics of the thoughts and experiences differ but the rawness and honesty and emotion of Charlie's letters lead me back to that time in my own life. I recognized the longing. I recognized the angst. The loneliness, The fear. The joy. Those elusive connections that, as it turned out, weren't as elusive as I had convinved myself. The pattern of the day unfolding and the anxiety in trying to just make it to the next one. When the words didn't match my own experience, the impact and emotional memory brought me right back to those days. I think I would have loved to have read this back then because it felt in many ways like my own journal. The book understood the me I was back then. It broke my heart a little. I healed my sixteen year old heart a little too.
I am not going to link the movie trailer here. Not because I think there is anything wrong with the move, I haven't seen it so I can't say either way. I won't be linking it because, for now anyways, I want to preserve the purity of the novel. This book has left a raw, nostalgic aura that is still following me around the house. Had I read this book when I was in high school I think I may have become obsessed with it. Charlie has his own questions and journeys in the book. They are not my journeys. And yet, they are. The specifics of the thoughts and experiences differ but the rawness and honesty and emotion of Charlie's letters lead me back to that time in my own life. I recognized the longing. I recognized the angst. The loneliness, The fear. The joy. Those elusive connections that, as it turned out, weren't as elusive as I had convinved myself. The pattern of the day unfolding and the anxiety in trying to just make it to the next one. When the words didn't match my own experience, the impact and emotional memory brought me right back to those days. I think I would have loved to have read this back then because it felt in many ways like my own journal. The book understood the me I was back then. It broke my heart a little. I healed my sixteen year old heart a little too.
"We don't get to choose where we came from, but we can choose where we go."
No comments:
Post a Comment