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The Perks of Being a Wallflower is the first English book I have ever finished. The last one I read was The Book Thief, which I loved but only made it to the middle. For it’s my first book review, I’m not sure what to write about, so I guess I shall share some of my thoughts.
It’s a perfect book to read when you are sad or upset or something like that. I got to know this novel when I entered university and one of my best friends recommended it to me. I began to read and soon I found that I love it! I guess that maybe all freshmen feel alike because of those uncertainty and new faces and new problems that occur to us (the book’s protagonist Charlie is a freshman of high school). Charlie’s experience makes me feel that I am not alone and that my situation is actually much better than him.
Charlie is considered as a wallflower, which refers to the guys who are shy and do not get involved in dancing or talking to people at social events. Wallflowers are usually not popular among people in our daily life. However, it occurs to me that nearly everyone has once been a “wallflower” before. When we were little, we used to be shy and we didn’t know how to express ourselves, just like Charlie, who knows the answers to the teacher’s questions but never raise his hand, and who remains on sidelines at parties. When we grow up, we gradually learn to “participate” in our lives. So we are not that different from wallflowers, it’s just that some learn faster and some slower. Maybe they just need someone right to teach them about it.
For Charlie, Sam and Patrick are the ones who guide him to the real world. With their help, Charlie begins to join the dancing, make mix tapes for friends and learns to express love. I feel really happy for him. I also appreciate Patrick a lot because he sees the positive aspect of Charlie. I remember he once said, “You see things. You keep quiet about them. And you understand. You are a wallflower.” I think it would be great if we can see things and understand and at the same time know how to express (instead of keeping quiet about them). So, wallflowers do have their advantages, what they need is to participate and express. On the other hand, we need to learn to see things and understand things from them, too.
Apart from the story, I love this book also because it was written in form of letters, it’s easy to read, it gives me a better knowledge of American high school life and it gives me a great sense of youth and infinite.
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