Alice Blog

When Something comes Back into your Life….

Question:

Alice had drifted into my memory over the past year as i travelled Europe. Anyhoo, Then this summer i randomly went to the bookstore and asked if you’d come out with any new books. They said yes and surprisingly they had it in stock. I of course bought it overjoyed that This new book i knew nothing about, i didn’t read the first chapter that you often post on your website. I spent the next two days reading Alice and her adventures with everyone. It was amazing, i went back into this little cocoon where no one knew who i was, i just new alice in my mind and didn’t worry a thing. It sort of got me thinking, can something that’s been out of your life come back into it again and make you look at it differently then you did before? I was about to test my own theory…towards the end of the summer i met up with a guy that had come back into my life in and out after a year of hardly having any contact, we’d been romantically involved, I was very into this boy, however he’s a bit complicated which i knew going into it all the year before, i’d gotten over him in europe pretty successfully, thinking that make it as friends. however this proved false. He bought me a drink, and was way too in-tuned to my every move. Acting like we were dating when we really weren’t. i ended up going against my word and made out with him later, I’m not proud of it, but i was intrigued as to why he made the moves, yes he wanted a lot more then i gave him. he wasn’t pleased either but i wasn’t about to give this kid what he wanted. He’s been in my head a lot recently, hes off in school. I miss him. I hate that i miss him, because i know he’s very likely just going to hurt me, but so far he’s slowly coming around. But i’m sick of getting hurt. I know i’ve somewhat rattled on but having alice come back into my life made me think of that other summer story. I hope fall isn’t over yet where you are.

Phyllis replied:

Well, you know there’s an old saying (this one referring to marriage) that it doesn’t matter “whom” you marry nearly as much as it matters “when.” The same thing can be said of someone coming back as a friend/lover/whatever. If someone enters your life again at a time you feel strong and capable and occupied and happy, you are probably more likely to make a true assessment of him, his motivation, his value to you, whether you will become a better person because of him, or maybe not. If he enters your life when you’re feeling a bit at loose ends, a bit lonely or needing a friend, you’re more likely to assess him on the basis of what would make you feel better at the moment. Obviously he provided some of the latter. It’s not necessarily bad, and it’s natural to keep thinking about someone who gave you some sexual pleasure/conversation/attention/etc. just as it’s normal to think about a double hot fudge sundae even though you know it’s not good for you. Keep your perspective, keep asking yourself how/if this person helps you with whatever your goals are for yourself, if he brings out the best in you, and even whether if–he does all these things–he himself is such high maintenance that this may take away the happiness of the rest.

Posted on: October 15, 2009

Banned Books

Question:

I just wanted to say that I am a huge fan of the Alice books. I am 25 and I
wish I could say I grew up reading the series, but unfortunately I wasn’t
exposed to them until a few years ago. I began reading them after a colleague
complained about them being available in the media center (middle school) in
which I worked. I wanted to check them out for myself and didn’t have the same
reaction as she did. I was hooked. I have since read them all and look forward
to each new book.

I am wondering what you think about your almost regular appearance on ALA’s
banned books lists. I think it is very sad that some people try to limit what
children are exposed to as a means of “protecting” them. 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 help/guidance.

I would really appreciate your thoughts on this.

Phyllis replied:

I know that our readers very much appreciate your thoughts about some libraries banning the Alice books. Here’s the deal: since Alice gets older in every book, obviously some of the books are meant for an older audience. I wouldn’t recommend “Intensely Alice,” for example, in an elementary school library. So “book selection” isn’t always the same as “banning” a book, though I can imagine that some librarys call it that. Actually, librarians are some of the most loyal supporters of the Alice books, and defend them if someone wants them banned. It’s usually parents who want their children kept “pure,” as many parents tell me, “from harmful influences.” The mother of a ten year old girl was very angry with me for talking about how babies are conceived in Lovingly Alice. She wrote that since her daughter read that book, “the words penis and vagina will be forever ingrained on her mind.” Another mother tearfully accosted me because she found the word “condoms” in a novel for teenagers, and said, “My eighth grade son doesn’t know what condoms are and I don’t want him to know.” Whenever I hear comments like these, my heart really goes out to their children. Often, when word gets out that a book has been banned from a library, it merely increases sales; people rush out to buy it and see what was so offensive. But more often than not, librarians successfully keep the books they and readers love on the shelves. The American Library Association’s list of banned books is only a count of how many times a book has been challenged; it’s not really the actually number of times it’s been removed from the shelves. Good libraries have a system in place where the protesting adult must read the book he wants banned, write up a report of why, suggest an alternate book, and then his report, plus the library’s defense of the book, go before a committee, and the committee decides whether or not to keep it. I think it would be a good idea if students were told when a request comes in to ban a book, so that the readers themselves can have a say in it.

