Reluctantly Alice

Alice McKinley comes home on the first day of junior high with a list of seven things about seventh grade that stink. Just about the only good thing she can think of is that she’s friends with everyone. Maybe that’s how to survive seventh grade—make it through the entire year with everyone liking her. That turns out to be easier said than done, when Alice gets on the wrong side of the school bully, Denise “Mack Truck” Whitlock. But Alice’s problems with Denise pale in comparison with the romantic entanglements of both her father and her older brother, Lester. And when Alice decides to help them out…life gets even more complicated.

There are, Alice decides, 272 horrible things left to happen to her in her life, based on the number of really horrible things that have happened already. She figures that out after the disaster of the talent show. And she realizes that there is no way to fend them off. But, she reasons, if you don't have a mother, maybe a sister would help. Maybe lots of sisters. A worldwide sisterhood! Sisterhood means more sympathy and less likely odds that the next horrible thing will strike when Alice is by herself. But, Sisterhood also comes with a whole new set of problems for Alice. Can she be Sisters with all three girls who want to be her brother Lester's girlfriend? In fact, how do boys fit into Universal Sisterhood at all? And how far should she you go when being part of the crowd means doing something you don't want to do? Alice copes with life in her own way, and her solutions to her endless problems are often funny and surprisingly right.

Maryland teenager Alice McKinley spends her last semester of high school performing in the school play, working on the student paper, worrying about being away from her boyfriend, who will be studying in Spain, and anticipating her future in college.

In this repackaged novel in a beloved series, Alice realizes she has a lot to learn about life! Now that Alice is growing up, she is finding out answers to all sorts of interesting things—but the questions keep on coming. For instance: How exactly are babies made? Where has her best friend Sarah’s family disappeared to? And why is her father going to a concert with a woman?! Alice isn’t too sure about any of these things—but on top of doing her homework, playing with Oatmeal, trying to keep Lester’s girlfriends straight, and setting her dad up with the school nurse, she’s going to have to find out!

Alice must choose between Patrick and Sam in this beloved series. How can someone be in love with two people at the same time? It doesn't make sense to Alice—until Sam, her friend from Camera Club, starts to pay attention to her. Sam is quiet, gentle, and a terrific dancer, and Alice likes being with him. But Alice has been Patrick’s girlfriend for almost two years—so why is she interested in another guy? As Alice stumbles her way through the minefield of early adolescence, there are plenty of bumps, giggles, and surprises along the way. Every girl should grow up with Alice, and with this irresistible new look, a whole new generation will want to.

Is it possible to be too good of a friend—too understanding, too always there, too much like a doormat? Alice has always been a best friend to Pamela and Liz. But she’s starting to wonder where that leaves her: What am I? An ear for listening? An arm around the shoulder? And then there’s Patrick—after ending their relationship two years ago, he’s suddenly calling again, and wants to take her to his senior prom. What does that mean? As Alice tries to figure out who she is in relation to her friends, she learns one thing: Aometimes friends need you more than they let on...especially when the unthinkable happens

Wouldn’t it be great to go back to the time before Pam got pregnant, before Patrick left for the University of Chicago, before anyone was making any big decisions about sex or college or life in general? Wouldn’t it be great to get the whole gang together again, just once? What it takes for this to happen will change Alice (and the whole gang) forever. A funeral is not a happy reunion. Full of life—the good, the bad, and the heartbreaking—this Alice book is a reminder of just how much can change in an instant.

Alice is in the eighth grade, and while she wants her life to be exciting and outrageous, she also wants to feel protected and safe.