Bad Alice

by Jean Ure

13-year-old Duffy is staying with his nan for the summer while his mum and seriously ill little sister are in America for a life-saving operation. Duffy suffers mildy from Tourette's Syndrome - he only knows his gran and one of her neighbour's kids, a loud, insensitive kid called Stephen - what's he going to do for six whole weeks! Then Duffy meets Alice, a girl his age who lives next door, a girl who Nan disapproves of and everyone in the town thinks is mad; a girl who makes Duffy feel accepted and liked. Alice is volatile, and direct and Duffy tells her all about his little sister, his Tourette's and his absent father who left his mum because of him.

Alice is more cryptic about her own home life. Everyone knows her adoptive father, Big Norm; he's the most popular man around; a devout Evangelist who runs a care home - Duffy's nan adores him. Yet Alice and her adopted sister are half in awe, half frightened of their dad; desperate for his approval, yet somehow resentful of him, too. It isn't until Alice shows Duffy the story she's been writing, written in the style of Alice in Wonderland, that the scales finally fall from his eyes.Big Norm has been abusing Alice, to what extent it isn't clear, but she's terrified, and he has to help her. Duffy convinces Alice to face her situation in the real world, not just in a story, and to tell his nan what's been going on. When the truth is out, Alice is taken into care, and Duffy faces the fact he may never see her again, but 'bad Alice' touched his life - he will never forget her.

Genres: Young Adult, Childrens

176 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2003

About the author

Prolific English children and young adult author.

Had her first book published while still in high school, then studied theater at Webber-Douglas in London. Her most well-known work is the Point Crime novel Dance with Death. Others include Plague 99, After the Plague (previously "Come Lucky April"), Big Tom, Family Fan Club and Shrinking Violet, as well as the fantasy The Wizard In the Woods.

Today, Ure is very popular with British female teenage readers with novels such as Shrinking Violet, Family Fan Club and Passion Flower.

Ure has also translated Danish writer Sven Hassel's WWII novels to English.

Reviews

[Taภya · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very interesting book, it really surprised me.

I liked the characters, i liked Alice she was very unique, i kinda felt really bad for her because everyone was so mean! Especially Sarah, who always got her own way.
I liked Duffy, he has tourettes, I've never read a book before with someone who has tourettes, The author done a great job on this book Especially with the twist at the end which was totally unexpected.

[Khadija Gulamhusein · Rating 4 out of 5]

I remember enjoying this one, metaphorically written.

[E · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Bad Alice" is a short but masterfully written YA book about a lonely 13-year-old kid called Duffy and his friendship with a girl named Alice who everyone thinks is bad. Alice and Duffy get on immediately, despite Duffy's stuttering and spasms (he has Tourette's syndrome) and Alice's very poor reputation. Duffy enjoys Alice's sense of her humour, her kindness and her imaginative nature. He doesn't mind her fierce temper or her inventiveness (in fact, he quite enjoys the latter), and finds her relaxing and friendly. The two quickly form a very close bond, so close that Alice shares a story she's writing called Malice in Blunderland. The story is quite frightening, and Duffy begins to worry about her home life.

There's a great deal to like about this book. Likeable Duffy makes a lively, perceptive and funny first-person narrator, who makes it clear to the reader that Alice isn't half so "bad" as the people around him seem to think (in fact, she's quite likeable, as her care and friendship toward Duffy demonstrate).

It was easy for me to imagine younger teens (12+) engaging well with the book. The subject matter is upsetting at times (I shed tears during the last few chapters), but it's neither graphic nor overwhelming, simply sad. Older teens and even adults will find plenty to like about the protagonists and the dark subject matter.

Last word (before the spoil-y spoilers, that is): I do wish the cover were better. Between the cover photo and the font choice, it's difficult to figure out who the book is aimed at. The content merits better.

PS A note on spoilers: Despite knowing them before reading the book, I still enjoyed it thoroughly due to the vivid characterisation and quick-moving plot.

