I think the first time I read “Go Ask Alice” was when I was around 11 or 12. I read it several times when I was younger, because that girl’s diary was horrific and morbidly fascinating. I mean, think of it! This girl was unknowingly dosed with LSD, fell into a life of drugs, and she ended up dying thinking parasites were on her! My friends and I were obsessed … and to this day, I’ve never tried LSD. 😂

I don’t remember when I learned that it was a work of fiction, (more like, a work of fraud) but I was an adult, and I was so annoyed that I was completely fooled by a trickster, a hustler. A woman named Beatrice Sparks. This book is about her, and about her many books, including the bestselling “Go Ask Alice”, a completely fictionalized tale, and “Jay’s Journal” - which somehow eluded me! After reading this book, I want to read that one now, but I definitely wouldn’t buy it and support the utter bullshit this woman spread to the masses.

Both books were fakes, with “Jay’s Journal” being (very) loosely based on the real diary of a young man (not named Jay) who killed himself after getting into the occult. Witchcraft and Satan worship took this bright young Mormon boy from the world … it would have you think. The truth was that “Jay” (actually a teenage boy named Alden) was a kid who had severe depression. His parents tried to get him help, but psychology was much more primitive then, and he committed suicide. The occult had NOTHING to do with it.

This book about Ms. Sparks is written informally, but excellently, with exacting details and footnotes. It was a very easy, quick read and I thought the subject matter was so interesting. This woman, who pretended to be a psychotherapist, who pretended to “find” diaries of teenage drug users/homosexuals/devil worshipers/sinners, who defined generations, who influenced the “war on drugs”, who ruined people’s lives … well, she’s a real piece of work. This book takes you through all of it, and it’s definitely interesting.

Four stars, maybe even 4.5 if you remember reading these when you were younger. Millions of Americans did, and while I eventually found out Alice’s story was fake, I had no idea how much damage this one woman did to generations. I appreciate getting the chance to learn the truth, in a serious but entertaining manner.

(Thank you to BenBella Books, Rick Emerson and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my review.)

This book made me question almost all of my reading lists in middle and high school. I read Go Ask Alice when I was about 15 and was so sad for this 'anonymous girl' but this book turned all that around for me. Reading Unmask Alice almost 20 years later and opened my mind completely! The author goes down MANY rabbit holes and exposes everyone behind the original journals. My mouth hit the floor the entire book. You'll want to grab this if you have ever read Go Ask Alice!

I really wanted to enjoy this one, but I just couldn’t get into it. It felt all over the place at times and that made it hard for me to get really into it. There’s many amazing reviews for this one though, so I feel like it’s very much a hit or miss depending solely on the individual.

Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book uncovered the truth of "Go Ask Alice" and "Jay's Journal." I remember reading those books as a teen and being so shocked at what "Alice" went through. To know that these were simply works of fiction is even more troubling.

Emerson does an amazing job of showing how America was during the 1970's and 1980's. His extensive research really shines through as he uncovers the lies and shows the effects that Beatrice Sparks' had on the criminalization of drugs.

I don't read non-fiction often, but this one was something I won't soon forget!

Thanks for the ARC, Netgalley!

*ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

Wow, what a way to begin my journey back into nonfiction! I was someone who read the original "Go Ask Alice" in middle school and spent weeks afterward wondering if Alice was a real person. At that age, I was also struggling with my mental health, wondering if other people felt that way I did. Cue "Alice," marketed as an anonymous journal about a troubled teen girl. I was hooked.

"Unmask Alice" is an expose of sorts concerning the national bestseller "Go Ask Alice," which made it to the top of bestsellers lists everywhere and became "the book that all teens and adults should read." The publishing of "Alice" was part of a chain of events that added fuel to Nixon's War on Drugs, as well as (in part) kickstarted the Satanic Panic. The problem was... "Alice" was fiction. And so were all of the subsequent novels Sparks published, all of which she claimed were either personal diaries or compilations from her "psychological case notes." (as Unmask Alice points out: Sparks was not a psychologist nor any type of counselor.)

