Review / The perks of being a wallflower

The perks of being a wallflower by Stephen Chbosky is a novel that really took me by surprise. The strange title of the story caught my eye and after reading it I can truly say that it's a must read for all teenagers! The novel was written in the 1990's and first published in 1999 by MTV. The story explores topics such as introversion, teenage problems (sexuality), abuse... It's also is about drug use and the main characters experiences with this. The story takes place in the USA during a school year, when Charlie, the wallflower of the book, is a high school freshman. Two other important characters are Patrick (who's homosexual) and Sam (his sister); in short his only and best friends! Other characters that have important roles are Mary Elizabeth (Charlies girlfriend), Brad, Bill and Charlies older sister and brother.
At the beginning of the novel Charlies best friend Michael commits suicide and so Charlie hasn't anyone to hang out with. His teacher Bill and above all his new friends Patrick and Sam open Charlie a world in which he experiences things, which include both good and bad experiences, which he never would have done if he hadn't found them. We also got to see how Charlie deals with all the family gatherings that happen throughout the year but the main subplot involves Charlie and Sam which "friendship" involves much about love and romance.
What I personally really liked about the novel is that it's straightforward and that his story shows, how it REALLY is in high school. I like that the author wasn't afraid to talk about controversial topics like sex, drugs, alcohol, abortion, homosexuality, rape... and I also really like the letter format in which the story is written that's unusual but good I think.
I would recommend this book to kids over 14 years because of the topics the book discusses. I think for teenagers up to parents this novel is a "must read“!