Go Ask Alice (Anonymous Diaries) – WISE Score & Parent Review | Screenwise

Go Ask Alice (Anonymous Diaries)

Name: Screenwise
Author: Screenwise

book1971

42%

WISE Score

4.4

Amazon

The 1970s 'scared straight' classic that’s half drug-fueled fever dream and half parental nightmare.

Go Ask Alice (Anonymous Diaries)

book

1971

42%

WISE Score

4.4

Amazon

The 1970s 'scared straight' classic that’s half drug-fueled fever dream and half parental nightmare.

4.4

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Screenwise Verdict

Go Ask Alice is the literary version of those old 'This is your brain on drugs' commercials with the frying pan. It was a massive cultural phenomenon back in the day, but reading it now feels a bit like looking at a museum exhibit.

It’s heavy-handed, the slang is dated, and the 'anonymous diary' hook has been thoroughly debunked as a marketing stunt. If your teen wants a gritty look at addiction, there are much better, more honest modern books out there. But if they want to see what their grandparents were terrified of in 1971, this is the one.

Age Fit

Best for 15 and up. Younger kids will just be confused by the 70s slang or unnecessarily traumatized by the gritty content. It’s a high school book, period.

WISE Breakdown

Wholesome

This is a bleak, downward-spiral narrative. While it aims to be a 'cautionary tale,' the tone is heavy, depressing, and focuses entirely on the destruction of a young life rather than resilience or healthy modeling.

Imaginative

It follows a very standard, almost formulaic diary structure. There isn't much creative spark here; it's a utilitarian piece of 'scared straight' propaganda from the 1970s.

Safe

The book is packed with triggers: heavy drug use, sexual situations, runaway themes, and a tragic ending. It's often found in the 'Children's' section due to its age, which is a major safety mismatch.

Enriching

It can spark important conversations about peer pressure and the reality of addiction, but its impact is weakened by the fact that it's widely known to be a fictionalized 'fake' diary.

Parent Info

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Why It Might Be Great

It works as a historical time capsule of 1971 drug culture and parental panic.
The diary format makes it a very fast, accessible read for teens who usually hate big books.
It doesn't sugarcoat the consequences of addiction, even if it sensationalizes them.

⚠

What to Watch For

The book is likely a work of fiction by Beatrice Sparks, not a real diary, which can feel manipulative to savvy readers.
Contains descriptions of LSD trips, 'speed,' and the sexual exploitation that often accompanies the drug world in these stories.
The ending is notoriously abrupt and depressing, offering zero hope or recovery.

Conversation Starters

"Does this actually feel like it was written by a 15-year-old, or an adult trying to sound like one?"
"How has the way we talk about drugs changed since 1971?"
"Why do you think the author chose to keep the 'Anonymous' label even after it was debunked?"

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