Go Ask Alice by Anonymous | Teen Ink

Go Ask Alice by Anonymous MAG

September 30, 2008
By Anonymous

“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.



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This article has 178 comments.


on Jul. 22 2012 at 9:15 am
FelixThePygmyPuff, Sanford, Florida
0 articles 3 photos 5 comments

Favorite Quote:
Some of the worst things imaginable have been done with the best intentions.

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.

on Jul. 10 2012 at 7:43 pm
JustTryAndCatchMe. BRONZE, Fredericktown, Ohio
1 article 0 photos 16 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Und ich will nicht die Welt um mich zu sehen denn ich glaube nicht, dass sie würden understand.When alles gemacht hat, gebrochen zu werden, ich möchte nur, dass Sie wissen, wer ich bin." Goo Goo Dolls

I read this book (and inadvertably failed math class because of it) and I loved it. Beauty is in the truth of the context of the words.

on Jun. 20 2012 at 8:24 pm
soundingonlyatnightasyousleep BRONZE, Shoreview, Minnesota
3 articles 0 photos 4 comments
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.

kittykat96 said...
on 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.

on Apr. 15 2012 at 1:05 am
elizabethlong BRONZE, Chambersburg, Pennsylvania
1 article 0 photos 32 comments
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.

melgar94 said...
on Apr. 11 2012 at 6:01 pm
it was amazing right 

on Mar. 26 2012 at 7:35 pm
sunshine7_25_11, Downey, California
0 articles 0 photos 1 comment

Favorite Quote:
&quot;live the life you love<br /> love the life you live&quot;<br /> -bob marley

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..

on Mar. 22 2012 at 11:41 pm
ReplehSnatas GOLD, Oakville, Connecticut
14 articles 0 photos 5 comments

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.


pasa said...
on Mar. 11 2012 at 11:25 pm
13 Reaons Why and The future of Us are both great choices

on Mar. 8 2012 at 1:37 pm
goth_girl12 BRONZE, Oshkosh, Wisconsin
1 article 6 photos 1 comment

Favorite Quote:
&quot;if all your wishes are granted all of your dreams will be distroied&quot; -marilyn manson

i remeber reading is book i could not put it down and i made my friend read it to 

lkk4209 BRONZE said...
on Feb. 29 2012 at 7:24 pm
lkk4209 BRONZE, Somewhere, Massachusetts
4 articles 0 photos 56 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;April Fool&#039;s Day is for amateurs. You never need an excuse to mess with people&#039;s heads.&quot;<br /> <br /> &quot;I may be lying in the gutter, but I&#039;m staring up at the stars, honey.&quot;

Actually her name isn't Alice, the narrator of this book has no name

on Feb. 29 2012 at 8:27 am
brooke112345 SILVER, Scottdale, Pennsylvania
9 articles 5 photos 3 comments

Favorite Quote:
In the end, it&#039;s not the years in your life, it&#039;s the life in your years.<br /> Be who you want to be; not what other want you to.

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

Shmelmo GOLD said...
on Feb. 18 2012 at 7:48 pm
Shmelmo GOLD, Elma, Iowa
16 articles 9 photos 143 comments

Favorite Quote:
You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have.

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.

on Feb. 7 2012 at 1:59 am
GingerLily BRONZE, Aulnay-sur-Mauldre, Other
3 articles 6 photos 78 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;A dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world&quot; - Oscar Wilde

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.

on Jan. 29 2012 at 3:58 pm
wordlover27 GOLD, Vancouver, Other
15 articles 0 photos 12 comments

Favorite Quote:
&lrm;&quot;For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness...&quot;<br /> -Audrey Hepburn

It sounds like a really interesting book...I've heard about it before but I've never read it

minimuffins said...
on 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.

on Dec. 29 2011 at 7:44 pm
beautifulspirit PLATINUM, Alpharetta, Georgia
35 articles 0 photos 1398 comments

Favorite Quote:
The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.<br /> --Eleanor Roosevelt

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.

Duckie430 said...
on Dec. 27 2011 at 10:53 am
Duckie430, Riverside, Rhode Island
0 articles 0 photos 228 comments

Favorite Quote:
&ldquo;The secret to life is being who you are and being happy with who you are.&rdquo;<br /> &quot;Whatever does not kill you only makes you stronger.&quot;

I don't think it matters whether or not the book is real; it could be a true story & young people can still learn from it. It's a great book, & good review on it as well.

on Dec. 21 2011 at 9:34 am
Mjjames2016 BRONZE, Encinitas, California
1 article 0 photos 7 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;No snowflake in an avalanche feels responsible&quot;

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.

gelle said...
on Dec. 5 2011 at 11:39 am
I met the author of this book a few years ago.  It was actually done by the mother.  I am not sure if she wanted to be more anonymous or  if she felt it would be accepted more at that time by a father figure. Anyway, I got to visit with her.  She still, after those many years, could feel the pain of losing her daughter in such an awful way.  It was her desire that no other mother have to go through what she went through or any child go through what her daughter did.  I am a mother now and I think it is time for my daughter to read it.  Thanks for doing this review!