Book Review: The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu

Summary:
Everyone has a lot to say about Alice Franklin, and it’s stopped mattering whether it’s true. The rumors started at a party when Alice supposedly had sex with two guys in one night. When school starts everyone almost forgets about Alice until one of those guys, super-popular Brandon, dies in a car wreck that was allegedly all Alice’s fault. Now the only friend she has is a boy who may be the only other person who knows the truth, but is too afraid to admit it. Told from the perspectives of popular girl Elaine, football star Josh, former outcast Kelsie, and shy genius Kurt, we see how everyone has a motive to bring – and keep – Alice down.
 
 
Release Date: June 3, 2014
Age Group: YA
Source: NetGalley
Reviewed By:  Kelli
 
 
Review:
I love contemporary YA, and books like The Truth About Alice serve to enforce my love of this genre.  Once I started this book I simply could not put it down!  The premise captivated me and I had to know how Alice's story would end, as well as finding out Alice's truth.

Mathieu uses the alternating first-person narrative to perfection.  It worked so well for this character-driven story because it allows the reader to really get into each character's head.  I liked that several characters have voices in this book, not just the two main characters. 

The Truth About Alice is focused on such a relevant topic in today's world: bullying.  Bullying is something that changes a person's life trajectory, changes how they view themselves and the world, and changes their entire outlook and personal relationships.  Bullying has far-reaching effects which can be life-long. 

I can think of no worse bullies than high school girls.  The Truth About Alice was a great example of how bullying changes everything about people, both the bully and the victim.  Reading books like this make it easy to see how some kids are driven to self-harm due to bullying.  I loved that Mathieu uses the subject of bullying in this fiction novel to gently educate readers and gets her point across without being didactic.

I loved so much about The Truth About Alice.  Besides the main focus of the story: Alice's behavior, there's a sweet love story and plenty of character growth.  I highly recommend this book!

 
 

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