Homeless, driven by drug highs and lows, she sometimes tries to regain control over her life. Its difficult to pin the book as banned because the us doesnt officially ban books, specific organizations usually schools or libraries do. The author, through this book, doesnt wants his readers to look for advise in it, but to learn about the real world in which some teenagers have to live through. The list go ask alice has been one of the most frequently challenged books, according to the american library associations frequently challenged books of the 21st century list, since its publication in 1971, for content relating to drugs, sexual explicitness, offensive language, and inappropriate themes for the target age group frequently challenged 1.
Oct, 20 some alice books by legendary childrens author phyllis reynolds naylor. While not a feelgood story, go ask alice has been praised for its candid portrayal of addiction. In the same vein, go ask alice is young adult literature because thats the audience it was specifically geared toward. The lovely bones planting gardens in graves ii a brilliant madness love poems and sonnets. Cyberstargazer i love jefferson airplane go ask alice when she was 10 feet tall you totally rewrote and rocked this song, love the whole cooking without a recipe book theme. Go ask alice by beatrice sparks as anonymous banned books. Some people maintain that alice in wonderland can only have been written by an author with considerable hallucinogenic mushroom experience under their belt. I think this book writes in a interesting way while it teaches us a life lesson by expressing in diary form. Banned books according to, more than 60% of teens are doing or have done drugs at one time.
Some alice books by legendary childrens author phyllis reynolds naylor. For thirtyfive years, the acclaimed, bestselling firstperson account of a teenage girls harrowing decent into the nightmarish world of drugs has left an indelible mark on generations of teen readers. Banned books week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. There are more than 5 million copies sold,so why ban it. Go ask alice when the book was first published in 1971, the novel had no known author or editor as the cover stated anonymous. Mar 27, 2008 its difficult to pin the book as banned because the us doesnt officially ban books, specific organizations usually schools or libraries do. Bookbanners like to take go ask alice out of libraries because they think. Go ask alice should be banned from middle school and elementary libraries and only permitted at the high school level because of the use of vulgar language, the use of illegal substances, and the explicit descriptions of the activities being done throughout the book. Parents and school boards were worried that this book would encourage teens and preteens to try out drugs. Go ask alice is a diary novel of a girl, but the reader is never given the authors name. Go ask alice is based on the actual diary of a fifteenyearold drug user. I think it is very sad that some people try to limit what children are exposed to as a means of protecting them. Go ask alice is still awash in controversy, 43 years. In langley, a committee of school trustees, librarians and.
Im sure the book was banned due to its drug use and sex references. With over a million copies in print, this book has become a classic. Go ask alice is a reference to a jefferson airplane song called white rabbit, which alludes to rampant hallucinogenic drug use in lewis carrolls alice in wonderland. It is not a definitive statement on the middleclass, teenage drug world. While in no way do i agree with banning or restricting the ability to read a book, its reasons for being banned are legitimate within the guidelines. A banned book is a book removed from a school or library by a school system, parental group, religious group or government. Books color your view on life, expand your horizons, and broaden perspectives, but they dont change who you are fundamentally. Dec 08, 2011 after reading go ask alice and preparing a research project on it, i feel that the biggest reason books are banned is because of depiction vs. Mi schools because the poems were thought to frighten first grade children. Leading up to banned books week 2012, ala will highlight one book.
This happens only thanks to the efforts of librarians, teachers, students, and community members who stand up and speak out for the freedom to read. Of course, the very fact that a book is on a banned book often makes kids want to read it and find out why. 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. Today we feature the year 1993 and go ask alice, by anonymous. Go ask alice, written originally in 1971 is still relevant today.
Go ask alice, which portrayed the pressures peers place on one another. Nowadays ya lit is pretty universalharry 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. Communication has to go both ways, and were watching it fail colossally, which just exacerbates alices feelings of isolation. Only parents can decide if they want their children to read go ask alice. I am always on the look out for classics and banned books often one and the same when i seen a copy of this book. Books challenged, restricted, removed, or banned in 19992000 as reported in the. As as child in high school i was 15, im 49 now, i read the book go ask alice, i was a loner i wanted cool friends.
