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When Audrey Met Alice

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First daughter Audrey Rhodes re-creates Alice Roosevelt's infamous antics in this fun, smart middle-grade debut

First daughter Audrey Rhodes can't wait for the party she has planned for Friday night. The decorations are all set and the pizza is on its way. But the Secret Service must be out to ruin her life, because they cancel at the last minute-citing security breach and squashing Audrey's chances for making any new friends. What good is being "safe and secure" if you can't have any fun?

Audrey is ready to give up and become a White House hermit, until she discovers Alice Roosevelt's hidden diary. The former first daughter gives Audrey a ton of ideas for having fun...and more problems than she can handle.

304 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2014

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About the author

Rebecca Behrens

5 books140 followers
Rebecca Behrens is the award-winning author of three critically acclaimed middle-grade novels that explore famous historical figures and fascinating places: When Audrey Met Alice, Summer of Lost and Found, and The Last Grand Adventure. Her thrillingly realistic survival story The Disaster Days is a Junior Library Guild selection, a Bank Street Best Children’s Book, and an ILA Teachers’ Choices selection. Her latest middle-grade adventure, Alone in the Woods, is now available. Rebecca grew up in Wisconsin, studied in Chicago, and now lives with her husband in New York City. You can visit her online to learn more about her books at www.rebeccabehrens.com.

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5 stars
277 (29%)
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322 (34%)
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254 (27%)
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68 (7%)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 205 reviews
Profile Image for Melissa Landers.
Author 15 books3,271 followers
December 4, 2013
What a fun read; I couldn't put it down! This is the story of Audrey, daughter of what we can assume is the first female POTUS. Frustrated when the novelty of White House life wears off, Audrey finds a kindred spirit in long-deceased first daughter, Alice Roosevelt, through her diary entries.

I could feel Audrey's angst as I cringed and laughed alongside her during this journey. The writing is clean and the pace is perfect. Highly recommend to middle grade and YA readers!

Profile Image for Mari Anne.
1,381 reviews25 followers
May 20, 2014
Interesting MG take on history, real and imagined. WAMA follows the fictional first daughter of the first female president as she copes with being an only child in the fishbowl of the White House. She gets herself in trouble when she finds the long lost diary of Alice Roosevelt and tries to emulate her "eat the world" mentality.

I thought this book would have been better without the introduction of the politically charged issue of gay marriage. It was pretty well handled but it always bothers me a bit to see an author push a political agenda in books aimed at kids that can't even vote.

Probably best for grades 6 and up.
Profile Image for Mary Pauline M.
254 reviews5 followers
October 9, 2016
I absolutely LOVED this book and have already recommended it to my Mom, believe it or not. Every so often, a young adult genre book catches my eye, and this is one of my all-time favorites.
Profile Image for Alise.
45 reviews1 follower
February 23, 2021
This book was okay... The story was really interesting and fun, but I didn't really understand why the author had to add the gay marriages into the book. It was just fine without the gay marriages, and it kinda ruined the book for me.
Profile Image for Cheryl.
10.5k reviews448 followers
September 22, 2016
"It was ok." Great concept, but obvious & superficial. Maybe a more naive reader than I will get a kick out of it, but it's not likely to get reread, I don't imagine, nor pushed on friends.

I do have to admit that, when I requested it, I was somehow under the impression that it was a picture-book. I think it would have been better as such. Most of the material here is filler, imo. And, again, a slightly younger audience, say 6-8 instead of 8-12, would, I believe, enjoy it more.
Profile Image for Henrietta.
207 reviews24 followers
March 5, 2014
It wasn’t easy to be the First Kid and Audrey was definitely not having a good time because of her status. After moving into the White House, Audrey felt as though she were living in a prison. Could her life change now that she had access to the private journal of Alice Roosevelt?

