Grace brought it with her from the great society when she joined up with jefferson airplane in 1966. This weeks episode of the podcast was all about go ask alice, and all i can say is. Is the book go ask alice based on a real girls diary. To answer questions about go ask alice, please sign up. Her name is never given, and the diary is suspected to be fictional despite being promoted as true.
The book go ask alice was the reallife diary of a teenage girl. Beatrice sparks, whom is known to the general public as the editor of go ask alice, populated the false impression that this book was based off of the diary of a young girl, whom fell into the elaborate and dangerous life of a drug addict. With william shatner, ruth roman, wendell burton, julie adams. Attributed to anonymous, the book is in diary form, and was originally presented as being the edited real diary of the unnamed teenage protagonist. At first the book left me feeling shocked that this was a true story and i totally believed everything i read and then when i found out it was fake it just makes the you. Only publishers weekly threw shade, remarking that it. Alice meets a freshman at the university library, joel. The main characters of this fiction, young adult story are. He and alice get to know each other better, as does her family.
Though the story was widely criticized as a complete fabrication and dismissed as propaganda, its. Go ask alice on apple books apple books apple apple. Only parents can decide if they want their children to read go ask alice. Go ask alice which, btw, was insanely popular when i was a kid is a work of fiction that is commonly attributed to a therapist not a psychologist named beatrice sparks. She is a pretty typical teenage girl in the late 1960sshes mostly concerned with school, boys, her hair, and fitting in okay, thats pretty typical for any decade when her fathers new job causes her family to move across the country, alice is thrust into a new school at a time when she is at best. Go ask alice has been around for decades, and is even being used as reading material in high schools. The movie is based on the book of the same name that was published in 1971. The line in this song, go ask alice, provided the title of a 1971 book published by an anonymous author. Its said that the author of the book upon which this movie was based wrote it as a work of fiction, which she later admits, but i still think that.
The heavyhanded body image stuff in the beginning of the book was hard for me to read. In the tradition of go ask alice and lucy in the sky, this heartwrenching story chronicles a girls fatal experience with testing her moral limits and the dangers of addiction. Sep 03, 2009 according to, go ask alice was based on an actual diary of an anonymous teenage girl who died of a drug overdose in the late 1960s. It is not a definitive statement on the middleclass, teenage drug world. Oct 03, 2016 go ask alice is the firstperson tale of an accidental downward spiral into drugs, alcohol, unwanted sex, and impoverished living. I think the writer, alice, has written this story because she was writing a diary about her drug addiction. Go ask alice is a 1971 fiction book about a teenage girl who develops a drug addiction at age 15 and runs away from home on a journey of selfdestructive escapism.
According to a book written by barretts brother scott a place in the sun. Go ask alice is based on a true story about a teenager who becomes addicted to drugs. Reyna marie to clear the matter, this novel was not based on a true story, nor is the events following alices life, or characters factual. The torture and hell of adolescence has rarely been. For all its strengths, still alice belittles the reallife.
In the same vein, go ask alice is young adult literature because thats the audience it was specifically geared toward. Mar, 2008 it has never been proved that it is a true story or the fictional work of an editor. Even so, the real author has never been identified, though there is strong evidence suggesting it. Not alice beatrice sparks doesnt have a website, but one person has built an entire website about the book anyway, so click on through for all things alice. Go ask alice was originally promoted as nonfiction and was published under the byline anonymous. Based on a 15yearolds diary, go ask alice is the intimate account of one girls fatal journey into the world of drug addiction. Lines from go ask alice that, in hindsight, should have. Creating film adaptations for movies has become very common because directors can be sure that their target audiences are intrigued by the topic of their future film. Go ask alice was based on an actual diary of an anonymous teenage girl who died of a drug overdose in the late 1960s. Alice could be anyone she could be someone you know, or someone you love and alice is in trouble. Now streaming on youtube is a 1973 movie based on the once alleged true story of a young drug addict named alice. It is the story of a troubled young woman who seeks solace in drugs and the counterculture. The hidden message is conveyed to the reader, because alice, a drug addict herself tells about her experiences with drugs. An intelligent, sensitive girl with a literary flair, she experiments with drugs and the counterculture to escape from her low selfesteem and consuming loneliness.
It is famous for its drugs are bad message, being banned for references to sex, rape and drugs, and almost certainly being a fake. But the big difference between alice and a lot of other kids on drugs is that alice kept a diary. Then she is invited to a party, a special party where the drinks are spiked with lsd and alice is never the same again. The song white rabbit predates the book go ask alice. A 15yearold girl in late1960s america is sucked into an odyssey of sex and drugs and eventually seeks help.
