Go Ask Alice

Sparks, B. (2006). Go ask Alice. New York: Simon Pulse.

Originally published in 1971 by an anonymous author.

ISBN: 9781416914631 | paperback | 212p. | $9.99 USD

Cover image courtesy of goodreads.com

Annotation:  A fifteen-year-old drug user chronicles her daily struggle to escape the pull of the drug world.

Book Talk:  Go Ask Alice is . . .

• Written in diary format

• About an anonymous teenage girl age 15

• Who attends a party

• And is slipped LSD without her knowledge

• She quickly escalates out of control to an on again, off again struggle with drugs

• And becomes a homeless, dirty, ragged teenager living on the streets

• Who sleeps with strangers

• And puts herself in dangerous situations that lead to her being assaulted and taken advantage of

• She then returns to her family and tries to keep straight

• But is slipped drugs again and goes on a horrifying bad trip and tries to scratch her face off

• Afterward she is committed to a psychiatric hospital

• The book ends in a disturbing epilogue that leaves nothing but questions

My favorite thing about the book:

It has a quick pace and is totally captivating.  You won’t want to put it down once you start.

First Sentence:

“Yesterday I remember thinking I was the happiest person in the whole earth, in the whole galaxy, in all of God’s creation.”

Favorite character:

The diary!  Though it’s an inanimate object, the diary is in a way a character in this book.  It gives the reader a true view into the anonymous teenager’s life. 

Awards/Honors:

Though not necessarily an honor or award, this book has appeared on ALA’s 100 Most Frequently Challenged Books lists for 1990-1999 and 2000-2009.  To learn more about challenged or banned books, visit ALA’s Banned Books resources.

Learn More:

Check out this wiki page for the book created by Grand Valley State University students.

If you enjoy Go Ask Alice, be sure to check out Crank by Ellen Hopkins published in 2004.

Cover image courtesy of goodreads.com