Posted on: October 15, 2009

I Want to Play Pamela!

Question:

I'm a 12 year old girl from germany. I read all alice books and think they're all fantastic. I just saw that there's gonna be a movie. So I would really like to play Pamela Jones in the following movies, that's my big dream, because Pamela is so cool! I'm blond, too, but I just colored my hair, because it was too dark 😀 My hair goes over the shoulders. O my god it would be so great if you would answer me! It is really my biggest dream to play pamela. But the stupid thing is : I just started learning English the 3rd year... I hope that's no problem 🙂 Please write back and tell me if I could play pamela.

Phyllis replied: A movie has already been made of "The Agony of Alice," but it is called "Alice Upside Down." I haven't heard from the producers as to whether they plan to make any more Alice movies, but thank you so much for your interest.

Posted on: October 15, 2009

Not Even Alice is Perfect At All

Question:

(Sorry that my English isn´t very well, it´s only a foreign language to me.)

I don´t want to write a long story of what I think about Alice McKinley. (Cause I guess, you don´t have a lot of time to read all your fan-mails)

Always when I finish a book, I have the necessity to talk to you about Alice´s life. I read the books since fifth grade. So you see, Alice is with me since a long time. I don´t know why, but I feel totally close to her. I sure read other books too, but in Alice I found a true friend. Always when I read about Alice, I have to think of myself. I`m not very great in Math too and I have so many embarrassing moments. In Alice`s High School years she often seems to me like a grown-up selfish woman. Whereas I still feel sometimes upside down (I´m a sophomore now).

I think Alice is a role model to every girl who ever read your books. No matter if the girls are nine or twenty-five. It´s crazy to see how soo many girls all over the world look up to one person: Alice.I sometimes read that people want to know, how the real Alice looks like, where she lives (street), how tall she is, who her dentist is (maybe), in which school she goes and things like that. I thought of that too. But I came to the decision, it´s not important how long we’re searching for the real Alice McKinley, we would never find her. The strawberry blond girl with green eyes, who´s mom died when she was five. We wouldn´t find the clique from Alice and Pam and Liz and Patrick. Because Alice is in all of us, and Pamela and Elizabeth too. Sometimes we act like Pam or maybe one girl has the same hair color like Elizabeth or somebody can´t carry a tune like Alice. Maybe, somebody feels more like Alice than like Pam. But I think there´s no girl exactly like Alice. I think every girl should be glad to have her own character, because not even Alice is perfect at all.

I know it`s not the most emotional mail you got but I just wanted to say what I think about Alice. (I guess the letter gets a little long though.)But I`m grateful, Mrs. Naylor, you write those books. I love them! They make my days as a teenager much easier.

Phyllis replied:

I wish I knew a foreign language as well as you know English, and I’m so happy to know that Alice means a lot to readers in other countries as well as the U.S. It’s interesting that no matter where girls live or how old they are, I think we all have moments like Alice, or feel the way that Elizabeth feels, or does something that reminds us of Pamela. Thank you for taking the time to write to me.

Posted on: October 12, 2009

What Do They Look Like?

Question:

Could you describe what Lester and Alice’s dad look like? They are the only two I can’t picture in my head when I’m reading. I love your books and can’t wait until the next one comes out.

Phyllis replied:

I try not to do that for readers. If I gave a detailed description of the way my head pictures a character, perhaps only half-fleshed out in a book, it might be so completely different from yours or from other readers that it would be disconcerting.

Posted on: October 12, 2009

Favorite Part?

Question:

what was your favourite part in the book intensly alice? as u no mine was the part when alice and patrick were on the park bench but what was yours? i love your alice books and dont want u to stop writing

Phyllis replied:

I really don’t think of the book in this way. It all runs together, one scene flowing into the next.