Junior Booklovers Contest Winner Megan, age 15, Charlottetown, PEI

Charlie is a wallflower. He's the boy who quietly observes life and the people around him without anyone noticing. Charlie is the main character in The Perks Of Being A Wallflower, a poignant novel about discovering yourself and dealing with the struggles of growing up. Charlie is very shy and painfully passive. Ever since his best friend committed suicide in the eighth grade he hasn't had any real friends. Then he meets Patrick and Samantha, a brother and sister who are seniors at Charlie's high school. The three become best friends and Patrick and Sam introduce Charlie to a teenager's world of music, drugs, first crushes and the Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Charlie's truthful narrative throughout the book is full of emotion and his quirky observations. His clever explanations of his life at home and at school will make you laugh or bring tears to your eyes. The words are simple, yet his story is extremely powerful and heart wrenching. The story is told through letters written by Charlie and addressed to an unidentified friend, which makes it seem like he's writing the letters to the reader. You get an intimate look at the struggles of a vulnerable young boy feeling the pain of growing up, but enjoying those rare moments when a simple radio song is all it takes to make you feel infinite.

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 haunting novel about the dilemma of passivity vs. passion marks the stunning debut of a provocative voice in contemporary fiction: The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

This is the story of what it's like to grow up in high school. More intimate than a diary, Charlie''s letters are singular and unique, hilarious and devastating. We may not know where he lives. We may not know to whom he is writing. All we know is the world he shares. Caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it puts him on a strange course through uncharted territory. The world of first dates and mixed 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.

Through Charlie, Stephen Chbosky has created a deeply affecting coming-of-age story, a powerful novel that will spirit you back to those wild and poignant roller coaster days known as growing up.

Stephen Chbosky grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and graduated from the University of Southern California''s Filmic Writing Program. His first film, The Four Corners of Nowhere,premiered at the 1995 Sundance Film Festival and went on to win Best Narrative Feature honors at the Chicago Underground Film Festival. He is the recipient of the Abraham Polonsky Screenwriting Award for his screenplay Everything Dividedas well as a participant in the Sundance Institute''s filmmakers'' lab for his current project, Fingernails and Smooth Skin.Chbosky lives in New York.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is his first novel.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

By Stephen Chbosky

Discussion Questions

1. Why do you think Charlie wants to remain anonymous? Have there been times when you wish you could have, or did?

2. Would you be friends with Charlie? Why or why not?

3. What do we learn about Michael? Do you sympathize with Charlie''s reaction?

4. What do you think about Susan''s relationship with her boyfriend? When Charlie tells Bill, did you think Bill would call his parents? Do you think that was the right thing to do? What do you think of her parent''s reaction?

5. Discuss Charlie''s reaction to his brother and sister throwing a party. What did you think about the couple in his room? What about Charlie''s response?

6. What do you think being a wallflower is? Do you agree with Bob''s definition?

7. How do you feel about Patrick and Brad''s relationship? Do you think Patrick is understanding of Brad''s feelings? What chance at a relationship do they have? Do you think that you can have a ''true'' relationship built on secrets?

8. Charlie mentions that his dad "had glory days once." What do you think Charlie''s glory days will be? Do you think he is worried about not having any?

9. Discuss Charlie''s family holidays. Are there elements that are universal to every family dynamic? Has anything about Charlie''s family surprised you? Describe aunt Helen. What kind of person is she?

10. Talk about the mixed tapes in the story. Are you familiar with the songs and bands? Why do you think Charlie speaks about them so often?

11. Do you like that the story is told through letters? Do you feel you know the kind of person Charlie is? His friends and family?

12. Several important issues come up during the course of the book, ranging from molestation to drug use. How does Charlie deal with these? How have the issues affected his friends and family?

13. Charlie has a few breakdowns. Do you feel hopeful for him? How much of his past explains his present?

14. Charlie''s friends are moving away at the end of the story. Where does this leave Charlie? Can he make new friends?

15. Bill is very supportive of Charlie. How does this affect Charlie?