Author: Susan Juby
Publication: Toronto: HarperTrophyCanada
Pub. Date: 2000
ISBN: 0-00-639287-3
Pages: 241
Summary: Alice is a teenager from a small Canadian town who has a unique perspective on life. After her therapist has a breakdown, Alice writes up a list of Life Goals that she wants to achieve. One of those goals includes going to public high school after having been homeschooled for most of her life. The story follows her exploits as she strives to cross goals off her list.
Major Characters: Alice, her mom
Comments: I was pleasantly surprised by this book. When I picked it up I thought it was going to be another story full of teenage angst, but it was completely the opposite. The dead-pan sarcasm and humour of Alice's first-person narrative is so funny that I found myself laughing out loud in several spots. I kept telling myself that no one could be that clueless, but that's what made the book so funny. It was also refreshing to read about a character that doesn't often appear in a leading role. So many main characters are the good-looking, athletic, popular type who seem to have it all-together. Alice doesn't have anything together, and it is fun to see how she deals with that.
Genre: Realistic fiction
Age Level: 15+
Ranking: 5/5
