The Perks of Being a Wallflower (my thinks)

I watched the movie a couple of months back and kept thinking about the story. I wished that I'd read the book first because I imagined it would be really good. I knew a couple of people who had the book. Borrowing the book to read from one of them was on top of my list of things to do after my exams ended.

While my end semester exams were on full swing, I got thoroughly bored of my same old songs and the fast-paced 'modern' pop songs drove me up the wall. I remembered that the soundtrack from The Perks was fabulous, although I couldn't remember the titles of any of the songs. I found the whole album online and downloaded it. I make no exaggeration when I say that every song (12 in all) is beautiful and wonderful. They are the kind of songs that just don't get old, even if you hear them thirty times a day for several days or weeks. My first favorite is "Come on Eileen". I can't get enough of this song. To take a much needed break from my studies, I played it on loop and danced like an animal. I haven't danced like that...ever. It felt a kind of great-good that's hard to put in words. Tied in for my second favorite are "Could it be Another Change?" and "Asleep". These songs are the only ones I listened to through the rest of my exams and no other song seemed worth switching to. Listening to these songs made me try to remember where they play in the movie, the story and the characters again. I remembered I need to read the book.

After my last paper yesterday, (also the last day of my first year at college), I was out with a friend and we went to a bookstore. There I found many, shiny-new copies of The Perks. I got so excited that I completely forgot about (a) my friends who already had the book and (b) how broke I was. The book was bought. I started reading it last night and finished with part one. I stopped reading there because it was late and sat thinking about it for a while. Then I got up and came out to see my mom was still up. I was so full of thinks that I started telling her about them. In a nutshell, my thinks ran here:- The experiences of reading a book after watching the movie and watching a movie after reading the book are quite different. When you read the book first, you imagine it your own way and pin certain expectations on the movie. You realize how the story is changed to suit better visually and wonder which way worked better. But it's always the visually appealing version of the story that sticks with you, even if you like it less than the print. When you read the book second, you discover the parts that were left out and notice that some smalls parts of the story on screen are actually so much nicer to read and more important in the book. Also, since you already know the story, you pay more attention to the writing than the story, appreciate it better and form your favorite moments as you go along. In this particular case, since the movie was so good, it influenced the reading of the book more and am thoroughly enjoying every bit of it. I'm happy I read the book second.

Before I found the book, I had no idea that The Perks of Being a Wallflower was written as a series of letters. I think that's another reason I bought the book without thinking twice. I'm halfway through the book now, and I think I love Charlie.
Reading it, I feel like the anonymous friend he's writing to and it makes me think about what it would be like to receive letters as detailed as these about someone's life but not knowing who that someone is. It must be nice. Charlie's personality is gripping. It's so innocent but deep.
I don't know if it's because it's a coming of age story, or because I'm really getting engrossed with Charlie and understanding his feelings, or because this is the second time I'm going through the story, or because I'm emotional and Charlie is emotional and sensitive, or because it's been a while since I've read a book as good as this, or because anything written as a letter means more to me and hits me harder- but I love this book. And I don't mean it in a frivolous way. And I love it more as I cover more of it.

Also, I think I'll start signing off my letters with 'love always' as Charlie does. Not as a fan copying something because she loves the character, but because it sounds so sincere. It sounds less vague than 'lots of love'. That is anything but sincere. Now that I think of it; lots of love < love < love always.

I will now get back to reading part three. I had to take this break to write about it because of all the thinks in my head. It's one of those books that make you pause. You need that pause because you need to let the fact that the book is so good sink in.