Reviews tagging 'Forced institutionalization'

Go Ask Alice by Beatrice Sparks

26 reviews

catell's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Addiction, Body horror, Drug abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Death, Forced institutionalization, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Bullying, Alcoholism, Blood, Mental illness, Sexual harassment, Pedophilia, Self harm, Toxic friendship, Adult/minor relationship, and Toxic relationship

kathykeesee's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Bullying

Minor: Homophobia

novacoconut's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I have so many mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, I loved it. It pulled me in and I couldn’t wait to see what would happen next, and whether she would get her life together. And it was great until the Epilogue. However, I also hated it…some parts were clearly not written by a young girl in her teens, and it took away from the authenticity of the diary. I also didn’t like the way the epilogue ended the book. If left too many questions but not in a cliffhanger type of way, but in a confusing what the heck just happened type of way. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Rape, Drug use, and Addiction

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Grief, Death, Sexual assault, Rape, and Sexual content

Minor: Dysphoria, Eating disorder, Child death, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Sexual harassment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts

krimor's review against another edition

dark sad tense fast-paced

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Death, Drug use, Sexual assault, Trafficking, Forced institutionalization, Addiction, Drug abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Eating disorder

ellievelazquez's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Addiction, and Drug abuse

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Pedophilia, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Rape, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual harassment

razzyreads's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Body horror, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Drug abuse, Addiction, Cursing, Sexual violence, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual assault, and Sexual content

Moderate: Bullying, Blood, Trafficking, Violence, Toxic friendship, Suicidal thoughts, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Eating disorder, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Sexism, Alcoholism, and Car accident

fabyio's review against another edition

sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

It's Mormon propaganda. The portraying of the characters and situations are borderline funny if you've actually experience or awareness of real life addiction and homelessness. Homophobic, fatphobic and all the fun things we can expect from a 70s propaganda book.

With this in mind, you can read it as a piece of fiction from its time and it's bearable. Finished in a couple days and cracked up at the ending. I'd call it camp-ish.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Alcohol, Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Grief, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Abandonment, Fatphobia, Forced institutionalization, Eating disorder, Child death, Classism, Death, and Drug use

All is wrong but it's funny to me.

chezler24's review against another edition

dark sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

I am currently giving this book 2/5 stars although I probably would have rated it higher when I read it for the first time in middle school.  I get why this book was written; however, the execution feels a bit dated and cheesy. This book was written in 1971 - or should I say "diary was found" since we're supposed to be reading this under the assumption that this is a real diary from a real teenager - but the dialogue and pacing just feel off at points even for the target audience being older kids/young adults. The book definitely goes for shock factor with all the terrible things the main character does while on drugs and while maintaining her high, yet it almost borders on unrealistic at points. I think the most egregious thing for me was the epilogue ending that completely undoes any progress that had been made without any hope for rehabilitation or even explanation. Also, the handling of sexual orientation was not great at all. It kept popping up that drugs were the sole reason for anyone to question their sexual orientation and gender identity which is just a wild claim that gets glossed over. (Maybe this was to just hint at how naive the main character was, but since the whole book is pretty much propaganda I kind of doubt that there wasn't an ulterior motive.) I did learn that there is a TV movie adaptation of this book so it will be interesting to see how that holds up in regards to the diary format we've been given. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Sexual harassment, Drug use, Rape, Sexual assault, Alcohol, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Addiction, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

chemical_crash's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Abortion, Addiction, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Gaslighting, Medical content, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Cursing, Death, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Violence, Alcoholism, Body horror, Body shaming, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Vomit, and Toxic friendship

whiterabbitslibrary's review against another edition

challenging dark funny mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

As a book this wasn't great, but when you take into account the history and mythos surrounding it it's quite intriguing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Mental illness, Self harm, Drug abuse, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Suicide, and Sexual content

Moderate: Homophobia