Throughout the whole book, it brought the readers attention by giving us enough details. View essay go ask alice banned book project from english english ii at leonia high. Go ask alice is my current read for banned books week. Banned books the official alice blog by phyllis reynolds naylor. It is the story of a troubled young woman who seeks solace in drugs and the counterculture. Supposedly based on a diary of a young teenage girl, the book had me gripped from beginning to end. 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. Go ask alice, written by an anonymous author, is a diary kept by a fifteenyearold drug user. A case against banning go ask alice by hazel dela paz on prezi. Whether you love poetry or havent read a single poem since edward. Sep 01, 2008 do you think the book go ask alice should be banned. Go ask alice by anonymous beatrice sparks banned library. As powerfuland as timelytoday as ever, go ask alice remains the definitive book on the horrors of addiction.
Go ask alice has been around for decades, and is even being used as reading material in high schools. There are several books with 70sstyle crafts macrame, string art, clothing items, etc. Do you think the book go ask alice should be banned. Sep 23, 2014 in honor of banned books week, jo asked a few of us booktubers to pick a banned book and make a video on it. Go ask alice was written in the 1970s, a decade with a very unique sense of style. Below is a list of books that have been banned, along with the reasons cited for banning them. Fictitious books written in diary format arent uncommon and i honestly dont have a problem with that. My plan was to read this for banned book week, and although i did not finish it during the week i meant to, i did finish it. It graphically describes the waking hell into which the main character descends, her heartfelt but futile battles to. If go ask alice will continue to be banned, how will people like alice be able to relate. Based on a 15yearolds diary, go ask alice is the intimate account of one girls fatal journey into the world of drug addiction. While alice was lying on her bed, planning her mothers birthday, she got a sort of awful flash back, that she would rather forget. Go ask alice banned book project go ask alice when the book. It is, however, a highly personal and specific chronicle.
Oct 03, 2016 go ask alice is the firstperson tale of an accidental downward spiral into drugs, alcohol, unwanted sex, and impoverished living. Top books that were banned at schools whats your favorite banned book. Sep 29, 2015 the anonymous diarist in the 1971 book go ask alice is just a normal 15yearold girl dealing with crushes, friendships, a new move and body image. The narrator tries to change her image several times throughout the story. But when she attends a party and drinks a soda laced with lsd, she begins a drawnout addiction to drugs that slowly but brutally takes over her life. As such, we hope it will provide insights into the increasingly complicated world in which we live. Poignant and unflinchingly honest, her story is a tragedy that is repeated in towns and cities across the country. All picture source titles are hyperlinked to the pages that they appear on this site. 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.
I think you mean go ask alice by anonymous aka beatrice sparks, but anywho. Mar 28, 2011 homeless, driven by drug highs and lows, she sometimes tries to regain control over her life. Books challenged or banned in 19992000, by robert p. Go ask alice by anonymous banned book but was it real.
Go ask alice definitely provided an interesting discussion for us all. To ask other readers questions about go ask alice, please sign up. Sep 27, 2016 i think you mean go ask alice by anonymous aka beatrice sparks, but anywho. Apr 07, 2015 on american library associations lists of most banned literature, go ask alice came in as number 25 between years 19901999, number 18 between years 20002009, and in 2003 alone, it ranked number 6 frequently challenged books. Some of the recurring reasons for it being banned are language, sexual content, and drug use.
Go ask alice banned book project go ask alice when the. Go ask alice is still awash in controversy, 43 years after publication. I think ill go into child guidance when i get out of. Make your own 1970s project to wear or use as decoration.
Everyday, id crown a new king flylord, and everyday would be a good day to say goodbye to something. The author, through this book, doesnt wants his readers to look for advise in it, but to learn about the real. Well be looking at why the book was challenged, howif things have changed since the book was originally published and what we actually think of the book. While books have been and continue to be banned, part of the banned books week celebration is the fact that, in a majority of cases, the books have remained available. A dark and edgy firstperson cautionary tale about how one girls seemingly minor choices quickly spiraled into a life as a sex worker. Go ask alice by anonymous beatrice sparks go ask alice. Book banners like to take go ask alice out of libraries because they think. Carrolls parodies of wordsworth and tennyson in the alice books. A book report on go ask alice english literature essay.