Cover of the 2011 arrow books paperback edition, containing the words this is alices true story. The book that defined my teen anxiety turned out to be a lie. I want to know if this diary was actuatly a real person and not just someone making it up. Go ask alice is based on the actual diary of a fifteenyearold drug user. Asked in alice s adventures in wonderland book is the story about a girl named alice who died because her friend cut her to pieces true. But she just cant resist the way the drugs make her feelbeautiful and popular and connected to. Back in 1973, though, most involved with this may still have thought they were depicting a true story rather than an amalgam of kids on drugs scare story. At first the book left me feeling shocked that this was a true story and i totally believed everything i read and then when i found out it was fake it just. The well known disney animation was based on alices adventures in wonderland and predates go ask alice by twenty years, as it was released in 1951. Jul 03, 2014 go ask alice was published anonymously in 1971, but in the last two decades, it still lives in the top 25 most frequently banned books, according to the american library association.
Bailey welcomes a fresh start at the prestigious boarding school, prescott academy, far away from the painful memories of her mothers death and the unendurable. This tragic and extraordinary true life story shows the devastating effect that drugabuse can have. I think the editors have made a book of alice s diary, to show everyone the dangerous of drugs. Since its publishing in 1971, go ask alice has become one of the most challenged and banned books of all time. Pdf go ask alice book by beatrice sparks free download. Go ask alice is unnecessary proof that sex and drug stories are the best money makers. An award winning novel by the name of go ask alice did that. As such, we hope it will provide insights into the increasingly complicated world in which we live. Jun 30, 2012 the shocking true story of a teenagers descent into darkness perfect for fans of the smashhit netflix series, thirteen reasons why. It is, however, a highly personal and specific chronicle. Though go ask alice is a classic, its not a good book. Go ask alice is a novel by youth counsellor beatrice sparks, first published in 1971. When i called my friend kelly to discuss my revelations about go ask alice kelly is the selfdeprecating friend i rely on to temper my personal humiliations with her reliably more outrageous gaffesshe wanted to know if i was joking.
The book was a diary of a young girl in the 1960s who had a drug addiction and died. Go ask alice is still awash in controversy, 43 years after. These books, the most wellknown of which is go ask alice, serve as cautionary tales. It graphically describes the waking hell into which the main character descends, her heartfelt but futile battles to return home and stay. By an anonymous teenager, a true story from her diary beatrice sparks the editor of the classic go ask alice has compiled the. Then, in 1978, a book called voices, a compilation of stories about troubled teens, was. Go ask alice is still awash in controversy, 43 years after publication. Im only interested in staying true to my creative impulse and finding a way to write the stories that i. The kids who were there were considered popular at her old school. Questions about the books authenticity and true authorship began to arise in the late 1970s, and it is now generally viewed as a found manuscript styled fictional work written by beat. The sobering message of go ask alice had a huge effect on my lifeand then i found out the real story. After publication, go ask alice was exposed as a fraudulent work, not the diary of one girl but cobbled together by an author from the. It even started a trend of teen morality novels, which became a whole subgenre of ya lit. The book s main character was never named and the book credit is to anonymous.
Go ask alice is a shining example of people passing something off as a true when, in reality, its just as carefully constructed as any other novel. The book is written in diary form, but the author is anonymous. Pressure to use drugs at school intensifies, as the kids harass alice and her family. On a normal day in alice s world, she decides to buy a journal to write in it every week to record her. Go ask alice, a real diary in print for four decades. Edwin strattonmackay go ask alice is a politicallyfunded novel, a terror story to frighten the young and generate scapegoats. Go ask alice was the product of beatrice sparks, an author who has come out with a number of teens who saw their lives ruined by their bad choices offerings, each one presented as a true story, often in the form of a diary of an anonymous teen. Sheila munros parents met in 1950 in college, where alice like rose in the story the beggar maid was a scholarship student. I read go ask alice the book as a young and naive kid, and as far as i knew it was.
Mar 23, 2017 then, in 1978, a book called voices, a compilation of stories about troubled teens, was released, with jacket copy attributing it to beatrice sparks, the author who brought you go ask alice. They did mention about changing the names and everything but i. It was a drug overdose that kills the main character. The whole book is a fetid lie, and a poorly executed one at that. Like a blink of an eye the main character turns towards drugs, sex, and running away. Sep 16, 2012 go ask alice 1973 full movie miss flowahs. This is my second read of go ask alice, and i loved it just as much the second time around. Yet it was originally promoted as nonfiction, its still sold as by anonymous and the copy i have has this is alices true story on the cover plus the blurb on the back, the foreword and the psychologists comment at the back everything is still packaged to make out this is nonfiction. Novel versus the movie adaption of go ask alice essay. Poignant and unflinchingly honest, her story is a tragedy that is repeated in towns and cities across the country. However, not long after its publication, beatrice sparks, a psychologist and mormon youth counselor, began making media appearances presenting herself as the books. Free download or read online go ask alice pdf epub book.
