And, finally, because of his increased intelligence, Charlie is able to discover the experiment's 'fatal flaw' and is reduced to watching the end for both Algernon and himself, hoping to salvage something for the future from his brief bout with genius. He also has difficulty making new friendships and establishing new relationships due to a lack of social intelligence that the surgery could neither correct nor anticipate. Daniel Keyes is essentially a one-story author in the science fiction field, al though he has published around seven other works of fiction in the genre. Charlie is now able to recall past events that shaped his life and analyze past friendships for what they were, or weren't. This jump in intelligence is not necessarily a good thing, however. As Charlie's intelligence increases to a genius level, the reader not only reads about the changes from Charlie's viewpoint, but also sees the change evidenced in Charlie's writing ability.

In a series of progress reports, Charlie documents everything that happens to him. This procedure had already been performed on a laboratory mouse, Algernon, with remarkable results. With more than five million copies sold, Flowers for Algernon is the beloved, classic story of a mentally disabled man whose experimental quest for intelligence mirrors that of Algernon, an extraordinary lab mouse. Keyes was born in Brooklyn, New York City, New York. When brain surgery makes a mouse into a genius, dull-witted Charlie Gordon wonders if it might also work for him. Keyes was given the Author Emeritus honor by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 2000. Charlie is a 32-year-old developmentally disabled man who has the opportunity to undergo a surgical procedure that will dramatically increase his mental capabilities. Daniel Keyes was an American author best known for his Hugo award-winning short story and Nebula award-winning novel Flowers for Algernon.

Flowers for Algernon is a character study of one man, Charlie Gordon.

Keyes daniel flowers for algernon