Book v Movie: Perks Of Being A Wallflower

You know how you can read a book, then watch the movie and think, 'are these even meant to be the same thing?'. Well I love reading a great book, then comparing it to the movie it's based on. Sometimes they get it spot on, and sometimes they just get it so horribly wrong.

Last night we finally sat down to watch Perks Of Being A Wallflower. I read the book a couple of months ago, and figured it was finally time to watch to movie and compare. Let's start with the book:

Perks Of Being A Wallflower, Stephen Chbosky, 1999
This is a wonderful coming of age story about a young man Charlie, who is just about to start his freshman year at highschool. It follows his journey through the ups and downs of teenage life, and his growth as a person. In the beginning of the book, the author writes as though he has very limited english skills, but as the story progresses, the writing style gets better, showing that through Charlie's journey, he is maturing as a person. His English teacher becomes his mentor, and is constantly giving him new books to read and write about, challenging him to explore the books meanings and underlying stories. Charlie finally makes friends, Sam and Patrick, and they continue to surprise him and take him on adventures to widen his horizon.
The way the author describes the characters, leaves a lot to the imagination of the reader, which I think is brilliant. I love being able to picture these people in my head, their hair colour, their accent, the way they dress and walk. It helps me to create my own little world, which let's me escape into the book. The ending of the book is a bit bullshit, and made me angry at the story, but I can understand why it was done so. It's not so much that I think the ending is stupid, it's more so that I couldn't believe it. I won't ruin it for anyone who hasn't read it yet, so don't worry, there will be no spoilers here. I very much enjoyed the book, and read it every lunch break until it was finished.


The Perks Of Being A Wallflower, Stephen Chbosky, 2012
Based on the book by the same name, Stephen Chbosky puts on his directing hat and thank god he did. I think if this movie had been directed by anyone else, they would have ruined it. Chbosky stayed so true to the book, with only a few minor adaptations. The storyline is the same, the characters written in the script perfectly. I love this movie, just as much as I love the book. 

If you prefer to read, then read, if you prefer to watch, then watch. In this instance, it makes no difference. Both book and movie are done wonderfully`.

Jayde xx