In go ask alice, the diary is written by a teenage girl over a twoyear period and chronicles her experiences with drugsmainly marijuana, acid, and speed. Aug 16, 2019 literary hoax aside, i have some other thoughts to share about go ask alice. Lucy in the sky by anonymous was written in the same style as go ask alice, a fictional story supposedly based off of the diaries of a teenage drug addict whose life spiraled out of control and ended with death. The shocking true story of a teenagers descent into darkness perfect for fans of the smashhit netflix series, thirteen reasons why. Go ask alice teaches you what can happen when you get into drugs and its hard to stay away from them once you have started and know how easy it is to get ahold of them. The truth behind jays journal and interviews with the family, sparks used roughly 25 entries of 212 total from barretts actual journal. Jan 04, 2008 go ask alice was the product of beatrice sparks, an author who has come out with a number of teens who saw their lives ruined by their bad choices offerings, each one presented as a true. The first edition of the novel was published in 1971, and was written by beatrice sparks. Kris from sf, ca this song was not written about the book go ask alice. Attributed to anonymous, the book is in diary form, and was originally presented as being the edited real diary of the unnamed teenage p. Returning to it as an adult feels a bit like youre taking part in a piece of pop culture in. Go ask alice in the book, go ask alice, a young girl, who felt like an outcast, was invited to a party. The truth behind jays journal and interviews with the family, sparks used roughly.
Go ask alice is a 1971 novel by beatrice sparks that bills itself the reallife diary of an anonymous teenage girl. True story or not, it made for an interesting read and truly can put the fear of drugs and the dangers of hanging with the wrong people in you. She concludes the first diary with the words i love god. Literary hoax aside, i have some other thoughts to share about go ask alice heres the true story on episode 58. Go ask alice bears the authenticity of its present day, even if its own authenticity has been discredited. Lyrics for white rabbit by jefferson airplane songfacts. Go ask alice by anonymous banned book but was it real. Returning to it as an adult feels a bit like youre taking part in a piece of pop culture in the vein of scared straight or reefer madness.
I just got done reading go ask alice the diary of a drug user 15 year old who died after her 17th birthday. Yet it was originally promoted as nonfiction, its still sold as by anonymous and the copy i have has this is alice s true story on the cover plus the blurb on the back, the foreword and the psychologists comment at the back everything is still packaged to make out this is nonfiction. The never told you exactly how she died but they said was it a drug overdose. Alice gets a job working with chris, and the two become best friends. The diary begins right before alice s fifteenth birthday. As powerfuland as timelytoday as ever, go ask alice remains the definitive book on the horrors of addiction. But she just cant resist the way the drugs make her feelbeautiful and popular and connected to the world around her. It has sold over four million copies, was adapted as a tv movie with william shatner, and is still in print over 40 years later. Bookbanners like to take go ask alice out of libraries because they.
Go ask alice by anonymous about the book she doesnt want to get hooked on drugs. A scary fictitious melodrama set at the beginning of the imposition of the catastrophic nixon war on drugs infrastructure. Alice alice is the anonymous protagonist her name is an allusion to a jefferson airplane song whose intermittent diary entries narrate go ask alice. Chriss friend richie, a college boy, turns alice on to marijuana.
D espite the popularity of go ask alice, the mystery of the diarists identity has never been truly solved, and none of her relatives have ever come forward to claim a share of the royalties. Go ask alice became a cult classic in the 1970s, revealing the inner thoughts of a teen in turmoil and detailing her attempts to pull herself out of her druginduced haze. Mar 23, 2012 my book trailer project for go ask alice. While the books origin was once steeped in controversy, it is mostly forgotten now. The story is about a sixteen year old girl with a loving family and a good start in life.
While the book s origin was once steeped in controversy, it is mostly forgotten now. The book was written in 1967 and the song was originally written around 1965. In the 1970s, this fake diary scaredand temptedteenage. A book report on go ask alice english literature essay.
The story starts off like any other book, with a normal day and a normal family. For helpful context, listen to the episode here and brush up with a summary of the book here. The go ask alice community note includes chapterbychapter summary and analysis, character list, theme list, historical context, author biography. Nowadays ya lit is pretty universal harry potter really opened the doors for people to read childrens books no matter what their agebut in 1971 when our book was written that wasnt really the case. This is appropriate for all ages, it is good for everyone to know what can happen if you get into drugs, and it can scare young kids away. If you spent any time in the young adult section of a library, you probably remember a slim paperback that with its chiaroscuro cover depicting a haunted girl staring out at you, and subtitle labeling it a real diary almost vibrated with secret knowledge. These are conventional curses rarely used by alice, and their inclusion here makes it clear that alice finds the world both spiritually enlightened and debased. May 22, 2019 when i called my friend kelly to discuss my revelations about go ask alicekelly is the selfdeprecating friend i rely on to temper my personal humiliations with her reliably more outrageous gaffesshe wanted to know if i was joking. A year later came jays journal, the diary of an adolescent boy who succumbs to satan worship, which similarly credited dr. Every time after she uses, she feels guilty and low and vows to stay away. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 2 pages and is available in paperback format. The precise authorship of go ask alice is still a bit of a mystery. Go ask alice is still awash in controversy, 43 years.