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1-Page Summary of The Perks of Being A Wallflower
Overall Summary
In a letter to his friend, Charlie reveals that he’s lonely and afraid of starting high school without any friends. He thinks about the reasons behind his best friend’s suicide and wonders if he has problems at home too. He then describes his family members and explains how much Aunt Helen meant to him before she died.
In the beginning of Charlie’s freshman year, he gets into a fight with a bully who hits him. He says that his brother taught him how to fight, so he ends up hurting the bully pretty badly and immediately starts crying afterwards. He admits that he’s very emotional and feels isolated at school. One day in his Advanced English class, his teacher asks Charlie to call him “Bill” outside of class, praises his literary abilities, and gives him extra books to read. His sister is a senior at this high school; she likes boys but they don’t like her back because she’s mean to them (according to Charlie). She receives mix tapes from one boy in particular but gives them away instead of listening to them herself (Charlie listens instead). One night when Charlie’s sister criticizes her boyfriend for not standing up for himself after she tells him off about something or other being wrong with their relationship (he hits her), then makes fun of the way he dresses in front of all their friends…and then finally beats on her again right before Charlie comes home from work one night…she makes Charlie promise not tell anyone about it happening ever again! The next week during classes at school Bill asks if anything happened over break since they haven’t talked much lately….so eventually when Bill finds out what happened between Charlie’s sister and her abusive boyfriend he calls Child Protective Services on behalf of both kids without telling either child first!
Charlie, a freshman at school, befriends two seniors named Sam and Patrick. They take him to Big Boy restaurant where Charlie learns that they’re stepsiblings. Later, Charlie develops a crush on Sam but is too nervous to tell her. After the homecoming dance he goes with them to a party and sits between them while listening to music on the radio. He feels infinite when he’s sitting between his new friends who are so accepting of him. At the party, Charlie accidentally walks in on Patrick kissing Brad (the football quarterback) and later finds out that Brad wants to keep their relationship secret because people will judge him for being gay.
After eating brownies laced with cannabis at the party, Charlie experiences feeling “infinite” as he stands between his new friends in an open field during a ride through town after leaving the party in Patrick’s truck.. The three high school students fly down a tunnel singing along with music playing from one of their phones until they reach downtown where they park near some train tracks by an abandoned building that looks like it once served as office space for railroad workers or other types of employees due to its large size and lack of windows except for those facing outside onto what would have been an alley-like area behind it. As everyone gets out of the truck there is no sound except that made by trains passing nearby which makes this scene reminiscent of many movies set in New York City such as Breakfast at Tiffany’s. The author uses this setting effectively here because it provides another example showing how different life can be from place to place even within one city.
Charlie continues to make progress with his extra assignments. He also wants to be a writer when he grows up, so he starts writing for a fanzine called Punk Rocky (inspired by The Rocky Horror Picture Show). His friends perform alongside the regular screenings of the film. Charlie soon realizes that Sam is in love with Craig, who plays Rocky in the show. As Christmas approaches, Charlie and his friends participate in a Secret Santa exchange. Charlie draws Patrick’s name as his Secret Santa and makes him a mix tape with carefully-selected music for his first gift. His last gift to Patrick, presented at their Christmas party, is a poem that he reads aloud to the group. Patrick reveals himself as Charlie’s Secret Santa and gives him an entire suit because “all the great writers” have suits; it was from Aunt Helen’s closet after she died of cancer. Later that evening, Sam kisses Charlie because she wanted his first kiss to be from someone who loves him.
