 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Almost Alice
- By Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
- Genre: School
Common Sense Media says
Next chapter in popular series deals with teen pregnancy.
Parents say
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this installment of the long-running series includes a plot point about Alice's friend who is both sexually active and pregnant. Her pregnancy is handled with real emotion: disbelief, horror, despair, panic, and realistic adult intervention. Other than that, there are some light making out/kissing scenes. Another girl discovers the wonders of a push-up bra. Also, Alice is a member of her school's gay-straight alliance and attends meetings where the kids do stuff like discuss the word "queer" and make plans for future events.
What's the story?
Alice is having trouble figuring out who she is. Just when she thinks she has a good grasp, something happens that makes her question herself. A friend's pregnancy, a rekindled romance, changing friendships, changes at home -- all of these events keep Alice feeling sort of like herself, but not quite. People tell her to get used to it, but Alice wonders how life became so complicated.
Is it any good?
ALMOST ALICE is a great addition to Phyllis Naylor's Alice series. Picking up in the second semester of 11th grade, Alice wonders who she is outside of being the best of best friends. Naylor captures the confusing time in teens' lives when it feels as if everything around them is changing -- including the way they see themselves. She also adds a healthy amount of humor. When a teen girl's house catches fire, concern quickly turns into hilarious embarrassment as firefighters discover the cause of the fire: her much-loved, secondhand, rubber push-up bra.
Naylor also takes a serious turn of events -- an unplanned pregnancy -- with real emotion: disbelief, horror, despair, panic, and realistic adult intervention. With so many books about teen sex and pregnancy these days, it's a welcome dose of realism. The novel moves at a great pace that will keep readers turning pages, but things end far too neatly and in a very after-school-special way.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about the pregnant teen in this book. What do you think of the way the author handled this plot point? Did it seem realistic to you? Parents may want to look at our advice for talking to kids about teen pregnancy for some ideas.
Also, parents may want to talk about coming-of-age stories. What marks this book as part of that genre? Young Adult books have changed a lot in recent years -- but their characters still seem to be struggling with questions of their own identity. How would this book have been different if it had been written 20 years ago? How would it have been the same?
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AGE
Alice Series
Because this series extends over such a long period of the main character's life, parents need to be cautious which book in the series their kids are reading and when. My 10-year-old daughter discovered the "prequel" books (when Alice is in elementary school)and liked them. I thought they were fine, but she quickly read along into the older Alice books and I was shocked to pick one up one day to discover Alice had turned 16 and was considering having sex with her boyfriend! Not a negative about the books themselves, but definitely something to be aware of if your child is preteen.
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AGE
good lessons, aprpite for tweens
i think that even though it is high sexual content, it is appropiet. (im sorry if i spell some words worng, im dsylexic) i read this when i was 12, and it taught alot about the dangers of having sex.
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AGE
This book is better for kids a little older
parents may want to hold off on giving heir child the later books in the series because they do contain some PG and PG13 content
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AGE
love the series...but this is the end.
i love the Alice series...but I didn't know it would end up like this:*( All from what I read. Alice: a nice girl who always learns something . Now, she starts to live a different life then the one she did in the past. Come on, WHY ON EARTH WOULD ALICE CONSIDER SEX?!?! THAT'S WRONG, especially when she's only 16>:(
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AGE
Amazing series for teenager girls.
These Alice books are amazing! Common Sense, if you're going to review one of them review all of them. These are some of the best books for girls out there and even guys. The mother who said she was 'Shocked' to find out Alice was going to have sex with her boyfriend at sixteen, give me a break! She was sixteen in that book! It's just dealing with real life issues, and stuff like that does come up in life. If you're a prude of a parent and hate anyhing that has to do with sex or drugs or other teenager problems, put the book down and don't complain. I read all of them when I was ten and had no problems, but if your kid really can't handle it just get them the younger books.
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AGE
A great book for girls!
The entire series is something I would buy for every girl ages 8-18! They're amazing books that talk about a girl growing up (Alice) and talk about real life issues at every age. Reading these while growing up is an amazing experience for me, because I learn from Alice's mistakes, and can relate to several of her embarssing moments. These books talk about everything, and it's definetly a good place to hear EVERYTHING from . . . Facts are accurate, and great morals and role models are in all of the Alice series!
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| Author: | Phyllis Reynolds Naylor |
| Book type: | Fiction |
| Genre: | School |
| Publisher: | Atheneum |
| Publication date: | June 17, 2008 |
| Number of pages: | 288 |
| Hardcover price: | $16.99 |
| Publisher's recommended age(s): | 14 - 14 |
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