Drug Abuse In Go Ask Alice

The book Go Ask Alice, originally written by an anonymous person, but then later discovered to be Beatrice Sparks, is a commonly challenged book that educates young adults about the effects of drug abuse. Go Ask Alice follows the life of a common teenage girl and her struggle with addiction and mental diseases. Therefore, it is a very educational book for teens for teens to learn the reality of drugs. Because Go Ask Alice does involve drugs, alcohol, and sexual content, it should be banned for specific age groups.
Go Ask Alice is debated on if it is appropriate for school libraries. The main character is never named, but it does hint her name could be Alice. The book begins with the main character being what some would say a “normal” teenage
Early exposure to such mature things can lead a child/teen to be curious. The main character talks about how great drugs are and describes how incredible she feels when she’s high. She also mentions that she never wants to have sex sober, which can encourage adolescences to experiment with it themselves. Her drug use leads to her having hallucinations of worms and maggots eating her body parts, which may cause young children especially to experience intense nightmares. She is accidentally given drugs while babysitting. Luckily the baby was not affected, but “Alice” had major injuries from scratching her body practically raw. Eating disorders are slightly mentioned. The main character struggles with confidence in her body, which leads her to eat very little food and throw it up. Young girls could really take this into consideration and form an eating disorder themselves. When a book is banned, students usually think of why it is banned, not the overall picture, which makes them want to read it even more. Parents and religious groups are especially trying to get the book banned in school libraries. They do not want their children reading things they don’t believe are appropriate. One mother became angered when “Her eight grade daughter was “forced” to read excerpts out loud in one of her classes” (Go Ask Alice) If a teacher wants a student to read a book, they should get parental permission first. Although parents have the right to keep their children from reading the book, they should educate their child on such topics to inform them on the effects drugs, alcohol, and sex and not shelter them from