********************SPOILERS**********************

It's pretty obvious from the description of the book and the first 70 or so pages that Alice is being sexually abused by her father. However, this may not be obvious to younger readers and they may be quite shocked/upset. This is not to say that a younger teen shouldn't read it. The book is great for ages 11+, but it might be good to have a conversation with younger readers while or after they read it.

[Olivia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even though it was very obvious from the get go that this was a story of abuse this was more hard hitting than I expected it to be. Due to the adult subject matter I'm surprised it's aimed at children rather than young adult and think alot if it would go over kids heads.
Very clever and well written.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely adored this story. It's so heartbreaking. I related with Duffy, the main character, a lot. He suffers from Tourette Syndrome, and so do I. I've never related to a character through this before, so it was a great experience for me. It gets pretty dark towards the end, but it's really worth the read. I really enjoyed it.

Thank you, Jean.

[Stephanie (Stepping Out Of The Page) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a much more hard-hitting book than I expected. I found both and Duffy and Alice to be very interesting characters. I've never come across a character who has tourettes, but I found it to be handled very well and not oversensitively - it made no social difference, but it did give Duffy a slight sense of vunerability. Alice is a misfit. She is extremely intriguing, very unique and impressively developed. Alice's own 'Malice in Blunderland' story - a very dark take on the classic Alice in Wonderland - makes the book a very creepy and yet very effective read. Ure's writing is simple and easy yet it works well. Quite a harrowing but also impressive read.

[Gabriel Clarke · Rating 4 out of 5]

More like a 3.5 but 3 stars felt churlish! It's a novella more than a novel but tightly and meticulously constructed. The narrator and his Tourette's are handled sensitively (but not with kid gloves) and the core issue equally so. My only niggle is the texts that form a "story within a story" - I never really felt that they had the authentic voice of the Alice we get to know in the outer story. Still, an interesting take on a challenging subject . I'm curious to know what my own children make of it.

[C · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was really quite disturbing, and Jean Ure is known for writing books for children, which this one isn't especially suitable for the ages that her books are necessarily normally aimed at, but nevertheless it was an amazing book and the twist at the end was totally unexpected.

[Dan Rimmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The character development of Alice is brilliant throughout and the ending is a dark compelling twist that allows the rest of the book to piece together and is really well foreshadowed throughout.

Great read.

[Lori]

scared me as a kid. felt jacqueline wilson-esuqe (not a good thing in my opinion)

[Alison Foad · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just reread this book, having read it as a child, half-remembered it and recently rediscovered it. I think it handles the subject matter extremely well - it’s a hard read though.

[Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, I don't bother to write about the plot because I usually just give my opinion on the book. Firstly, the cover for this book looks rather optimistic compared to the other paperback edition which pictured Alice Kingsley from Through The Looking Glass and the background was pitch black.

The first time I picked up this book was... oh, the summary -truthfully to me- sucked. It didn't give me a gist of the whole picture, just about this kid called Duffy who has speech problems and our heroine Alice who's supposedly notorious for her violent ways.

Secondly, I applaud the indirect way of telling me the story through the poems and stories that Alice wrote to Duffy. At first I didn't understand what the poems meant in the first few pages until Duffy got to the point where Alice brazenly says 'Why do you insist that you are the purest of souls when you're not' (My quotes from the book is NOT the same. I admit, I am too lazy to type it again but it really is that frank.) So, it was quite a shock to me that Alice's father was sexually abusing her and maybe pitting her against Sarah (Who I think is dyslexic) for his love?

Thirdly, the plot. The book revolves about one clear and simple thing, everything is about Alice. And, Jean kinda tells me that I should study more and more about the characters. Her mother, too shy or worried that her husband might abuse her as well?, refuses to help Alice and instead showers her affections to Sarah? I don't know. But I thought that Alice's father would be a minor character, who knew? To me, Duffy was the sidekick of the story. It was all about Alice. (Duh.) Okay, ignore the crappy bit there.

