Alice series
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The Alice Series is a book series written by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. There are three prequels to this series. The first one, Starting with Alice, describes Alice in third grade. Alice in Blunderland is Alice in fourth grade. The final prequel, Lovingly Alice, follows Alice through the troubles of fifth grade. The first book (after the prequels) is The Agony of Alice.
The Alice series follows the main character, Alice McKinley, known as "Al" to her father and older brother as she grows up in Silver Spring, Maryland. Her mother died of leukemia when Alice was five. Alice has a hard time at first growing up in an all-male household, but her father and her brother, Lester, prove to be honest and open about almost everything Alice talks about. Alice has very little memory of her mother, often confusing her with her aunt, and seems to bear a striking physical resemblance to her, especially her strawberry-blond hair. Other characters include Alice's two best friends, Pamela and Elizabeth, her first serious boyfriend, Patrick, her next boyfriend, Sam, her prudish Aunt Sally (who frequently provides a little comic relief), Lester's many girlfriends, and of course her seventh grade Language Arts teacher, Miss Summers, whom she tries to get her father to marry (with eventual success). The Alice series broaches many topics, including relationships, dating, sex, friendship, life problems, families, God, and understanding. The books have made the ALA (American Library Association) list of most challenged books for several years, making it number one on the list in 2003 for their sexual content.[1]
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[edit] Alice movie
A movie version of the Alice series called Alice Upside Down! has completed production in St. Louis, Missouri and is now in post production, however no official date has been released. The movie is about Alice starting the sixth grade and does not review the Prequel Books.
[edit] The Alice prequels
- Starting With Alice (September 1, 2002) - 3rd Grade (Alice tries to deal with being the new girl when she, her dad, and Lester move to Takoma Park, Maryland after the store Alice's father works for transfers him to Maryland.)
- Alice in Blunderland (September 1, 2003) - 4th Grade (Alice feels as though she can't escape her embarrassment.)
- Lovingly Alice (September 1, 2004) - 5th Grade (Alice thinks that fifth grade is just one big joke.)
[edit] The Alice series
- The Agony of Alice (September 1, 1985) - 6th Grade (Alice moves to Silver Spring and struggles to make friends in her new school.)
- Alice in Rapture, Sort of (March 31, 1989) - Summer before 7th Grade (Alice, Pamela, and Elizabeth all get boyfriends.)
- Reluctantly Alice (March 30, 1991) - Fall of 7th Grade (Alice tries to survive seventh grade and she deals with Denise Whitlock, the school bully.)
- All but Alice (April 30, 1992) - Winter of 7th Grade
- Alice in April (April 30, 1993) - Spring of 7th Grade (Alice tries to become Woman of the House, like Aunt Sally says she is becoming.)
- Alice In-Between (March 1, 1994) - End of 7th Grade (Alice, Pamela, and Elizabeth get to take a trip to see Aunt Sally.)
- Alice the Brave (May 1, 1995) - Summer before 8th Grade (Alice is afraid her friends will notice her fear of deep water.)
- Alice in Lace (March 1, 1996) - Beginning of 8th Grade (Alice and Patrick pretend to be married as part of a school project.)
- Outrageously Alice (May 1, 1997) - Fall of 8th Grade (Alice is tired of the monotony of life.)
- Achingly Alice (June 1, 1998) - Winter of 8th Grade
- Alice on the Outside (June 1, 1999) - Spring of 8th Grade (Alice explores the idea of prejudice.)
- The Grooming of Alice (May 1, 2000) - Summer before 9th Grade (Alice, Pamela, and Elizabeth try to make themselves beautiful for ninth grade.)
- Alice Alone (May 1, 2001) - First semester of 9th Grade (Alice struggles with the idea of being single and the thought that Patrick likes another girl, Penny.)
- Simply Alice (May 1, 2002) - Second semester of 9th Grade (Pamela and Elizabeth feel left out in Alice's life because Alice is always busy with high school stuff.)
- Patiently Alice (May 1, 2003) - Summer before 10th Grade (Alice, Pamela, Elizabeth, and Gwen volunteer to be counselors together at a camp for troubled kids.)
- Including Alice (May 1, 2004) - First semester of 10th Grade (Alice contemplates the value of social customs.)
- Alice on Her Way (June 1, 2005) - Second semester of 10th Grade (Alice struggles to get a driver's license.)
- Alice in the Know (June 1, 2006) - Summer before 11th Grade (Alice gets a part-time job at the mall.)
- Dangerously Alice (May 8, 2007) - First semester of 11th Grade (Alice tries to shed her "good girl" image by taking risks and becoming involved with an older boy.)
- Almost Alice (June 17, 2008) - Presumably second semester of 11th Grade (Announced by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor in fan mail.)
[edit] Characters
- Alice Kathleen McKinley is the protagonist and narrator of the series. She is an intelligent and open-minded girl. Her mother died of leukemia when Alice was in kindergarten. Alice often feels as though she doesn't know how to "be a woman" because of this; however, she manages to get along fine.
- Benjamin McKinley is Alice's father, and usually the perfect person for Alice to turn to for advice. At the beginning of the series he was portrayed as a "shy" kind of person, the kind of dad who was too scared to say the word "bra". Later on the author decides to take a more practical approach to his personality.
- Lester McKinley is Alice's brother. There is a seven-year age difference but Alice feels very close to him. Even so, Lester is often too busy to deal with Alice and shies away from most of her questions, or answers them sarcastically. Les is also quite the "ladies man", but he has trouble with commitment. He juggled two girlfriends for the first half of the series.
- Elizabeth Price is a devout Catholic with very strong views on how the world should be run. This got her a reputation as a school prude. She loosened up as she got older, though. Eventually, it is revealed that Elizabeth's strictness and shyness about sex was a result of her being molested at a young age by a friend of her parents'. She is one of Alice's three best friends.
- Pamela Jones is the out-going blonde whom Alice met in 6th grade. She bounces from two boys (Brian Brewster and Mark Steidmeiner) for most of the series and has the most difficult home-life due to her parents messy separation and divorce. She is insightful when it comes to boys. One of Alice's three best friends.
- Gwen Wheeler is the smart, talented girl in Alice's group of friends. She is one of Alice's best friends and the most experienced of all of them when it comes to sex because unlike Alice, Elizabeth, and Pamela, she isn't a virgin. She is African American which causes her to be singled out on occasion. She cannot go to Pamela's house because of Pamela's father's prejudice.
- Sylvia Summers begins as Alice's 7th grade language arts teacher whom Alice adores. Alice wants to get her dad and Sylvia to go out, so during Christmas time she invites Sylvia to a Christmas choral performance at a local church with her father and her so Sylvia and her father can get to know each other. Later in the series, Ben and Sylvia get married and Sylvia becomes the stepmother Alice has been wishing for.
- Patrick Long is Alice's ex-boyfriend but still close friend to her. They broke up because of a girl named Penny in their grade. Penny's and his relationship didnt last more that a few months while his and Alice's lasted more than two years. Patrich has always liked Alice since that broke up and asked her to go to prom with him which is still 5 months away
