The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

I had heard a lot about this book and when I found it at the Goodwill there was no hesitation in buying it. I guess I will mention this now, 99% of the books that I read are second hand. Recycle and reuse my friends. Anyways, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a fiction book written in the letter writing format. The book contains letters written by a high school aged boy named Charlie who does not feel that he fits in. The letters capture Charlie's intimate thoughts and feelings while providing a plot that explores the infinite life of a depressed teenager. The author makes a lot of references to pop culture that includes many references to The Smiths (which I enjoyed because I'm a Smiths fan). The references are enjoyable, although sometimes I found them completely out of place. Charlie is an easy character to personally relate to and he reminded me of someone close to me. Further, the book proved my theory that depressed people are really just self absorbed:

"Charlie, don't you get it? . . . It's sweet and everything, but it's like you're not even there sometimes. It's great that you can listen and be a shoulder to someone, but what about when someone doesn't need a shoulder. What if they need the arms or something like that? You can't just sit there and put everybody's lives ahead of yours and think that counts as love. You just can't. You have to do things..."

I must say this is a must read because it is a piece of pop culture that explores past pop culture in a meloncholic way and Charlie is charming.

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I rate this 8/10

The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold

It took me a few months to actually pick up this book and start reading it. After reading the back of the book, I made the assumption that this book was meant for a female audience (which explains the hesitance on my part). One should never get into the habit of judging books by their cover, but sometimes the cover can give an accurate description of what lies within. The Lovely Bones is clearly aimed at the female gender or the softer males.

Although I was reluctant to read this book, as soon as I picked it up, I was in. The Lovely Bones is an easy read, no big words and confusing sentances involved to boost the writer's ego. This book can easily be read by a grade 8 reader, although some of the content is slightly too mature for that age group.

The Lovely Bones gives a realistic view of the afterlife/heaven. When I think about heaven, I automatically jump into the cliche view of white puffy clouds, as much chocolate as I can eat, my own studio and pretty much anything else my heart desires. This book shows pain in the afterlife. Not necessarily a new concept, but not something to be expected by what I believe to be a Christian writer.

The only problem with this book is that there is no closure. I felt a climax coming as I read the book and found myself disapointed after the last page. Don't get me wrong, there is a climax, it's just not... as complete as it should have been.

Ultimately, this book shocked me. I finished it quickly and for the most part enjoyed it. I would not recommend this book to any males though. My curiousity of the afterlife kept me interested, but would not expect many others to be captured by it.

This book has been rated 4/10.

Hey Nostradamus! by Douglas Coupland

"The conventional wisdom is true as regards faces: by mid-adulthood, what's inside you becomes what people see on the outside. Car thieves look like car thieves, cheats look like cheats, and calm, reflective people look calm and reflective. So be careful." - Douglas Coupland

After, yet another, stint of reading only non-fiction I decided to take a ride on the fiction side. Hey Nostradamus! is one of the best book rides that I have been on yet. Hey Nostradamus! follows four separate lives that all have been impacted by a school shooting. Each part of the book is written by a different character, offering a different experience and Coupland does a interesting job linking and relating all the perspectives together. Douglas Coupland's writing is real, entertaining, and simply detailed. He has a captivating way of writing that is both wise and easy to understand. The format of the book is somewhat scattered (because it constantly switches between present tense to past tense and to thoughts) which may bother more traditional readers, however, I found that the format gave the book an authentic feel. If you are a fan of non-fiction and are scared to go to the mindlessness of fiction, but want to adventure out, I would recommend this book.

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I rate this book 9/10! (I am now on a personal mission to read all of Douglas Coupland's books and maybe stalk him next time I go to Vancouver. AND I'm still continuing to read fiction.)