What banned book have you read and how did it affect you. Their influence doesnt need to be kept as a separate reality, so its kind of strange alice feels the need to differentiate, isnt it. As a highschooler,go ask alice shouldnt be banned because im mature enough to take in the intense content. However, the ala keeps track of official challenges and go ask alice is a frequently challenged book. Go ask alice, an information service originally available only to columbia university students but later accessible to others through its web site, takes book form in this eyeopening collection of questions and answers. Go ask alice is the firstperson tale of an accidental downward spiral into drugs, alcohol, unwanted sex, and impoverished living. Title stance on the book 3 articles it was banned challenged in 2001, 2002, 2004, 2008, and 2009 it was banned usually in schools and libraries title. When dad came out, he sat on the steps for a while and the three of us talked like we had known each other. Beatrice sparks, a teen psychologist and mormon youth counselor was uncovered to have actually written the majority if not the whole entire novel. Loved it and sorry laughed a little at the idea of alice a pushers wife. Go ask alice by beatrice sparks with chrissi reads and lunas little library. I chose go ask alice and it is certainly the strangest book ive read this year. I see your books as a tool for helping young readers, both on their own or as a source of advice on who they can go to for helpguidance.
At the johnstown, ny high school, go ask alice was challenged as a. Library associations top 10 list of banned books so many times. If i were a banned book, id be the pigman and id be a wallflower and id be the story of sleeping beauty, written under a penname. His titles include bugs, poems about creeping things, pirates, and when cows. Can see her standing there brewing the drugs from your clear images penned. 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. Also there is no exact tally of the number of places that ban a certain book. If i were a banned book, id urge you to go ask alice, and wrinkle time, and ride in talking cars. After reading go ask alice and preparing a research project on it, i feel that the biggest reason books are banned is because of depiction vs. 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. This is my second read of go ask alice, and i loved it just as much the second time around. It is famous for its drugs are bad message, being banned for references to sex, rape and drugs, and almost certainly being a fake. Her parents try to express a serious concern, but alice is so consumed with her own thought process that she doesnt listen at all and then accuses them of doing the same thing to her. Thoughts on go ask alice banned books week youtube.
And then theres go ask alicethe most frequently banned book in high school libraries, largely due to its depiction of drug use. 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. In richmond, students sent a petition to the school board to protest the ban, and the richmond teacherlibrarians association supported them. Essay about go ask alice by anonymous 837 words bartleby. Banned books the official alice blog by phyllis reynolds. Go ask alice is a novel by youth counsellor beatrice sparks, first published in 1971. Stockton mo school district banned the book due to violence, language and some sexual. So many people mistake the words they are reading as a tool to promote what the book is talking about. But, unlike some books and many movies these experiences are not glamorized at all. The anonymous diarist in the 1971 book go ask alice is just a normal 15yearold girl dealing with crushes, friendships, a new move and body image. Attributed to anonymous, the book is in diary form, and was originally presented as being the edited real diary of the unnamed teenage protagonist. Go ask alice is still awash in controversy, 43 years after.
Nov 20, 2003 homeless, driven by drug highs and lows, she sometimes tries to regain control over her life. A dark and edgy firstperson cautionary tale about how one girls seemingly minor choices quickly spiraled into a life as a sex worker in the tradition of go ask alice and lucy in. Stream go ask alice unabridged audiobook at by user1868941 from desktop or your mobile device. On american library associations lists of most banned literature, go ask alice came in as number 25 between years 19901999, number 18 between years 20002009, and in 2003 alone, it ranked number 6 frequently challenged books. Go ask alice is small, 224 under size pages and written in diary format so is a quick read. Go ask alice when the book was first published in 1971, the novel had no known author or editor as the cover. Go ask alice was first published in 1971 and has since become one of the most banned books of all time.
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