When "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" was published in 1999, some schools in the United States banned it from their libraries and reading lists for its depictions of graphic sexual scenes, drugs, homosexuality and teen pregnancy — the usual suspects. Of course, this only increased its street cred.
At the same time, in many U.S. bookstores it's on display next to "The Catcher in the Rye," a fact that makes author Stephen Chbosky extremely proud. "I've read 'Catcher in the Rye' so many times as a kid," he tells The Japan Times. "A lot of people have said that this book is like the millennial version of 'Catcher' and they see Holden Caulfield in (the protagonist) Charlie.
"(But) I think these are two entirely different stories and Charlie and Holden are two different people with their own voices and unique perspectives. J.D. Salinger was a great influence on me, but then so were F. Scott Fitzgerald and Stephen King and Ernest Hemingway and countless others. I wasn't trying to mimic anyone's style, but I did want to stress and also portray the importance of loving great books."
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.