Synopses & Reviews
There's a new girl in town, and she's making Alice very nervous.The start of ninth grade -- high school! -- is every bit as exciting, and challenging, as Alice had hoped, and feared, it would be. She finds her self-confidence rising, and plummeting, depending on each new situation. Classes are definitely more interesting, but algebra is proving to be nearly impossible. Patrick is in the accelerated program so they aren't in the same classes anymore. And while she's thrilled to be chosen to work on the school newspaper, she finds that between an increased homework load and reporting assignments, she can't always join Patrick when he wants to go out. But the new girl in town, Penny, can...and does. Penny is everything Alice isn't -- perky, petite, and cute as a button, and she doesn't hide her interest in Patrick. Alice senses her seemingly perfect relationship with Patrick starting to crumble, along with her self-confidence, and suddenly, Alice feels big and awkward and not particularly attractive. Could it be possible that Patrick could like someone else besides her? She can't imagine life without Patrick in it.
But Patrick's behavior isn't the only thing that is baffling Alice. Elizabeth's nearly hysterical reluctance to go to her piano lessons has Alice and Pamela completely bewildered, until Elizabeth breaks down and shares an awful secret she's kept from everybody since she was seven...
And as Alice struggles to keep her jealousy of Penny at bay, she watches her father handle unsettling news regarding his fiancé. Alice learns what trust is all about, and how confidence in yourself, and in others, is the most important thing of all.
Review
The Horn Book MagazineAlice continues to be a refreshingly honest character with poignantly realistic adolescent highs and lows. By letting the scope of the narrative grow and change along with its heroine, Naylor manages to keep this series fresh, offering readers funny and reassuring stories about growing up.
Review
The Horn Book MagazineAlice is as funny and frank a heroine as ever.
Review
ALA BooklistAlice's wry, funny, vulnerable voice expresses every girl's fears about what is "normal" in an imperfect world.
About the Author
Phyllis Reynolds Naylor didn't know that when she wrote the first Alice book, it would be the start of a series. She has a photographic memory of her childhood and teenage years, and many of her experiences -- especially the embarrassing ones -- find their way into her books. Phyllis plans to take Alice up to her first year of college, and the final book will cover the highlights of Alice's life from ages eighteen to sixty.
She writes for both children and adults, and is the author of over one hundred books, including The Agony of Alice; Alice in Rapture, Sort of; Reluctantly Alice; All but Alice; Alice in April; Alice In-Between; Alice the Brave; Alice in Lace; Outrageously Alice; Achingly Alice; Alice on the Outside; and The Grooming of Alice. In 1992, her novel, Shiloh, was awarded the Newbery Medal.
Table of Contents
ContentsOne: Homecoming
Two: Getting Started
Three: A Sudden Announcement
Four: The Big Night
Five: That Sinking Feeling
Six: Moving On
Seven: Panic
Eight: Heart-to-Heart
Nine: Pain
Ten: Alone
Eleven: The Hardest Part
Twelve: Expanding My Horizons
Thirteen: Refugees
Fourteen: Elizabeth's Secret
Fifteen: The Test