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Al #2
I Know You, Al
While fighting a losing battle with needlepoint, bangs, and physical nonconformity, Al finds her life further complicated by her father's first visit in years.
128 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1975
32 people want to read
About the author
Constance C. Greene
28 books17 followersBorn on October 27th, 1924, Constance C. Greene, the daughter of newspaper reporters, published A Girl Called Al (Viking, 1969) the story about a very intelligent girl who is an under-achiever and latch key kid, although Greene says that at the time of the writing the term wasn't being used yet. Al was a likable character and other books followed.
One of Greene's most popular books, Beat the Turtle Drum (Viking 1976), came from personal experience. At the age of eleven, Greene's sister died. The story relates how a young girl learns to cope with the accidental death of her sister. The book was adapted for television in 1976 as Very Good Friends and was shown on the ABC After-school Special.
Greene also wrote other juvenile and adult novels, among them Nora: Maybe a Ghost Story and Isabelle the Itch.
—Leslie Greaves Radloff
One of Greene's most popular books, Beat the Turtle Drum (Viking 1976), came from personal experience. At the age of eleven, Greene's sister died. The story relates how a young girl learns to cope with the accidental death of her sister. The book was adapted for television in 1976 as Very Good Friends and was shown on the ABC After-school Special.
Greene also wrote other juvenile and adult novels, among them Nora: Maybe a Ghost Story and Isabelle the Itch.
—Leslie Greaves Radloff
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 18, 2017
I won this book in some sort of contest in elementary school. I don't know how many times I must have read it because I still remember it in great detail. One of my favorite books from my youth.
April 9, 2018
In this second book of the series, narrated once again by Al's unnamed best friend, Al is faced with yet another difficulty of life with divorced parents. Her father is soon to remarry, and he wants Al to attend the wedding. As Al prepares for the impending nuptials, she also worries about getting her period, completing her needlepoint project, meeting her soon-to-be stepbrothers and finding a dress to wear to the wedding.
After reading the first Al book, I was not prepared for how puberty-centric this story would be. But right in the first chapter there is talk not just of periods, but also of artificial insemination! I'm sure had I read this book as a kid, that would have gone right over my head, but as an adult it took me by surprise and made me see this series as possibly more mature than the first book suggests.
Surprising content aside, this book has many of the same charms as a A Girl Called Al. I really like that the title character is seen only through the eyes of a friend. This approach works as well here as it does in the Horrible Harry series and in books like The Toothpaste Millionaire. Al's eccentricities would not come across half as well if the reader was inside her mind all the time. To appreciate Al, the reader needs to see her strangeness filtered through the viewpoint of an affectionate and sympathetic friend, and the narrator is both.
I also love the little details of the girls' interactions, such as the way they tell each other to "have a weird day" each time they part company and their realistic behavior whenever they have disagreements. I also appreciate that this book shows Al's best friend interacting with another friend (Polly), as it adds layers to her character and shows how she acts when she isn't with Al, and also how her growing friendship with Al informs her behavior with others.
Byron Barton's illustrations are also once again the perfect complement to the offbeat vibe of the story. They have a sloppiness and quirkiness to them that I just find so endearing. Though his pictures are decidedly not realistic, they do bring Al's personality to life quite well.
At this point, I'm hooked on this series, for better or for worse. I plan to read and review the remaining four books, all of which are available on Open Library.
This review also appears on my blog, Read-at-Home Mom.
After reading the first Al book, I was not prepared for how puberty-centric this story would be. But right in the first chapter there is talk not just of periods, but also of artificial insemination! I'm sure had I read this book as a kid, that would have gone right over my head, but as an adult it took me by surprise and made me see this series as possibly more mature than the first book suggests.
Surprising content aside, this book has many of the same charms as a A Girl Called Al. I really like that the title character is seen only through the eyes of a friend. This approach works as well here as it does in the Horrible Harry series and in books like The Toothpaste Millionaire. Al's eccentricities would not come across half as well if the reader was inside her mind all the time. To appreciate Al, the reader needs to see her strangeness filtered through the viewpoint of an affectionate and sympathetic friend, and the narrator is both.
I also love the little details of the girls' interactions, such as the way they tell each other to "have a weird day" each time they part company and their realistic behavior whenever they have disagreements. I also appreciate that this book shows Al's best friend interacting with another friend (Polly), as it adds layers to her character and shows how she acts when she isn't with Al, and also how her growing friendship with Al informs her behavior with others.