Audrey was a lonely kid. With her parents busy working all the time, she didn’t really have anyone to talk with. Because she didn’t have any sibling, she could only play alone at the bowling alley inside the White House. Since she must travel with guards around her at all times, you could imagine how frustrating Audrey must feel as a young teenager. Life could be really difficult for a young teen at times and when all adults treated her as though she were a misbehaved child, Audrey felt unheard, misinterpreted and misunderstood.

I felt bad for Audrey. She wasn’t an irresponsible person. In fact, she was quite likeable but because the adults were too busy to spend time with her, they often made quick judgments based on what other people hinted about her. It was quite unfair and if I were Audrey, I’d probably scream and yell and call the adults hypocrites and egomaniacs.

Anyway, Audrey was hurt by her parents’ reactions but she wasn’t someone who’d do reckless stuff just because she was being scoffed. She could be naive at times but honestly, I quite liked her for being a bit imprudent and a little unsophisticated.

Reading the private journal of Alice Roosevelt had opened Audrey to become more creative about who she could become and while not everything that Alice did had a positive influence on her, I liked that Audrey didn’t blindly follow every rebellious act that Alice did.

The ending seemed fun (although there was this a-little-too-good-to-be-true vibe to it) but I liked that Audrey was generous about what she could do (and achieve) as First Kid to help others.

--

Originally posted on LeisureReads.com

A copy of the book was provided by publisher for review purposes.
Profile Image for Katie.
331 reviews18 followers
January 1, 2016
I am glad that this was a pick for Dahlia's Book Club, because I really enjoyed it and probably wouldn't have read it otherwise. This one was pretty cute and fun, while also having some serious moments. Overall, I didn't think this read too young for me. It seemed more like it was on the upper end of Middle Grade, since the main character was in 8th grade, and was a teenager.

I enjoyed how this really showed that being the president's daughter isn't necessarily an amazing experience. It shows how it can be lonely to be living in the White House with parents who are two busy for you. It shows how it can be hard to make friends at a new school because you can't tell if they genuinely are interested in being friends with you as a person, and not just because you're the First Daughter. Of course, I haven't had this experience so I don't know what it's really like, but it read very genuine to me.

I liked getting to read the fictional diary of Alice Roosevelt. She had quite the adventures in her days. I liked seeing how things that Audrey did paralleled the life of Alice, and how reading about Alice was really able to help her.

I liked the sweet romance that developed between Audrey and her friend from school, Quint. Since this is MG, the romance was not a big focus, and remained a friendship for a while. But once it turned into a romance, it was quite cute and light.

If you like MG and younger YA, read this book.
Profile Image for Emily.
371 reviews13 followers
April 19, 2014
Fun, but ultimately light-weight. It delves a little too frequently into standard aftermath a of a tweenager's incredibly bad decisions (sneaking in a boy! sneaking out! risqué clothes! yelling at parents!), exacerbated by doing all of it in the White House. Audrey is young and clueless to the point of frustration, though as a thirteen year old she should probably be excused. She is, after all, lead astray by trying to follow the advice of Alice Roosevelt's diary, which seems to have been written by a typical rebellious and boy crazy and flippant teenager who thinks nothing of breaking every possible rule and all available hearts then whining when her parents scold her about it. The ending is ultimately a bit too put-a-bow-on-it tidy for me, but it and the book on the whole is ultimately charming. It's hard not to root for Audrey to find her place and be happy. I also appreciate that Audrey chooses to take up the platform of marriage equality. And there are certainly some fun and funny moments.

I would also venture to say I'd like it much better were I a little younger and closer to the target audience. On the other hand, a middle schooler would probably also see through all of Audrey's bad ideas pretty quickly.
13 reviews
October 17, 2016
The book "When Audrey Met Alice" was a cute story, but it was a little basic. It was the typical story of a 13 year old facing middle school girl problems. But, the twist in the story is that she is also the first daughter. I think that the story has an inspirational theme with her standing up for herself and believing in herself.
Profile Image for Beth.
3,004 reviews218 followers
January 19, 2014
Audrey Rhodes is the president's daughter and all she wants to do is have a normal life: hang out with her friends, attend parties, and go on class field trips. Instead, she feels like living at 1600 is a prison rather than a privilege. But one night she discovers an old diary in her bedroom that belonged to Alice Roosevelt, former First Daughter and well-documented Washington rabble-rouser. Suddenly, reading of Alice's eccentric ways (that included walking around the White House with a garter snake around her arm) inspires Audrey to adopt the mantra "What Would Alice Do?" Audrey soon finds out, however, that approach is getting her into more trouble than she expected.

