Post B

I think this book is about freedom, and how too much can be a bad thing. Alice lives alone with her Aunt Esme, who is sixteen, because her mother left her when she was young and her dad is in a treatment center for extreme depression. Because she lives with Esme she is introduced to sex and drugs at a very early age. Alice lives a bit of a dangerous life, and is constantly left alone to fend for helself. She is even sent away to a camp Esme isn't sure still even exists. The main reason she sends Alice away is so she can see one of her boyfriends in California. Alice doesn't really have any form of authority in her life. The book is also about self image.

"The Breasts, apparently, operated upon him like two tractor beams, magnetizing his eyes. She felt terrible. She felt she had exposed Superman to kryptonite. Mr. Mann was unable to see her face. He was weakened, hypnotized. He had no idea that she was his daughter's school friend, Alice thought. After a second he managed to break away from the unholy pull of her deformation" (27).

Alice is "developing prematurely" and she considers it a curse. She is only twelve and already has breasts and is five foot six. She gets made fun of by people in her class, and complimented by every man on the street. Self image is a very important thing for Alice, she wishes she could just be a little girl like everyone else. It is a large part of her life.