The truth about Alice
Author:
Jennifer Mathieu
Publisher:
Hardie Grant Egmont
There are a lot of rumours about Alice Franklin, and it’s
stopped mattering whether any of them are true.
It all started at a party, when Alice was supposedly with
two guys in one night.
Soon everyone at Healy High has picked a side in the game
of he said/she dais. Do they believe Brandon Fitzsimmons, the most popular guy
at school and the football hero of Healy? Or do they believe Alice, the girl
who wears too-tight t-shirts and was caught kissing Brandon in a closet a
couple of years before?
When Brandon dies in a car crash, there are serious
allegations that his death was Alice’s fault. As the rumour mill spills in to
overdrive, Alice’s small town becomes suffocating. And when the truth becomes a
matter of opinion, something’s got to give.
My Review
Plot: The
truth about Alice is a gripping story which touches on issues such as rumours,
bullying, teen pregnancy, abortion and being gay. It is told in the points of
view of: the popular girl Elaine, Alice’s ex-best friend Kelsie, Brandon’s best
mate Josh, the school nerd Kurt and lastly the girl surrounding all the
rumours, Alice.
Everything is basically written around what happened with
Alice. Apparently at one of the hottest parties in town (that Kelsie couldn’t
go to because she was in bed sick) Alice slept with two guys in the one night.
This rumour spreads like wildfire but then one of the boys supposedly involved
in the incident is killed in a car accident where Alice was reportedly the
cause. Throughout the book we slowly learn about the events proceeding the
party, what happened after the party and what happened after the crash that
killed Brandon.
What I liked:
I loved the gripping story that had me hooked until the end trying to figure
out what happened. I really enjoyed how each chapter was from the point of view
of someone different. Because of all the different people narrating I felt more
involved with how everything happened and got a lot more of what was going on in
Healy. We got to see all different sides of the social scale which I believed
helped make the story as fantastic as it was.
What I didn’t
like: It’s not much, as I really enjoyed the book, but I would have liked
to have heard a bit more from Alice. But in saying that I also get why the
author waited until the last chapter to let her narrate, as it made more of an
impact.
My favourite
character: My favourite character is the school nerd, Kurt. Throughout the
book we learn that from the first moment, Kurt really liked Alice way before
anything happened. He never had the courage to say anything to her until the
whole thing went down and all the rumours started and everyone started ignoring
Alice. He originally liked her because she was pretty and was nice enough to
speak with her. This is what led him to offer his help to her when she is
struggling with her schoolwork. Upon helping her he realises that he likes her
so much more than he originally thought but didn’t want to push anything onto
her.
Favourite quote/part:
“How much did it hurt? It was like a million paper cuts
on my heart.”
Rating : 4/5
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