By: Phyllis Reynolds Naylor Publisher: Atheneum Average Rating: Binding: Hardcover Label: Atheneum Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 288 Publication Date: June 17, 2008 Reading Level: Young Adult
Product Description: Is it possible to be too good a friend -- too understanding, too always there, too much like a doormat? Alice has always been a good friend to Pamela and Liz, a best friend to Pamela and Liz. But she's starting to wonder where that leaves her: What am I? An ear for listening? An arm around the shoulder? And then there's Patrick -- after ending their relationship two years ago, he's suddenly calling again, and wants to take her to his senior prom. What does that mean? As Alice tries to figure out who she is in relation to her friends, she learns one thing -- sometimes friends need you more than they let on...especially when the unthinkable happens.
Always honest, brave, and true, the Alice series never flinches from big issues, and never discounts the small ones.
Worst Alice Book Yet!!! [SPOILER ALERT] This isn't a book, it's an after-school special -- and not even a mildly entertaining one. I understand that not every single part of Alice's life is going to be filled with wonderfully interesting events. One of the many charms this series has always held is in finding the small moments of her life, and amplifying them so that readers care about each and every detail, no matter how fast we manage to outgrow Alice.
However, the main point of this book is that things keep happening to the people around Alice, rather than to Alice herself. While that is certainly a valid plot device, and is probably true in a lot of people's lives (At least from their perspective -- the grass is always greener, after all!) it really seems counterintuitive to the PURPOSE of a series of books about *Alice*.
In this book, Naylor seems to have taken a vacation from finding out how teens actually speak and behave, in favor of ramming more lessons down their throats about the dangers of unprotected sex. Alice's friend Pamela is, as usual, the poster child for all sexual lessons. (It can't be a coincidence that she's also the token kid from a broken home.) She gets to experiment first, but she always gets punished in some way. This time ---------- [MAJOR SPOILER ALERT!!!] ---------- it's a pregnancy scare. But in all honesty, savvy young readers and older readers will be able to see this coming from miles away, so it's hardly a spoiler to discuss it. What I won't discuss is the ridiculous, insulting and even offensive way Naylor deals with the problem of pregnancy. Abortion is never mentioned, not even to offer some debate or discussion for readers to ponder. I am amazed that Naylor and her editors really thought HER solution to the problem was a better alternative for young girls to think about than planned parenthood or abortion.
Many reviewers have already expounded upon the idiocy of having high schoolers go gaga for Lil' Abner, so I'll skip that. However, Naylor missed the mark big time when she wrote about the big prom night with Patrick and Alice. For one thing, in high schools all over the country, teens get hotel rooms after the prom. This is never even mentioned here. No one discusses prom night as a night to lose their virginity, or even mentions sex in relation to the prom. Perhaps these things are too cliche, but considering how many other cliche things Naylor packs into this book, it really does feel like a giant pink elephant in the room that no one is talking about.
In spite of the fact that this book came out right on schedule, roughly one year after the last Alice book, it feels rushed. Naylor decided for some reason to "tell" instead of "show" most of the action, and a lot of the book is just Alice giving long descriptions of things. The book also mirrors other teen-centric vehicles like "Luann" and "Daria", where the token black female character is the one with the best grades, the highest test scores and the biggest career ambitions. This is now so common that it's actually boring. Just once, I'd like to read a YA novel where the token black girl was a little bit wild, the kid from the broken home is stable and happy while the kids with two parents have the worst lives, and the first person to lose their virginity actually enjoyed it, with no negative consequences.
This will never happen -- especially not in Naylor's world. Only people deeply committed to this series will be able to stick with this book. It truly is the worst written, worst plotted and just overall, generally the worst Alice book yet -- and that's coming from someone who read and enjoyed them all. This one is a MUST to avoid unless you're an avid, die-hard fan of the book. And even for those who can't help but read it for the sake of continuance, I recommend saving your dollars and reading it in a library or bookstore cafe. Let Naylor know she has to do better than this. Her readers -- not to mention Alice herself -- deserve a lot better.
Courtesy of Teens Read Too Alice is finishing up her junior year and things couldn't be brighter for her: Patrick asked her to his prom, she is now features editor of the school newspaper, and she's getting along better with her stepmother. Life is good!
Scott, her secret crush, agrees to go to the Sadie Hawkins dance with her. Patrick remains close to her heart, though she isn't quite sure what their relationship truly is. Her friends are busy, too, with school and boys. Alice starts to feel like she's always there rooting for them, but where are they when she needs them? It takes a pregnancy test to bring the friends together again.
This is the twenty-third book in the ALICE series. Reading an ALICE book is like catching up with an old friend. I've been a loyal fan for several years and wait anxiously for the next book to come out each time! If you are a new reader to the series, it would be easy to start with this book and read the others in the future.
Reviewed by: hoopsielv
A big step down in this series I'm a big fan of the Alice series and reread my favorites often. Almost Alice is one I won't go back to.
The writing is vague and often summarizes events instead of letting you feel you're really there. Here's an example: "The funniest act, though, was the one the three directors-- Mr. Ellis, Mr. Gage, and Miss Ortega-- put on. The two men played guitars, and Miss Ortega wore a long silky tunic and a blond wig with bangs. They pretended to be the folksinger trio Peter, Paul, and Mary, popular back in the sixties. They sang 'Puff, the Magic Dragon' but completely overacted, which made us howl with laughter."
Reading this, there's nothing to make me howl with laughter, or even crack a smile, because I'm just told that they "completely overacted."
This is also an example of the non-contemporary or out-of-touch feel of this book, especially compared to earlier books in the series. High school kids getting into Li'l Abner? Or get this-- the prom after-party is back at school, run by parents, and the music is A HONKY-TONK PIANO PLAYING RAGTIME, but it's "the place to be" after prom shuts down? Dream on.
The author seems to be running from real conflict or drama. The school has a Gay-Straight Alliance, but there's no reaction to Alice's involvement except a couple of smirks. Most stupidly, a character gets pregnant at seventeen and there is almost no discussion of abortion. After Alice and her friends have talked about all sorts of sex matters, this was unbelievable and just plain cowardly.
If the rest of the series is going to be like this, I'd just as soon we didn't follow Alice through the rest of her high school career. My interest in the characters from past books carried me through, and that's why this review is two stars instead of one. But the author needs to focus on real situations and see-it-happen detail, instead of narrating a conflict-free, dreamy summary of a nice girl's nice time in her nice life.
A Good Addition, Not so Real in a Few Places I love the Alice series because it is so true to how adolescents think and react to things. There are a few times in this book that did not seem to fit an adolescent mind, but over all I liked it. I agree with other reviewers that one part of the plot was resolved too easily (and I would have like more about prom).
Alice continues the second semester of her junior year. She looks forward to going to senior prom with her old friend (and boyfriend) Patrick. She has new opportunities in journalism class as her role for the newspaper changes. And she remains a good friend to Liz (who breaks out of her shy mold to do something new), to Molly (with leukemia) and to Pamela (who has a problem that is new to them all).
A bit of a letdown I didn't grow up with these books, as I somehow missed them when they first came out, but I did discover them in library school. I read the first 20 books in about 3 months a couple of years ago, and I was completely hooked. The early books were funny, realistic, touching, and well-rounded with great characters. Naylor seemed to really have an ear for preteen and young teen dialog and situations. I was so impressed with the series that I quickly caught up with its publication and have spent the last 2 years eagerly awaiting the publication of the two newest titles.
Unfortunately, as with Dangerously Alice, and as other reviewers have said here, I was disappointed with Almost Alice. There was hardly any conflict at all (except for the last 50 pages, which, as others have mentioned, was tied up a bit too easily), and Naylor seems to have lost her ear and eye for teen situations. While the earlier Alice books were lively and believable, this one dragged and did not ring true. At all. I have a hard time imagining an entire high school of kids in 2008 becoming totally obsessed with the culture of Li'l Abner. It's almost as if Naylor is starting to actively tone down her edginess as Alice ages - when she should be doing the opposite. I also am irritated and mystified by the lack of interaction portrayed between Alice and her stepmother Sylvia. This seems like it should be the crux of the series at this point. But instead, Sylvia is relegated to a background character. And Alice's relationship with Lester, while always cute and heartfelt, felt silly and ridiculous here. What high school junior and her friends are going to decide it would be funny to decorate her own BROTHER'S car with love notes on Valentine's Day to take his mind off his studies? This isn't 1955.
Teens look up to Naylor. I've seen her website. She responds to their email questions, and her answers are usually smart, to the point, and tell it like it is. I only wish that side of her came out more in the latest Alice titles. It almost seems like she's letting a very conservative editor wield a red pen a little too freely. I will keep on reading this series, but it really needs to improve.
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