Overall, I gave it three stars for a great twist and character development, not that bad for a short story.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Duffy has been sent to stay at his Nan's while his mother is in America with his sister Charlotte for her operation. Duffy has a really bad stammer and suffers from Tourettes (not the swearing kind). He gets bullied and has hardly any friends. But this is the summer he meets Alice. Bold bad Alice. No one has a good word to say for her. She finishes Duffy's sentences when he is not able to finish them. Everyone thinks that Alice's adopted dad is the next best thing to a saint. With his fiery red hair and fluffy beard, his jolly humour and his deep, booming laughter. So does Duffy, but as he befriends Alice, she lets him read a book that she has been writing. She has based it on the novel "Alice in Wonderland" but with her own plot line and twist on characters. But when Duffy finally cracks the message behind the story, Duffy and Alice's lives will never be the same.

This book, at the end, resolved into child abuse and molesting (which I did not know when I picked up the book in the library!) but it was a really interesting read! Since I'm a huge fan of Alice in Wonderland and Alice through the Looking-Glass, when you get to read Alice's book, It is fascinating to point and say "Oh this is from this poem and she's a adaptation to that character from the book" I thoroughly enjoyed it! So much so, I might actually get it for my kindle!

4/5

[Hazuki · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book shockingly touched my heart and why I hadn't heard about it before, I don't know. It touches on serious problems such as Tourettes that I've never read been touched on upon this way.
Duffy is sent to stay with his Nan over the summer holidays and meet the next door neighbour, Alice. Alice is a bad child - well that's what all the neighbours say - "mad Alice". However Duffy decides that he'd judge Alice for himself and meets and befriends her. Eventually, he manages uncovers a secret she's been keeping for a very long time in means through the story of Alice, Alice in Wonderland.
This seems like a childrens' book, and probably is a children's book and I didn't expect to enjoy it in the way that I did but I was very impressed. Ure puts us in the shoes of people with such problems or who are labelled as "bad" and helps us understand, even slightly what it's like to be them.
I definately recommend reading this book! :)

[Kj · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had to study this book at school in year 8. It was the year they separated the boys and girls for English class. For this book, the coursework required us to write a leaflet on what abuse is and how to get help for kids. There were a lot of kids in my class that were helped by finally knowing that what was happening to them wasn't normal and wasn't OK, and how to tell someone. It's a good book. I hope it is still helping people.

[Sally · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh. Read this because I loved Jean Ure's ballet books... but I'm just not much of a fan of the story-within-a-story thing when the story is meant to be important to the plot, but it's all done so vaguely and is also kind of crap... dude, just come out and say it. Or have a more interesting story-within-the-story so I'll actually bother to properly read it.

[Eleana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really liked this book. It was fast paced and well written and it had some sensitive subjects but they were handled pretty well. The whole theme was darker than I expected when I first started reading this. I liked the chapters from Alice's story and both Alice and Duffy were actually pretty cool characters. Might possibly reread since there's probably things I didn't pick up on at first.

[Tara · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this book would have alot more deepth. Alice was cool, but neither of the kids seemed their age. Seriously, what 13 calls swearing cussing, and the worst swear word be knickers...
Anyway, the chapters of alice in woderland written by Alice were the best parts of the story.

[Louise · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a shock. I wasn't expecting the ending whatsoever, and I suppose it sent a good message for children suffering abuse. But still...

[Cora Tea Party Princess · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really didn't like it. Awful.

[Georgie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book, a lot darker than I first expected, but warm and funny and ultimately hopeful too.

[Rebecca Maxwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

intense

[N · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really appreciated how fully rounded and complex the characters of Duffy and Alice are; they are admirably free of cliche and their friendship seems genuine. Despite disturbing themes, I found this ultimately a very encouraging and enjoyable book.