Read, Review, Rant


Go ask for the truth
When it comes to these young adult classics, it’s all lies

Kel Munger
3 hr ago


I will never forget first reading Go Ask Alice, the supposedly-true diary of a teenage girl who dabbled in drugs, was quickly hooked, tried to stop and failed, tried again and succeeded, then died of an overdose.

I was twelve years old, and we had a single copy in my junior high school library. Here’s a snapshot of me reading it once I finally got my hands on it:

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I think I read it four times in the week I had it. As soon as I could get my paws on a paperback copy, I bought it. It was fascinating. It was so real. And the year later, there was an ABC “Movie of the Week” starring a rather subdued William Shatner as Alice’s father, Andy Griffith in a cameo as an understanding priest, and the incredibly teen-gorgeous Jamie Smith-Jackson as the doomed Alice.

And it was all a fraud.

Given how ticked off about it I am now, I can only imagine how enraged the still-idealistic tween I was in 1972 would have been. If you think this rant is going to be bad, imagine if it were powered by the pubescent fury of a bright, righteous child.

Unmask Alice: LSD, Satanic Panics, and the Imposter Behind the World’s Most Notorious Diaries by Rick Emerson (BenBella/Penguin Random House, $26.95.


In Rick Emerson’s book, Unmask Alice, he tells the story of a Mormon housewife who re-made herself into a writer, then sold herself as the “editor” of a diary by a deceased teen drug addict. And if that sounds crazy, well, we’re just getting started.

Beatrice Sparks wanted to be somebody. She parlayed a connection to Art Linklater (of TV fame—my mother watched his show religiously, and we loved his interviews with six-year-olds) into a writing gig. When Linklater’s daughter committed suicide, he became convinced that it was due to an “acid flashback” from her LSD use, and he talked about the dangers of drugs widely.

Sparks, who met a depressed young woman at a Mormon retreat, then hatched her plan. She wrote Go Ask Alice, then reinvented herself as a counselor who had salvaged this “diary” and edited it. It was snapped up, and her connection to Linklater didn’t hurt.

And, as my personal experience attests, it went viral among young girls. It was a huge bestseller.

So huge, in fact, that it built a mansion for Sparks in Utah.

And that’s where a grieving mother found her. Marcella Barrett had recently lost her teenage son, Alden, to suicide. She had been blindsided by the depression that led to his death, and thought “Dr.” Sparks (she’d now elevated herself to Ph.D. psychologist) might help warn other parents with Alden’s diary as she had warned about drugs with Alice’s.

We can only imagine how Sparks’ mouth must have watered at being presented with this opportunity. But Sparks really did the Barretts dirty. Just as the “satanic panic” of the ’80s was kicking off, Jay’s Journal, supposedly based on Alden’s diary of depression and teenaged heartbreak, told the story of a boy who had begun dabbling in satanism, become ensnared, and committed suicide.

That sounds bad enough, but Sparks left in enough identifying detail (though she actually used very little of Alden’s diary) that the world thought it was the true story of Alden’s life and death. It caused no end of grief and pain for his family, not to mention constantly having kids burning candles and performing “rituals” based on the made-up crap in Sparks’ book at poor Alden’s grave.

Mind you, Emerson argues that Jay’s Journal is actually to blame for the Satanic Panic, but that’s a bit of an over-reach. There were so many things happening at once to contribute to that media- and law enforcement-accelerated shit show that it’s hard to pin it on any one thing. There is a strong case to be made for Sparks’ fantasy exacerbating it, though.

It’s not exaggerating to say that the adult reader found this book every bit as gripping as the child found Go Ask Alice. It was enraging, though, in a way that dear, sweet Alice could never be. And whatever Sparks put into her, whatever was added by an actress, whatever I added myself, I loved her so much that knowing she never existed is as bad as finding out she was murdered.

Which is, I suppose, precisely the point. Betrayal is a murder of trust, and Beatrice Sparks freaking slaughtered it while playing the part of the savior Christian lady and making bank. All of us are right to be furious.

What repeatedly came to mind as I read Unmask Alice, though (and I’ve barely touched on all that Emerson covers) was the research I’ve read on the failures of some drug use prevention therapies (most notably, D.A.R.E., the beloved-by-law-enforcement program that included hot rods for cops to drive) to actually work.

In fact, some studies show that attempts to prevent teens from drinking and using actually backfire, doing real harm, which leads to the inevitable question: Did our adoration of Alice possibly lead some of us to use drugs? Does Sparks’ betrayal of our trust include making drug use attractive in a way it might not have been without Alice?

It’s a question Emerson doesn’t address, but given the failures of everything from the “War on Drugs” to “Just Say No,” it’s one worth asking—perhaps in another book.

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Almost everyone I know has read Go Ask Alice, but none of us knew anything about the real story. Emerson does an awesome job of telling the tale.

Let me preface by saying that Go Ask Alice was one of my favorite books as a teen. Let me follow that by admitting that I didn’t know it was fiction until a few years ago (far removed from my teen years). That did not change my opinion or feelings about the book, though. So, I was really excited to read this book, a look behind the lies and deceptions from the writer of one of my favorites. And, while entertaining and informative, this book doesn’t change my feelings about Go Ask Alice either. I do feel I know more about the author behind said book, though.

