The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Overview
The Perks of Being a Wallflower is an epistolary novel
Epistolary novel
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. Recently, electronic "documents" such as recordings and radio, blogs, and e-mails have also come into use...

 written by American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 novelist Stephen Chbosky
Stephen Chbosky
Stephen Chbosky is an American novelist, screenwriter, and film director best known for the coming-of-age novel The Perks of Being a Wallflower...

. It was published on February 1, 1999
1999 in literature
The year 1999 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*June 19 - Stephen King is hit by a Dodge van while taking a walk. He spends the next three weeks hospitalized...

 by MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....

. 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
Extraversion and introversion
The trait of extraversion-introversion is a central dimension of human personality theories.Extraverts tend to be gregarious, assertive, and interested in seeking out external stimulus. Introverts, in contrast, tend to be introspective, quiet and less sociable. They are not necessarily loners but...

 and the awkward times of adolescence
Adolescence
Adolescence is a transitional stage of physical and mental human development generally occurring between puberty and legal adulthood , but largely characterized as beginning and ending with the teenage stage...

.
Quotations

I just need to know that someone out there listens and understands and doesn't try to sleep with people even if they could have. I need to know that these people exist.

p.2

So, this is my life. And I want you to know that I am both happy and sad and I'm still trying to figure out how that could be.

p.2

Bridget who is crazy said that sometimes she thought about suicide when commercials come on during TV. She was sincere and this puzzled the guidance counselors.

p.3

Some kids look at me strange in the hallways because I don't decorate my locker, and I'm the one who beat up Sean and couldn't stop crying after he did it. I guess I'm pretty emotional.

p.8

I look at people holdings hands in the hallways, and I try to think how it all works. At the school dances, I sit in the background, and I tap my toe, and I wonder how many couples will dance to ‘their song.’ In the hallways, I see the girls wearing the guys’ jackets, and I think about the idea of property. And I wonder if anyone is really happy. I hope they are. I really hope they are.

p.23-24

"Do you always think this much, Charlie?" "Is that bad?" I just wanted someone to tell me the truth. "Not necessarily. It's just that sometimes people use thought to not participate in life." "Is that bad?" "Yes."

p.24

“Charlie, we accept the love we think we deserve.”

p.24

"I hate you." My sister said it different than she did to my dad. She meant it with me. She really did. "I love you," was all I could say in return. "You're a freak, you know that? You’ve always been a freak. Everyone says so. They always have." "I'm trying not to be." p.26

Then, I turned around and walked to my room and closed my door and put my head under my pillow and let the quiet put things where they are supposed to be.

p.26

“Not everyone has a sob story, Charlie, and even if they do, it's no excuse.”

p.28

 
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