What is your favorite Alice quote?

Comment:

I’m a rising college senior in California. I just wanted to reach out to you because I found myself thinking of the Alice books the other day. You’ve probably been told this numerous times before, but I just felt I had to say thank you for writing these books. It seems amazing to me now to think back on it, but I really do feel like I grew up with Alice in a way. From the time I was in elementary school, up until I was about to enter college, there was a book that somewhat paralleled what I was going through.

I admire your ability to find a way to create a story and characters that felt so real and incorporated a variety of issues, while still having an element of light-heartedness and fun. I just wanted to thank you for that. I’m not sure if you will get this message, but if you do and are able to respond, would you mind telling me one of your favorite quotes from the Alice series? I’m curious to know.

Phyllis replied:

Thank you so much for your email.  I probably hear from more college-age women than any other group, so perhaps these are the readers who grew up with Alice as the books were being written.

I guess my own favorite parts of the books–other than Lester’s discussions with Alice, which were so much fun to write–were the scenes in which Alice experienced the most growth, or was given advice that best helped her to cope.  I believe there was time she was so devastated when she and Patrick broke up, that someone asked her why she was letting a person, who only ten years ago was in diapers, to cause her so much grief?  And the time, after a friend’s death, when she announced to her dad that she wasn’t even sure she believed in God any longer, that all she knew was that she wanted to be a part of everything that was good and true and real. And her dad replied, “That’s a terrific place to begin.”  And most certainly, a quote that I repeat on every congratulations card I send to a young married couple–Lester’s definition of how you really know you’re in love, when the relationship consists of passion, tenderness and joy.