This is instantly a favorite. I can’t even talk about it without getting teary-eyed.

Flowers for Algernon is a story about a 37 year old man named Charlie Gordon. Charlie attends a night school for adults. Ms. Kinnian is the teacher of the class, she tells him about a surgery that he could take to become smarter. The surgery would make his I.Q. of 68 to 204. He takes the surgery and the first day, he is starts getting emotional, because a white mouse named Algernon races Charlie everyday through a maze and always beats him. Charlie works at a box factory, where his friends Joe, Frank and George makes fun of him. Charlie thinks that they're his friends, but they aren't. Charlie gets smarter everyday his is even beating Algernon. He also gets to keep Algernon as a pet. Later on the surgery makes Charlie smart to learn college subjects. He also learns different languages. Algernon becomes weak and can't run through the maze and dies. Charlie wonders why Algernon died. He gets a lab of his own, and does research. Charlie published a book about his research. After the research, Charlie starts to forget what he learned. He even forgets to read other languages, even his own handwriting. At the end, Charlie decides to move to another place, where no one knows that he became smart because now he forgot everything he learned.

This book is very sad. Charlie could have been smart for a longer time, if he listens to his landowner or to Dr. Strauss. If Algernon didn't die, then his life could have been happier. I think Charlie could have gotten another pet to have someone to talk to in his home. This book is a great book for telling people that you should keep learning to become smarter. Charlie had to take a surgery because his I.Q. was so low. I would recommend this book to someone who wants a sad book; this book would make people cry. I want to read the original novel.

Spare, concise, emotionally riveting. Far superior to the later novel. ( )