But this book, it felt more like a veiled attempt to tell Alden Barrett’s story. It was fascinating. And it’s despicable that B. Sparks would capitalize off his family’s tragedy to sell a book. But, the deception isn’t all on the shoulders of Sparks. The publishing company behind these books has a due diligence and they failed to validate Sparks’s claims. So, I’m not with the author putting all the blame and shame in Sparks. Majority? Sure! All of it? Nope. But, still entertaining and enlightening to see how Sparks took advantage of the culture to write these “anonymous diaries” and sell millions. Truly fascinating stuff! Just felt a bit disjointed in its telling.

A gripping (and deeply entertaining) look at the woman behind one of America’s seminal works of young adult fiction. Spoiler: Go Ask Alice isn’t real.
I have to admit I’ve led a relatively “clean” life due to the fear GAA has instilled in me. I read it at age nine or ten, and have been terrified to try anything stronger than marijuana or alcohol. I feel duped, stupid, and embarrassed after reading this. Definitely a must read for us millennials.

This was so hard to put down! I got through it in just under seven hours. It was readable and easy to approach. Emerson did a solid job of describing the culture in the US leading up to each diary's publication. It was absolutely gutting to read how the lives of troubled teen kids were appropriated without their permission to peddle book sales and fame for a grown woman. At many times during this, especially during the telling of Alden's life, I felt icky by association of what had been done to him and, by extension, his family. To me, the most fascinating discourse was the examination of if it mattered that the "diaries" were largely fabricated. Many readers felt seen and understood by the fictional Alice and Jay. Many authors only wish for their books to have that kind of cultural mark.

i love learning about little niche moments in pop culture history. my only complaint was the author's decision not to cite any sources because it is "freely available on the internet"?? i just feel like if you were writing about a literary fraud who never provided concrete sources you would probably go out of your way to provide concrete sources, just because. i don't think he's lying, i just would expect more professionalism in a non-fiction work. (at one point, he says readers can fact check w a quick phone call if they chose to do so. but like, that's not my job?? that's your job?? i couldn't believe my ears lol)

a stain on an otherwise totally engrossing book. so engrossing that i still had to give it 4 stars.

Like so many people in my age bracket, I grew up with Go Ask Alice touted as a cautionary tale about the harms that drugs can do. This book was used to "keep me in line" and the reason why I wasn't allowed to do anything after school or on weekends. So you can imagine my absolute disgust when I read about the awful origins behind this book and the subsequent offerings from the same "anonymous" author.

This was an enjoyable read and, being non-US, I really appreciated the background that Emerson provided, especially around Art Linkletter, Ronald Regan, and the War on Drugs which helped to form the basis for Go Ask Alice. Sometimes the writing did come across as fairly informal, like having a bit of a chat which was quite jarring, but also my personal preference is for my non fiction to read like case studies! I would have also appreciated a few more sources or reading recommendations, especially as Beatrice Sparks (the anonymous author in question) did not leave her lies within the pages of her books and it's hard to tell what is truth and what is fiction when it comes to her life.

An interesting read for anyone who has ever read or been affected by Go Ask Alice.

I didn't finish this. I went into this book having different expectations, I realize, and I think that being only 31.5 years old has something to do with why I didn't enjoy or care for it. I found it difficult to keep reading it because it was boring and just...pretentious? It felt less like a memoir and more like a series of blog posts where the author shared his take on the topic with little facts.

You’ve probably read (or at least heard of) the 1970s sensation Go Ask Alice. The drug-laced, heavy teen book that’s a *true* diary account of a Midwest teenage girl’s life, written by Anonymous. What about Jay’s Journal? A similar story, the *true* diary of a depressed boy who winds up in some Satanic trouble. The thing about both of these books is that they weren’t exactly true, and the first one doesn’t even come close. They were fabricated by Beatrice Sparks, a lying, scheming Mormon housewife who had no shame in betraying a grieving family and desecrating the memory of their child.

This book had me shocked, seething, I just couldn’t believe the nerve of this lady! All I knew about Go Ask Alice was that it was supposedly true, there were drugs, and it was famously penned by “Anonymous”, an ominous and all-knowing author. *Someone* wrote it, a real person, but who is anyone’s guess. What I didn’t know was that the person behind both Go Ask Alice and Jay’s Journal was a lying, manipulative old bat with huevos the size of Utah. After finally finding a copy of Go Ask Alice at Goodwill I was prepared to jump into Unmask Alice.

Go Ask Alice itself wasn’t really all that great tbh. Maybe it seemed credible fifty years ago but today it read naive and unrealistic. And the language, yeesh. just another reminder that this book is as old as (and was written by) a grandma. The story of Jay’s Journal is even wilder, and the fact that it’s much closer to true than Alice ever could be just absolutely broke my heart! I couldn’t even bear to attempt to get my hands on it. What’s different about Jay is that he started out as a real person. His family trusted Beatrice Sparks and her “psychologist credentials” with the journal he left behind after taking his own life. They trusted her to publish his words to help other kids, and what did she do? She turned him into an orgy-having Satanist!

