Byline: Alice
Huzzah! The end is near for the Alice series, as I have the three books that depict the curious redhead in her senior year. Of course, this means that for whatever reason, the publishers have forgone the Title of Angst, which I count as a check in the "plus" column. Since these books are a lot shorter, the reviews will be paired down into something more like snippets. A more lengthy review will come when I'm finished with the third book.
Not a month into the brand new school year and the pressure is on for Alice. Suddenly she has all sorts of responsibilities, like touring colleges and coaching roving reporters for the school newspaper, The Edge. Weird girl Amy is just trying to dance to her own beat, but Alice is worried that people won't take her seriously. Meanwhile, big bro Lester is graduating from grad school and best step-mom ever Sylvia has a cancer scare, and Dad's music shop isn't doing too well in the late noughties' economy. But Alice's courage is really put to the test when a wave of racist vandalism hits the school - mainly brought on by Daniel, a new student who is also a refugee from Sudan. She may be swamped, but when she finds herself face-to-face with intolerance, even Alice doesn't know her own strength.
The dichotomy of the Alice books is fascinating. On the one hand, the tone is often sunny, cheerful, and even quaint (occasionally to the annoyance of the reader). On the other, its commitment to exploring the harsher aspects of life for the average teenage girl remains a constant. In terms of character, it's a great opportunity to explore Alice's evolving personality. An idealist with some control issues, she really is braver than she thinks, and the details brought to life by Naylor's fine, clear writing back this up. Moreso than in other stories, this one puts Alice front and center: her experiences with the white supremacists, being a long-distance girlfriend, supporting a friend who's been molested. And although she has yet to overcome her fear of moving out and living alone, we can already tell how great she'll be once she's there.
Flaws? Other than the usual nagging sense that the tone and the subject matter don't always get along well, no, not really. Daniel's character is developed nicely and may be given more screen time in the next book. An intense conversation Alice shares with a racist student is thoughtfully written and thought-provoking (not about whether racism is right, but what might cause it).
It's funny with these books - they seem like throwbacks to a simpler time, but then they remind you that "a simpler time" is little more than fantasy. They prove that grit does not equal realism. Rating: 4 letters to the editor out of 5.
The dichotomy of the Alice books is fascinating. On the one hand, the tone is often sunny, cheerful, and even quaint (occasionally to the annoyance of the reader). On the other, its commitment to exploring the harsher aspects of life for the average teenage girl remains a constant. In terms of character, it's a great opportunity to explore Alice's evolving personality. An idealist with some control issues, she really is braver than she thinks, and the details brought to life by Naylor's fine, clear writing back this up. Moreso than in other stories, this one puts Alice front and center: her experiences with the white supremacists, being a long-distance girlfriend, supporting a friend who's been molested. And although she has yet to overcome her fear of moving out and living alone, we can already tell how great she'll be once she's there.
Flaws? Other than the usual nagging sense that the tone and the subject matter don't always get along well, no, not really. Daniel's character is developed nicely and may be given more screen time in the next book. An intense conversation Alice shares with a racist student is thoughtfully written and thought-provoking (not about whether racism is right, but what might cause it).
It's funny with these books - they seem like throwbacks to a simpler time, but then they remind you that "a simpler time" is little more than fantasy. They prove that grit does not equal realism. Rating: 4 letters to the editor out of 5.
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