Rebecca Behrens's debut novel is a smart, sassy romp through the life of a First Daughter at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. For readers who are fans of Meg Cabot's All-American Girl series, this is a comparable middle grade read-alike. While categorized as middle grade, I would place this on the older end of middle grade, right before a reader is ready for edgier YA titles. There is some mild swearing but nothing scandalous.

What I especially loved about When Audrey Met Alice is that Behrens not only made the president in this novel female, but she did so with very little fanfare, as if to show her young audience that the idea of a woman being president is just a regular day in America. It actually took me a while to realize that the president was female at first.

I also love that Behrens endears her audience to learn more about the eccentric, wild child known as Alice Roosevelt. After reading this book, I know I certainly want to learn more about her!

If I had one thing critical to say about When Audrey Met Alice, it's that I'm not entirely sure how believable it is for a First Daughter in this day and age to be using social media and email so freely. There are a few cases where Audrey talks about signing onto Facebook as if it's no big deal. It would seem if Audrey felt like a prisoner in her real life, that the Secret Service would also be putting the kibosh on her virtual life as well. I have a feeling if Sasha and Malia Obama were using social media unsupervised there would be too much that would get leaked by "friends" and classmates. Then again, that's just my feeling. I have no idea how the lives of the First Daughters are run. I would imagine social media is off limits though. Other than that bit of criticism, I thoroughly enjoyed Behrens debut novel and look forward to seeing more from her in the future.

Read my entire review on my blog.
Profile Image for Katy Upperman.
Author 3 books316 followers
January 31, 2014
I loved this book. Really and truly. It was fun to read from the perspective of past Pre-Teen Katy, and it was also an easy story to relate to as Adult Katy. It’s a coming-of-age story, one that reminds readers that teenagers are not hopeless and adults (even Very Important Adults) aren’t perfect. It’s so much more than the lighthearted shenanigans-in-the-White-House story I was expecting.

When Audrey Met Alice is two stories in one. It switches back and forth between First Daughter Audrey Rhodes present-day narration and former First Daughter Alice Roosevelt’s century-old diary entries. Author Rebecca Behrens does an incredible job of bouncing between the two distinct voices: Audrey’s inquisitive, finding-her-place teen voice (she uses the term unbearably adorkable!), and Alice’s more formal (and snarkier!) almost-a-lady voice. Alice’s narration, in particular, leaps off the page — so much so that I had to constantly remind myself that I wasn’t *actually* reading excerpts from her long-lost diary.

There are so many interesting details about life in the White House (past and present) in When Audrey Met Alice. Thanks to security issues and appearances and the media, it becomes apparent pretty quickly that life as First Kid isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Both Audrey and Alice exhibit feelings of uncertainty and annoyance, and both girls are faced with the pressures of growing up in the public eye and the frustrations of overprotective parents. Audrey and Alice both act out in ways that feel real and warranted, and often struck me as rather funny. I particularly love how Audrey turns to the diary when she feels exceptionally forlorn. The reverence she feels for untamable Alice is awesome. (As is the supersweet romantic subplot!)

Guys, this is a cool book. Unique in every way, and extraordinarily well-written. If you love upper middle-grade or know of a middle grader in need of fabulous reading material, please do pick up When Audrey Met Alice.
Profile Image for Liza Wiemer.
Author 5 books676 followers
Read
March 24, 2014
I don't read that many MG novels, but I was totally captivated by When Audrey Met Alice, a story about a first daughter Audrey Rose discovering Alice Roosevelt's diary in one of the closets in the White House. As Audrey tries to adjust to her own life as first daughter, Alice through her diary becomes Audrey's guide. I love how Behrens uses historical information in this novel and mixed it with a modern story. I was transported to the White House and Audrey's school. I got a very strong sense on how difficult life was for her living in the White House, always under a microscope and not seeing her parents much (her mom is president).

