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Go Ask Alice by Anonymous This work has been published in the Teen Ink monthly print magazine.

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“This will be a good trip. Come on, relax, enjoy it.” This is how it started. Alice, once a shy, innocent girl, is sucked into the heartless world of drugs because of her need to be accepted. She did not plan for this to happen; she didn’t even know it was happening, but the people who drugged her drink unknowingly began the whirlpool that would soon trap Alice. The first culprit? A soda, laced with LSD.

Alice is a 15-year-old with long straight hair and a passion for the beauty of life. After that fateful day, however, her mood – whether wild, funny, happy, loving, depressed, or lonely – depends on drugs. Though drugs, or lack thereof, change Alice’s way of thinking, all she really wants is to be happy and loved; isn’t that what we all want?

After Alice is secretly drugged at a party, she awakens to the exciting adventure that life seems to have become. She starts experimenting with other hard drugs and begins to lose her sanity and grip on reality. Even after deciding to quit the drug scene, it seems as if the curse (which started as a game) will always be present in her life and ultimately cause her death.

I would recommend this book to teens and adults. I think it should be required reading in high schools. Since this is about a teen struggling with addiction and the social pressures of the drug world, it is a real eye-opener to anyone who is already struggling and for those who may be confronted with the option to use.

This book is extremely intense and opens the reader’s mind to the devastating effects of drugs. The main character describes her “trips” in such vivid and realistic detail that her story comes alive.

This work has been published in the Teen Ink monthly print magazine. This piece has been published in Teen Ink’s monthly print magazine.





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Francescatownsend said...
Dec. 1, 2012 at 8:51 pm:
For some reason my english teacher recommend this book to me in 7th grade, I am in 11th grade now and evidently it has been embedded in my mind. This book is a real eye opener, when I was reading it, it was almost as though I was living vicariously through her. Certainly, a life that I wish to not pursue. I recommend this book that wants an interesting read.
 
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MMB491 said...
Nov. 4, 2012 at 5:17 pm:
I would agree that this is an outstanding book. In fact, I believe it is one of the best young adult novels I have ever read. There is much speculation over whether the diaries are fictional or true; however, I didn't feel that affected how I felt after reading it. The accounts in this diary seem so real and well written. Many would argue that a fifteen year old girl couldn't muster such talented compositions. On the contrary, the late 60's early 70's were a very different time. ... (more »)
 
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farenbalanst said...
Aug. 10, 2012 at 2:49 am:
This book is quite the tale; a quick net search reveals some interesting points but regardless of  veracity it IS very entertaining! It's a  A real latter-day parable of a precious life cut short by demon pills powders and potions. Even though it is set in the early 1970s when LSD was demon #1, replace LSD with Oxy or X and you have a modern horror tale. I recommend to anyone with too much curioisty for their own good.
 
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FelixThePygmyPuffThis teenager is a 'regular' and has contributed a lot of work, comments and/or forum posts, and has received many votes and high ratings over a long period of time. said...
Jul. 22, 2012 at 9:15 am:
I read this book when I was about 14 and it was a real eye opener. It wasn't the first book that I read that delt with drug abuse but this one took it to a whole new level. I personally, would recommend this book to all young adults, especially in this society today. Drugs are not something to be taken lightly.
 
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soundingonlyatnightasyousleep This work has been published in the Teen Ink monthly print magazine. said...
Jun. 20, 2012 at 8:24 pm:
Not a fan of this book. I like books that seem to have conciously been written. The raw diary format wears after a whole novel of it.
 
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elizabethlong said...
Apr. 15, 2012 at 1:05 am:
Sounds awesome, i so want to read it. But if they had this required in high school kids would just make fun of it instead of taking it seriously.
 
kittykat96 replied...
Apr. 25, 2012 at 6:54 pm :
I just finished reading this book for school and everyone in my class were pretty mature about it, so I guess it depends on the maturity level of the students in the class. Although I do know some kids who wouldn't take it seriously at all and would make fun of it.
 
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ReplehSnatasThis teenager is a 'regular' and has contributed a lot of work, comments and/or forum posts, and has received many votes and high ratings over a long period of time. said...
Mar. 22, 2012 at 11:41 pm:

Go Ask Alice, albeit allegedly based on a true story, is a work of fiction. You can find this in the copyrights. Therefore, the girl's "real" name is moot.

As far as the concept of it being required reading in high-school, the book focuses on every negative aspect of drug use, very obviously in an attempt to deter it's reader(s). This, like anything else, would only glorify the "forbidden" status of tripping.

 
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goth_girl12 said...
Mar. 8, 2012 at 1:37 pm:
i remeber reading is book i could not put it down and i made my friend read it to 
 
sunshine7_25_11 replied...
Mar. 26, 2012 at 7:35 pm :
did you feel like the book was in vivid veiw of her life?
 to me it came sooo real , and i wouldnt ever want to get into the type of crap..
 
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lkk4209This teenager is a 'regular' and has contributed a lot of work, comments and/or forum posts, and has received many votes and high ratings over a long period of time. said...
Feb. 29, 2012 at 7:24 pm:
Actually her name isn't Alice, the narrator of this book has no name
 
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brooke112345 said...
Feb. 29, 2012 at 8:27 am:
I'm actaully in the process of reading this book. I thought it was a coincidence that this was on the cover. I really like this book so far.:D
 
melgar94 replied...
Apr. 11, 2012 at 6:01 pm :
it was amazing right 
 
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Shmelmo said...
Feb. 18, 2012 at 7:48 pm:
A.M.A.Z.I.N.G. book... it was really an eye-opener for me. The author of the journal describes everything in such a clear way... I would definitely recommend this.
 
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Lillie M. said...
Feb. 7, 2012 at 1:59 am:
This was a great article reviewing a great book! But it's true, you never find out what the girl's name is, since she's the one writing the book. The title is a reference to Alice In Wonderland.
 
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wordlover27 This work has been published in the Teen Ink monthly print magazine. said...
Jan. 29, 2012 at 3:58 pm:
It sounds like a really interesting book...I've heard about it before but I've never read it
 
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minimuffins said...
Jan. 4, 2012 at 11:19 pm:
in the story, the girl's name isnt alice, dont let the title fool you. you don't know the name of her, and thats what's best about this book. the title comes from a Jefferson Airplane song, "Go Ask Alice" and also reverts back to the childhood tale of "Alice in Wonderland", which, surprisingly, is all about drugs told in a way children would like. anyway, you dont know the names of anyone in the book.
 
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beautifulspirit This work has been published in the Teen Ink monthly print magazine. said...
Dec. 29, 2011 at 7:44 pm:
I liked your article---this book would have been great to read in school alongside A Separate Peace and Catcher in the Rye. I would say that this book set the tone---the expose if you will on how that need and desire to feel accepted by one's peers affects teenagers and adolescents. It's a confusing time and I believe this book will leave an unforgettable impression in someone's life.
 
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Mjjames2016 said...
Dec. 21, 2011 at 9:34 am:
My dad gave me this book when i was 11 years old, (My mom waas...you can get the picture) I loved reading your interpration of the book and the article was as gripping as the book.
 
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greenwolf said...
Nov. 11, 2011 at 9:05 pm:
Personally I found this book to be too scare-tactic and not that gripping. I'm not sure if it's based on actual diaries as it claims. However, your review of it was good, if a little short and it made it seem a lot better then I personally thought it was.
 
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