The librarian part of me is fascinated at how "Alice" and Sparks' other novels were so heavily endorsed by booksellers and librarians across the country; the neuroscientist part of me is horrified at the way "Alice" presented drugs, addiction, mental health, and suicide to such a huge public audience.

As much as I was captivated by this book, I really want to touch on how the author talks about suicide (so: Content warning for this review and for the book in general: gory descriptions of suicides.) It's rare that my book reviews overlap with my professional life, but I have worked in suicide prevention research specifically with young people. I am by no means an expert, but I'm still involved in academic research. My problem: The section of the book dedicated to Alden's story claims that "The argument for whitewashing suicide goes like this: too much attention...can trigger more suicides... That's indisputably true (p143)."

This isn't... *completely* true. Talking about suicide actually decreases the risk of young people dying by suicide. A more true statement would be that in strict religious, conservative communities, talking about suicide might lead to messaging of shame and guilt, which isolates teens and increases risk of depression and suicide. (See: Alden's "counselor" who continues to tell his parents that Alden isn't truly depressed, he'll grow up and grow out of it.) Or: another true statement would be that giving the gory details of a person's suicide and fixating how, when, and where a suicide happened *could* trigger a cluster of suicides. Community and context are extremely important when referencing why suicide clusters may occur. Simply talking about suicide does not indisputably increase suicide rates.

Okay, I'm off my soapbox now. I just don't want people to take the sentiment "talking about suicide is bad" from that part of the text when really, open, judgment free conversations about mental health save lives.

"Unmask Alice" is a fast paced, thorough, critical look at how one woman's lies can influence the cultural zeitgeist for generations. 4 stars.

This was sadly a DNF for me. I tried hard to submerse myself into this book (I loved Go Ask Alice and Jay's Journal) but I couldn't get into it. Maybe I wasn't in the right mindset for a biography like this or maybe it just wasn't for me.

As a teenager, I devoured Go Ask Alice, reading my paperback copy until it was ragged (and a girl borrowed and lost it). Reading Unmask Alice by Rick Emerson was a little bit of a trip down memory lane, transporting me back to the early 1970's with his descriptions of not only the book and TV movie, but the culture and politics of the time. I never read Jay's Journal, nor did I read any of Beatrice Sparks other 'diaries,' which did not impede my enjoyment of this meticulously researched and impartially reported book.

Beatrice Sparks starts as a somewhat sympathetic character, one who has had credit for the diary stripped, and watches it become a sensation, but as we learn more about her deceptions and actions, she takes on the role of villain. I was somewhat shocked by the ease with which her deceptions were accepted at face value, though who would have suspected the extent of it!

For fans of the original diaries, true crime lovers, and 1970's history buffs, Unmask Alice is a great read.

Thank you to Netgalley, BenBella Books, and Rick Emerson for the opportunity to read an advance copy of Unmask Alice. The opinions in this review are my own.

A really well researched and interesting book. As one of the many people sucked into the 'Go Ask Alice' craze, I found this story to be absolutely fascinating. I still have my copy of 'Go Ask Alice' on my shelves in my childhood home and remember the impact it had on my life.

To find out the story behind its creation and the real author was shocking. Whilst it's not that surprising to find out it wasn't actually written by an anonymous teenage girl, there were so many other layers, including what the author went on to do after, the stories role in anti-drug propaganda and the crazy story of Beatrice Sparks.

What I also enjoyed was the way this book was written. Emerson has a really engaging writing style that was sensitive to the issues and people affected by also contained humour and insight. I loved this book and highly reccomend!

First I'm going to pick my jaw up from the floor.....Now I'll proceed.

Go Ask Alice was a very influential book for me in middle school and in high school (2000's era). I took so much away from the book and connected with it on such a personal level. It shaped me.

With that being said, the deep dive into the history of the publication, along with other diary style titles and how they impacted a toxic culture blew my mind. Satanic panic has been a topic I find endlessly fascinating and this book did not disappoint me in adding to my growing knowledge. The details on drugs and the war on drugs had me shocked. And I won't even begin to discuss Beatrice Sparks and the endless ways she slipped through every filter there was because I think reading about her with fresh eyes is the best way to go. The state of publishing, libraries, and bookselling is touched on and another interesting aspect of the book. I went through the emotions of shocked, sad, mad, furious, and heartbroken. This is a story that took so long to tell, which is such a shame, but Rick Emerson did a great job.

When it comes to non-fiction books, I enjoy them, but I tend to take a longer time to read. I need to really let the information sink in. With Unmask Alice, however, I couldn't read it fast enough. I needed all of the information ASAP. Emerson's writing is very readable and the mix of his personal touches (and opinions) I felt added to the readability. While authors' opinions can detract from the information in non-fiction, I thought it added to it (maybe this is because I agreed with all of them, but you never know).

There's so much more I want to add, but I don't want to spoil anything for readers. I highly recommend reading Unmask Alice!

I have to say, I didn't think this book would intersect so much with things I've already been reading/listening to. This book has Mormon ideology and Satanic Panic, two things that keep coming up over and over again. This one also gets into some dicey publishing territory, which, honestly I would have liked MORE information about.

In general, this is a quick and non-exhaustive look at how Mormonism, the war on drugs, Satanic Panic, and general conservatism just exploded. It pins the rise of the Satanic Panic in the 1970s, which makes sense, because it feels like Charles Manson was really the catalyst to a huge culture backlash and culminated in what we now consider the 1990s zenith of Satanic Panic. And you know, since nothing is never new under the sun, it's happening again in conservative circles with the secret cabal of baby killers.

The general style of the book is conversational, peppered with fun references (nothing too obscure, I don't think. Especially not if you are in any way Online). However, about the question of Beatrice Sparks and the Go Ask Alice thing - I think there's some of that we will never get the full truth on, and the author acknowledges that. I think the only place where the book could be strengthened is on the whole enabling problem in publishing. This is just one small chapter in what could be a huge book on all the cons that authors have pulled, particularly in fudging "true" stories and blurring them until the truth is a speck in the horizon.

Recommended for: people who love publishing intrigue and mentions of the Library of Congress, those who have read Go Ask Alice or Jay's Journal and wanted the backstory, and also anyone who is also obsessed with learning more about the Satanic Panic.

This was a well written book and also disturbing because the woman that wrote ‘Go Ask Alice’ and ‘Jay’s Journal’ was actually a con artist, compulsive liar, and destroyed people’s lives. I really recommend this if you grew up in the 70’s, 80’s or 90’s. ‘Go Ask Alice’ was a book that was spoken about so much. It taped into the thinking of a young girl who gets swept away and pulled into the world or drugs. She then dies.

The author was Beatrice Sparks and her ambition to achieve clouded all her judgment or concerns about other people. This book came out at a time when our country was divided: with the Vietnam War, Counterculture Beliefs, Changing Thoughts on Women and Minorities, Leaders being shot and killed, Many young people leaving home in search of answers, and it left a feeling by parents that their children were slipping away and in danger. Many teenagers also felt a call for change and were not easily relating to the cultures they grew up in. So, this book came out at the perfect time. Yet, this book was said to be about a real girl and written by anonymous.It went way beyond that and actually shaped our culture. Yet, any book written with lies, is deceptive and wrong. Perhaps, it helped some young teenagers identify with this girl and decide to avoid drugs, but is also helped Nixon push for very severe punishment of anyone processing any drug. The drug treatment part of the plan never happened.

Beatrice Sparks kept going. Her next book was so distressing and her behavior so awful it made me furious. A young teenage boy, Alden Barrett had some troubles throughout his life. Even when he was young, he had some wild mood swings and couldn’t seem to rain them in. Very little was known about adolescent mental illness at this time. He did get into drugs for a while, but had stayed sober. He grew up in an ultra conservative Mormon community where thinking differently was not well tolerated. He was quite intelligent, liked music, poetry, questioned traditional religion, and was looking for answers beyond his own small town. He meets a girl, Theresa and they fall in love. It is an intense, but innocent relationship. His parents do love and support him, but do not necessarily understand him. So, he becomes distraught as he has been suffering from depression for a while and takes his life. This is so very sad. He kept a journal through part of this. His parents think it might be good to let Beatrice Sparks use his journal so his death can help other kids in trouble seek a way out. Instead Beatrice writes Jay’s Journal, insists her name be listed as the author and uses passages from his diary, but completely turns the book into a terrifying tale a Sadism, something neither he or his girlfriend were into in any way. It is horrifying to do this to a grieving family. Any empathy I had for Beatrice was gone at this point.

So, beyond ruining an already destroyed family with a book that is thinly veiled and it is easy to figure out is supposed to be about Alden, she uses it to again tap into adults fear of the devil and young people supposedly being overtaken by Satanic Cults. It seems so bizarre and of course was, but this lead to many instances around the country describing horrific abuse done by Satanic Cults to Children. The most innocent gestures such as liking the game dungeons and dragons or their taste in music could be signs that your child was in trouble. Beatrice did not completely start this out of control panic, but her book played a role. Yet, she was unconcerned. She did not worry about what she did to this boy’s parents and sibling. No, she went on to continue writing more such diaries and her lies got bigger and bolder.

Excellent Book by an Author clearly trying to be honest. He did not have an agenda or a vendetta against Beatrice Sparks, but just let the facts speak for themselves. Recommend this book if you want to see how deception can have a profound and lasting cultural effect. More honesty and looking into authors claims needs to be done. Her books were selling well, so publishers did not even check her alleged degrees, being a psychotherapist, having adolescent patients, referrals, or anything else. This should have been done.

Thank you NetGalley, Rick Emerson, and BenBella Books for a copy of this book. I am always happy to leave a review.

Having not read Go Ask Alice, I wasn't sure what I would make of this book. It's a fascinating, well researched account of one of the biggest frauds that helped shape today's America.. There are parallels to the way misinformation travels today, such as a blog or video going viral and dominating 24 hours of news, or racking up 10 million views on YouTube. Go Ask Alice sold 6 million copies over 50 years, basically based on fear and shock value. Read in 2 sittings over a 24 hour period.

What a surprising read! Just last week, while hitting the free little libraries around my neighborhood and exchanging books, I picked up Go Ask Alice. It was tucked in one, still showing 'written by Anonymous.' I'd read it years ago and remember being moved and impressed by it. I had no idea the shady means the author used to get it published. I also didn't know she was behind multiple other 'diary' style stories. This books feels well researched and was easy to jump right in to. It slowed a bit as you learned 'Jay's' shocking and horrible story. I like that the author added both the times for the kids and the adult writing these but also the background of politics at the time and the looming war and draft. I think they all influenced the story, the time and the people. I'm so glad I read this, to shine a light on the truth of the author and the books.

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

When I read Go Ask Alice (along with another two or three books in Beatrice Sparks' "true diary" series) I had already heard that it was maybe not entirely legit, but I kind of figured that maybe it was told to Beatrice Sparks and then a few things got changed along the way. It still gave me a good fright and to this day I don't remember much of the book but oh boy do I remember the maggots.

Anyhow, I was drawn to this book hoping there was something juicy and scandalous behind Go Ask Alice. In many ways, Beatrice Sparks was a lot more brazen in her lies than I thought and in others, it seemed like her lies were common knowledge by now. Either way, Emerson's writing is almost always compelling, although a middle section about Alden Barrett seems to drag on forever. I'm still not sure if Beatrice Sparks singlehandedly started the Satanic Panic and/or the War on Drugs but she sure as hell didn't help.

Like many of you 'Go Ask Alice' was required reading in early high school English class and was promoted as a true anonymous diary.

Reading Unmask Alice was like taking off the blinders and peering behind the scenes into that era and everything happening then. It is fascinating and makes for a great read

I received an ARC from netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

This is a fascinating behind the scenes look at Go Ask Alice and the other supposed diaries. From the start of the war on drugs to the Satanic panic and beyond, Rick Emerson paints a candid picture of life at the time of Go Ask Alice and Jay's Journal and the devious mind behind them.

Go Ask Alice was part of my childhood in the late 90s. Unmask Alice has shaken some of the foundation from back then.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this book for review.

This was an interesting look at the creator behind Go Ask Alice, Jay's Journal, and more. I knew a bit about these books and the author, Beatrice Sparks, but I had never read them. While I was in high school, I saw one student, in my school of around 1600 students, carrying around a copy of Alice. I've also studied moral panics as part of my sociology major. Not much of this book was surprising to me, but the research was interesting.

One note on the research, I disagree with the decision to exclude a more extensive notes/citations section. I don't really care if the information is findable, or that you signed a contract that requires you to tell the truth, I still want you to tell me where you found the information. Especially in a book like this, a fact-checking mission meant to disprove lies, I want to see the work. Emerson cites American Kingpin by Nick Bilton as inspiration. That book also has a minimal bibliography so maybe that's where this decision stemmed from. I just think in a fact-checking book like this, sources should be more readily provided, especially if you start the book promising you'll show your work on the citations.

Besides that, I generally enjoyed the writing. It felt a bit overwritten at times but it was quite engaging in it's style. I definitely enjoyed the later half of the book more, when the book shifts away from recounting the real stories behind Sparks' books and towards showing how Sparks lied. The short chapters and their titles and dates seemed to be intended to mimic the style of the Sparks' diaries. I think this added an interesting style to the book. The writing does seem to lean into some of the drama of the story. Some of this made the writing more engaging but some of it felt a bit overwrought.

If you like more objective nonfiction, you probably won't like this. It places itself in the head of characters, including the ones who died. Emerson does explain where he pulled that information from but it certainly effects the tone of the book. I don't mind this style of nonfiction but it is something to know going in.

This is a very interesting examination of this author, her books, and the real stories behind them. I think this book will be interesting to people even if they haven't read any of Sparks' books.

Unmask Alice is an excellent book for any reader looking to understand more about the War on Drugs and the Satanic Panic that took hold of America in the second half of the twentieth century. Emerson unmasks the deceiving character of Beatrice Sparks, following the ways this unknown Mormon woman was able to infiltrate policy decisions at the federal level. Her quest for fame is only overshadowed by the hurt and misjustice she put real victims families through. As a young person who had not heard of the original Alice book, Emerson shed light on the ways that the stretched and created a narrative that sold books and created a sensationalism unmatched in her contemporary literature for young adults. Emerson takes a life of lies and deceit and explains as much of the truth as is possible to locate. Incredible attention to detail and organized in a way that keeps readers invested in the story, Emerson has a real winner in Unmask Alice.

Back in the early 1990s, as a preteen, I read many of the popular books that were available. Sweet Valley High, Judy Blume, and V. C. Andrews (why?) were some of the more memorable. I also remember reading a book called Go Ask Alice, which was supposed to be the true story of a girl’s descent into the horrible world of drug addiction.

As it turns out, things are not always what they seem. In Unmask Alice, author Rick Emerson reveals the true story behind the famous book. Beatrice Sparks, the “editor” of Go Ask Alice and numerous other “diaries” is shown to be a master of deception.

Tied in with the background of the drug culture of the late 1960s and early 1970s and the later Satanic Panic of the 1980s, Emerson deftly illustrates how Sparks drew from the culture of the time in her work and then, ultimately, how her work shaped the culture.

This book was a page turner for me. I would recommend Unmask Alice to those interested in books about books and pop culture phenomena.

Even if I didn't grew up in the USA Ask Alice was a sort of best seller in my teens and this book was very interesting as it talks about the author behind the book.
I wasn't a fan of the book then and I'm very bewildered now. The author did a good job and this was an informative read
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine