Priseworthy / Shortcomings

Praiseworthy

1. The presentation of her whole life story
2. The roller coaster feel of the book in it's adventure through the life of an addicted teenager
3. The powerful imagery used to describe what was happening also led to the books quality

Shortcomings

1. The story was hard to pick up in the beginning because it was a slow starting book
2. The girl complained a large part of the book, but that is to be expected when it is in journal form

Theme of Go Ask Alice

The theme is to enjoy life and choose what you do and who you decide to be around wisely.

Compare And Contrast

The last non-fiction book that I read was The Lone Survivor and this was about a United States soldier being trapped in Afghanistan, his whole team dead, and him looking for a way home. That book dealt with war while this book deals with drug addiction. Go Ask Alice deals with escaping as well but this is more of an escape from one's self rather than a hostile territory. However, they both seem so surreal for the reader, who would find it strange or difficult to put themselves into either situation.

Three Major Parts of Go Ask Alice

Firstly, she wanted to fit in in the early stages of the book. When she went back home to help her grandparents out some of her "friends" invited her to play a "game" called "Who's got the button?" In this game they slip LSD into some drinks and when she drank her drink she got a glass with LSD in it and began to get high. This single moment got her addicted to drugs and began her change in life. Second, was when she returned home and severed the ties with her old life and friends. Only to make new ones that had the same interest of drugs as she did. This marked another change one almost set in stone that she could never come back from. (one can come back from a bad trip and never use again but surrounded by people who enjoy it a person can be trapped). Lastly, all of the bad influence led to her running away from home many times, when she had to hitch hike to Denver was another major moment. having been high for the whole trip showed that she no longer cared for her safety.

What Element of The Book Was Most Important?

The most important thing in the book would have to be the character. The whole book is biased off of her journal and her own words are used. This is her life story so the character information would have to be the most important thing about this book.

The Mood of Go Ask Alice

The mood of Go Ask Alice is both suspenseful and serious. the book dives into the deep addiction of drugs and the effect it can have on a teenager. An example would be, "My ears and sinus cavities all feel like they've been poured full of concrete, and my chest must surely be bound with a steel band." Not only would the book be serious but it can be suspenseful as well. The idea of what she would try next was always present in the readers mind. "I've herd about kids that use LSD and other drugs; but I'm so, so, so, so, so curious, I can't wait to try pot." and "I wonder what sex is like without acid."

What Kind of Person is The Author?

The author is mentaily unstable and desprate to fit into the normal or cool streams in the teenage society. In the book she was always "too fat" and this need to fit in started her on the path to drugs. Once on the drugs she was addicted, saying she could stop but never really wanting to and when she did stop she always went back. Her atempt to run away was a ploy for help, still pointing to the fact that she was and unstable teenager who should have been helped.