So at least now, finally in Unmask Alice, this awful predatory author is put to shame, and I can’t help but thank Satan for that. The book is a scathing indictment of Beatrice Sparks and all the lies she stood for. As the mask slides down, Unmask Alice feels like a little bit justice is finally being served. I absolutely loved every second of it. If you enjoy *true* juicy drama, gossip, and a dash of revenge then this book is the one for you.

Couldn’t finish. It was too pretentious and boring. Not something I would recommend. I read Go Ask Alice as a teenager, I learned quickly how it was false at the time. I wanted a different perspective but I just got a self-indulgent book.

I'm so glad that you brought this to light. I don't understand how this women got away with her lies for so long. Some of the facts would have been very easy to check; education, licenses, etc. I wish someone would shout it across the country, if not the world, so that folks don't continue to think anything this women said was accurate or even believable. Glad I only read one of hers. I wouldn't want to be part of supporting her trash.

First off, when the author's note tells you there are two kinds of people, ones who skip ahead to read the ending just to see what happens and ones that will follow the trail, no matter how it unfolds to the end, but challenges you to not look things up and just follow the path...the challenge is on in a very big way. Secondly, this book is a hard one to rate. I thought it was very well done, but it left me angry. Very angry and disgusted. Not at the author, at what I discovered within. Some things really are stranger than fiction, and this book takes you on a journey that really is quite unbelievable but oh so true. Starting off with LSD and it's accidental start, Beverly Sparks and her beginning, to the famous Go Ask Alice book, to Alden Barrett, to LSD and the war on drugs by Richard Nixon, to the satanic panic, to so many other things that are connected in a bizarre twist of truth that leaves you wanting to keep reading to find out the end of it all...and when you do...oh boy! I recommend it, but not because I love it, because it needs to be a warning for future individuals. Your choices do impact others.
*I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. This review is my own opinion*

I waited to review this book for awhile because I know launching a book can be very series business. However, I wish the author had provided sources and spoken in a manner that befits the dressing down of a popular myth. When I requested this book to read before its launch, I was excited. I was hoping to bring into my high school library and recommend it to my high school teachers who teach contemporary novels. However, this is a book I cannot recommend in good faith. I enjoyed reading it, but I don't know how truthful it is.

I read Go Ask Alice a million times and grew up under the Satanic Panic shadow and I could not stop reading this book. What an amazing work of research and written with such style, too! I will not give spoilers but my jaw was on the floor. Would love to see this author do more media interviews! Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the e-galley.

Didn't really enjoy this book at all. I thought it would've gone into more detail about certain things and it was more opinionated than research.

Go Ask Alice was the book of my youth. It was the book of many peoples teen years. And it was all (mostly) fake.

In Unmask Alice, Rick Emerson dives into the origin story of not just the author of Alice but many other teen “true” diaries from the 70s,80s and 90s. How she took advantage of the climate and fears of each decade to find fame and money.

I highly recommend this to anyone that loved these “true” diaries growing up.

This book was so eye-opening! Most of us who grew up in the 70s and 80s had a heightened awareness of the "satanic panic" that seemed pervasive. Unmask Alice shows us the true story behind the very fake diaries that inspired this panic, and the woman who craved notoriety even if it meant hiding behind "anonymous" published works.

Unmask Alice: LSD, Satanic Panic, and the Imposter Behind the World's Most Notorious Diaries is a true story of contagious deception. It stretches from Hollywood to Quantico, and passes through a tiny patch of Utah nicknamed "the fraud capital of America." It's the story of a doomed romance and a vengeful celebrity. Of a lazy press and a public mob. Of two suicidal teenagers, and their exploitation by a literary vampire.

I remember reading Go Ask Alice when I was younger and thought that it was so incredibly shocking and I was so captivated by it. Only later did I find out that it was a scam written by this woman Beatrice Sparks and I was so disappointed. The diary had felt so real and this was a fascinating story of the woman behind this fraud. I didn't know she also did the same thing with a book from a boy's point of view as well - and that was someone who was suicidal and that she exploited.

The real story is incredibly compelling and captivating and completely immersive. It definitely had more twists and turns that I imagined and really the best way to sum it up is that the truth is sometimes stranger than fiction! 5/5 stars for me. Please be mindful of trigger warnings.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for my free digital copy.

Could not get a handle on this piece. What is this about? Seems like a beat poem, as in beatnik, turned into prose. Could not get a handle on it. Sorry.

I really enjoyed this for what it was. I too was one of those teens that read the book 📕 and believed it all real. I saw the after school special. It all scared 😳 me so much. I never tried any drugs until I went to college. From a small town and church-going family I didn’t really have any interest. This was always in the back of my mind.

This was fascinating to read. Lots of nostalgia. LSD, Manson Murders, Nixon, Art Linkletter (I didn't remember his involvement) sadness; and I stopped and started a few times. Misunderstood kids. Suicide. I’m glad to have read it. It’s not really light reading so keep that in mind. There are triggers.

Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for a digital copy to read for review. I recommend it! It takes you back. Although I learned as an adult with everyone else that it was made up, I will never forget it.