Go Ask Alice by Anonymous

Told in diary entries by an unnamed girl (which for purposes of this review we shall call "Alice"), it chronicles her life and her struggle with her addiction to drugs.

Now I'm obviously reading this many years after its original publication of 1971. And from what I've read, it seems that originally it was thought to be a real-life diary. Beatrice Sparks who was originally editor, eventually stated that this was one of her patient's diary and she used several of the passages in it to create the book. But it seems that since then much of that has also been questioned and they are now selling it with an inscription in the first pages stating that this is a complete work of fiction and not to be thought otherwise.

With that said, whether you believe Go Ask Alice is non-fiction or fiction, or even anti-drug propaganda, it should not make a difference on whether or not you read this book. It is, what it is - a story about a young girl living in the mid to late 60's who gets seduced into the world of drugs. Her diary entries detail her first encounter at a party, becoming an addict, selling drugs at school , running away, rape, more drugs and eventually using sex to acquire even more drugs. So what if it's not a true story. I'm sure this can easily be someone's "true" story.

My only concern is that it feels outdated. I think as a whole parents today have learned from "our" parents' mistakes. I think we know the signs of drug use and what changes to look for in our children. I also don't really know overly much about drugs - so I can't say for sure that Alice's addiction and the speed in which it all transpires is credible.

I'm not sure if it's still banned in schools, but I know at one point the book was pulled off the shelves and, in the cases where it wasn't, they removed some of the more graphic parts in the book. After reading Go Ask Alice, I can say that I would definitely let my kids (obviously when they are tweens, since they are both toddlers at the moment) read this. If for no other reason than to have them open up and talk about drugs. I know and am hopeful that by reading something like this they might remember that while at a party they should never drink from a cup they themselves didn't pour or even that "I'll just try it once" can be life altering.

All in all, I found it to be an interesting book, even if it is untrue.