Byron Barton's illustrations are also once again the perfect complement to the offbeat vibe of the story. They have a sloppiness and quirkiness to them that I just find so endearing. Though his pictures are decidedly not realistic, they do bring Al's personality to life quite well.
At this point, I'm hooked on this series, for better or for worse. I plan to read and review the remaining four books, all of which are available on Open Library.
This review also appears on my blog, Read-at-Home Mom.
December 27, 2007
I read this when I was about 12 years old, mumble years ago. It's about two girls who live near each other in a New York City apartment building. It's just charming, and gave this small town Southern girl a wonderful picture of what it would be like to live in the big city. The friendship between the girls seemed so real. They didn't always understand each other, and their families were very different, but they were there for each other and had lots of fun getting to know all the 'characters' who live in their building.
August 23, 2016
"Have a weird day."
September 27, 2021
In I Know You, Al, the sequel to A Girl Called Al, we once again follow Al and her unnamed best friend as they navigate the ups and downs of teenage life together. Although, not much really happens.
We pick up three months after the events of the first novel. Al has lost tons of weight, no longer wears pigtails, and has made the unstylish mistake of cutting her hair into bangs. With the support of our narrator–Al's unnamed best friend–Al copes with being the only girl in class who hasn't got her period, her mother's new boyfriend "Ole Henry", and the re-appearance of her absentee father who's getting re-married and wants Al to attend the wedding.
This is a nice companion to the first novel and contains the same cool line drawings. I recall I read the third book in the series but didn't like it. Plus, it didn't have the cool line drawings. Also, if I'm not mistaken, there are two other novels in the series and Al's unnamed best friend is finally named.
Although, I never bothered to read them and probably never will. There's something about the line drawings, the unnamed narrator, and the combined stories of the first two novels that make it special to me, like re-visiting old friends I really missed.
We pick up three months after the events of the first novel. Al has lost tons of weight, no longer wears pigtails, and has made the unstylish mistake of cutting her hair into bangs. With the support of our narrator–Al's unnamed best friend–Al copes with being the only girl in class who hasn't got her period, her mother's new boyfriend "Ole Henry", and the re-appearance of her absentee father who's getting re-married and wants Al to attend the wedding.
This is a nice companion to the first novel and contains the same cool line drawings. I recall I read the third book in the series but didn't like it. Plus, it didn't have the cool line drawings. Also, if I'm not mistaken, there are two other novels in the series and Al's unnamed best friend is finally named.
Although, I never bothered to read them and probably never will. There's something about the line drawings, the unnamed narrator, and the combined stories of the first two novels that make it special to me, like re-visiting old friends I really missed.
February 8, 2020
Man, is this book good. It's very funny and clear-eyed with not an ounce of condescension. Anybody can read it regardless of age. It's so interesting reading this as a 25-year-old in 2020 and seeing how different the world is today. Artificial insemination is common knowledge; nobody bats an eye at a woman keeping her maiden name. Al was ahead of her time. I need to read every one of these books.
March 14, 2017
Al and the narrator are best friends. The two girls share a friendship through difficult times in their lives. Al's parents are divorced and suddenly her father comes back to town wanting Al to come to his wedding. And when their good friend, Mr Richards, dies they have each other to lean on and talk to. "after the first really sad feeling about Mr. Richard's dying, I thought about how nice it was to have known him ..."
This book was very enjoyable. The dialogue is quick, witty, and filled with appropriate slang for this age group. The relationship between the two girls is believable because they have their fights now and then, too. Also once a theme was broth up in the book, it was referred back to at least once.
This book was very enjoyable. The dialogue is quick, witty, and filled with appropriate slang for this age group. The relationship between the two girls is believable because they have their fights now and then, too. Also once a theme was broth up in the book, it was referred back to at least once.
March 19, 2009
My review from June 24, 1996:
"This book is not a 'heavy' books, sort of something you'd want to read when bored.
Al's best friend, Josie, narrates as Al(exandria) shares her feelings with her on her father's wedding and her mom's boyfriend. A classic best friend story."
"This book is not a 'heavy' books, sort of something you'd want to read when bored.
Al's best friend, Josie, narrates as Al(exandria) shares her feelings with her on her father's wedding and her mom's boyfriend. A classic best friend story."
July 22, 2008
I wouldn't suggest this book, at all.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews