Perks of Being a Wallflower: The End.

I finished the book pretty quickly because, well, it's hard to put down! The character, Charlie, writes pretty addicting letters. Also, the events that happen show what life's all about: the good and the bad--it's hard to advertise just the good side of life, or just the bad side of life, so this book gives both perspectives, making it more relatable. Reading this book, I felt I could totally relate to Charlie, and at other times, I felt his life was totally different than mine which is what made the book great: it was dynamic. The only thing that bothered me in this book was the ambiguity at the end where they talk about how Charlie has issues in which he needs to go to the hospital and such. Online, there are theories of him being autistic. Not sure how legitimate that is but its possible. I, personally, think that he just reaches a stage in depression where medicine and therapists are the only answer. He seems like a genius but is socially awkward....So many possible problems. But then again, he could just be a struggling teenager. Who Knows! All we know is that the author chooses not to share it with us in order to leave your own mind to calculate its own predictions. Wow! How similar to "The Catcher in the Rye" is that! Pretty similar.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Charlie is freshman in high school, and still trying to get the swing of things. After being emotionally scarred by the horrible event of his friend's suicide, his life takes a turn. He makes new friends who show him how to live and have a good time, and realizes life's too short to be a bystander, but a participator. His friends Patrick and Sam show him just how to do that, and the best part is that these friends genuinely understand him: "he's a wallflower....[he] see[s] things. [He] keep[s] quiet about them. and [he] understand[s]" (37).
This book reminds me a lot of "The Catcher in the Rye", both novels having to do with growing up and coming of age. I somewhat like "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" better because it takes place in a more modern setting, making it more relate-able to myself.
Right now, his friend Sam (who is Patrick's step-sister) has given him his first kiss to make sure his first kiss comes from someone who loves him. That's what she says at least. But in reality, I think she really does like Charlie but doesn't want to go out with him because he is younger. I can see Charlie coming to hate High School's "Rules" as Patrick had told him earlier in the book, because these "rules" are what separates his love, Sam, from him.

1984 ...

Apparently Winston's not the only person not-so-fond of Big Brother. The dark haired girl, Julia, is against Big Brother and all his interferences into their lives. The ironic part is that she appears as the ideal worker for B.B., but in reality she goes to many lengths to try bring privacy into her life. This results in her easily able to meet Winston in a place where no one is watching. In a place where no one can catch them and report them to authority.

I have a feeling this affair might lead to bad things for Winston and Julia. B.B. is way too involved in the lives of the citizens for them to have access to privacy.

Another event that took place in the book was Winston going out to the suburbs to buy random antiques from a store ,and more importantly, to strengthen past's memories. This is considered important because through B.B.'s propaganda, the memories of the people are deliberately being weakened. This is bad because it's already the government is changing the past... at one point, the past could totally disappear, and this is exactly what Winston doesn't want to happen.

1984 continued. . .

Paranoia seems to be a recurring theme EVERYWHERE. First Macbeth, then all those totalitarian rulers around the time of World War II (i.e. Hitler, Stalin, and Mussolini), and now Winston from 1984.
Everywhere he goes he feels like he's being followed by Big Brother's eyes (which isn't exactly a pretense--for he is being watched constantly). Lack of privacy is one cost, but another is one's sanity and sense of security: seems like Winston's going crazy over who can see him, say, going into an old antique store in a "prole" neighborhood--a place where the people of the middle class--the proles--live. Him going into such an area is somewhat taboo, but he feels the inclined to go anyway based on how nostalgic he feels in its atmosphere--he senses the presence of his unknown past in these forbidden alleys. Only...he's EXTREMELY paranoid about this whole breaking-the-law thing, so as soon as he sees "the girl with the dark hair" from work (who later reveals herself to be an admirer of his) he immediately presumes she is spying on him.

1984

In George Orwell's 1984, the story takes place in--yes, you guessed it--1984. Although this is the setting, George Orwell wrote this book in the 1940's, predicting how life will be in 1984. Only, these hypotheses were not completely accurate. We do not have large computer screens in our living rooms in which "Big Brother" is constantly watching to see if we do anything that defies his rules or thinks something that the "Thought Police" would find threatening to Big Brother. If any suspected conspirators are found out they are quickly "vaporized" without trial and their history is erased off the face of society. Speaking of history, Big Brother's organizations erase any history that doesn't suit them, this makes doubt almost impossible to follow up on and doublethink an absolute. What I wonder is, how are so many people able to swallow what Big Brother dishes out? Well, not everyone does. People like Winston Smith who is against Big Brother's totalitarian rule and over-controlling aspects dare to think what he wants--to get rid of BB--and do what could lead to his execution--write a diary to the future telling of the wrongs that went on during their time.

I can't wait to see what will happen next. Will Winston find some accomplices? Will he get caught and vaporized? Will he be able to trigger an uprising against the horrid BB? We'll soon find out....

3rd Quarter

Of Mice and Men

"Of Mice and Men" was a GREAT book and I recommend it to anyone, even if they're not too much into the classics, because it's one of those books that hook you and actually give you something to think about once it's done. "Of Mice and Men" is about two men named Lennie and George. They are two migrant workers who wander from ranch to ranch looking for work to make a living. George is a smart, witty, and cautious man, while Lennie is a huge, muscular, and just-doesn't-get-it sort of person. They are complete opposites, yet they complement each other and are a packaged deal. Throughout the book, it is brought up that it is not very common for two men to travel together and look out for one another; when the norm is for a man to be somewhat of a loner, working, taking his pay, and picking up and leaving when he feels like it. Although, George says that he's looking out for him just because he promised his Aunt Clara he would, in reality, Lennie and George are just like family to one another. Lennie always listens and remembers what George says to him, while George is always looking out for Lennie.

I noticed a lot throughout the book that there's foreshadowing. I won't give away the ending, but the part in the middle when Candy, the old man, is sorrowful about his dog getting shot for being crippled and better off dead--well, being more sorrowful about the fact that he himself didn't put the poor dog out of his pain--has a lot to do with the ending, and Lennie and George's relationship. This is what I loved most about this book: the loyal, honest bond between Lennie and George. How even in the end--people might think otherwise, when in reality is, George was doing it for Lennie's own good--George was the best friend Lennie could ever ask for.