What do You think about Alice On The Outside (2000)?
Personally, I wouldn't say that this book was a great read but I like the concept behind this book as well as the series. It answers questions that girls are too scared to ask. I really wish I had these books when I was a couple years younger so I had answers to some of these questions and sometimes even still there are times I read something I didn't know before. I also really liked the idea of that racial activity they did in the school to cause awareness because I definitely didn't have anything like that a couple years ago when I was that age and I think it could have done us all some good if it was a requirement at school.
—Brooke
A great Alice story, definitely comparable to Alice in Lace (my favorite) in terms of greatness. To get a real world view of prejudice the entire school is divided into As, Bs, and Cs and are granted different levels of privileges. Certain groups are required to use certain staircases, water fountains, and are allowed to board the school buses first. The students have strong emotional reactions to the experiment and have a great in class discussion. I was so glad to read about another meaty assignment like the ones Alice and her friends were assigned in Alice in Lace (they had to plan a wedding, buy a car, make decisions about an unplanned pregnancy etc). Also in this volume, Alice asks some serious questions about sex. Her cousin Carol visits for a week and the two share a very detailed pillow talk session, which I appreciated for its honesty and the mature way in which Alice both asked her questions and received her answers. A side story that comes up in this book is a growing friendship with a girl named Lori. After a sleepover at Lori's house Alice learns that Lori is a lesbian. Although Alice doesn't share this secret with her best friends Pamela and Elizabeth a brief discussion does arise after an incident involving Lori and another girl in the school bathroom and all of the girls' different points of view are revealed. I wonder if this topic will be explored more in depth in later Alice stories, but I liked seeing how Alice handled herself and stuck up for her friend when a group of girls ganged up on her and tried to harassed her. One of my favorite titles in the Alice series, but be warned that sex is a BIG topic in this book as compared to the way it is mentioned here and there in other books, it is a main focus in this book. Recommended for teen girls grades 9 and up.
—Samantha
Alice is in junior high, and she has a lot of questions. In this particular book in the series, Alice learns about sex, makes friends with a classmate who is gay, and participates in a school-wide activity to help kids understand racism. I picked this one up because it was part of a "LGBT kid lit" display. That's about all it has going for it. Published in 1990, this book is very dated. Add that to the fact that the spine is printed with the words "teen fiction" when no teen I know would be caught dead reading a 20+ year old book about an 8th grader, and this book fails miserably. Not only that, but all the "big topics" that come up in this book are handled in such a preachy, after-school-special style that the lessons they're trying to get across sound canned and forced. If this series were in my collection, I'd seriously consider weeding it unless it happens to still circulate for some reason. As it is, this "teen fiction" book is about the size of a Babysitters Club book and is shelved in the JFic at my local library.
—Jenni Frencham