Going back to the history, I loved learning about what it would have been like for a first daughter in the early 1900s: fashion, trips, friendships, social pressures.

The description of the White House was very cool with the gardens, the bowling alley, the movie theater, the dining rooms, and bedrooms.

Audrey is a very likable character who I believe many MG students will adore. There's a good balance between history and present day, and I loved the use of a diary to share the information and how Alice ended every diary entry with: To Thine Own Self Be True. It's a great message.

A winner, WHEN AUDREY MET ALICE is a must for MGers, schools, libraries.
Profile Image for Jen Malone.
Author 16 books525 followers
April 1, 2014
When Audrey Met Alice tells the story of a First Daughter who should be on top of the world, with a newly-elected president for a mom, she gets to live in the White House. But having to move away from a cozy home for a formal mansion, start at an intimidating new school, and get trailed everywhere by Secret Service isn't always smooth sailing. That's why she's so intrigued (and mischievously inspired) when she finds Alice Roosevelt's hidden diary in a closet of the Residence and learns how the "first" First Daughter in the White House found her own unique ways (a pet garter snake in her purse, for one!) to handle the pressures of being in the public eye.

I ADORED this book! So, so, so, so much. It made me happy every time I went to pick it up (I probably would have read it in one sitting, but, ya know... life) and even happier as I read. I think this is exactly the kind of book parents will love giving their daughters because it introduces history in such a fun, entertaining way and Alice Roosevelt's voice in her diary entries is spot-on fabulous. I want her for my new bestie! Great concept, great writing and pure fun from start to finish!
Profile Image for Jean Giardina.
818 reviews
June 24, 2014
Audrey Rhodes just wants to have a pizza party with her friends. It shouldn't be so impossible. But when you are the daughter of the president, a security breech can really mess up your plans. Not to mention the Secret Service agents following your every move. And friends at school calling you Fido behind your back.

But Audrey finds a new friend when she uncovers Alice Roosevelt's diary under a floorboard in the dining room. Separated by 100 years, Alice's diary entries mirror Audrey's experiences in the White House. And the Former First Daughter's wild antics may point to solutions to Audrey's problems...or may land her in deep trouble.

WHEN AUDREY MET ALICE is all kinds of wonderful. Funny, empowering, and sometimes cringe-worthy, Behrens has nailed what living in the shadow of a powerful parent must be like. This book is historical fiction at its best--taking voices from the past, breathing new life into them, and making them relevant to our problems today.

I want to give this book as a gift to every middle school girl I know and tell her "To thine own self be true."
Profile Image for L. Chase.
43 reviews
September 3, 2013
WHEN AUDREY MET ALICE is fantastic!! I love the blend of the historical with the modern day-- it is so fun to see how the main character (and 1st daughter of the United States) Audrey Rhodes is influenced by historical 1st daughter Alice Roosevelt via her diaries! The history embedded in the plot is SO FUN! Post-reading, I find myself wanting to know more, more, MORE about life in the White House and Alice Roosevelt!

What else? The middle grade voice is pitch perfect! Audrey is so funny. Best of all, the main characters are so completely heartfelt! I love Alice's wild spirit and her shenanigans, and Audrey's wit and big heart won me over! My favorite part of this book is the wonderful bond that develops between Audrey and Alice.

This book is definitely one to look out for! Fun, smart, adorable, captivating; this read will make you want to (in the words of Alice Roosevelt) EAT UP THE WORLD!
Profile Image for Tara.
Author 6 books209 followers
November 25, 2013
I am completely smitten with this book! The perfect blend of historical and modern-day, readers will find themselves torn between which character they love more--wild, headstrong Alice Roosevelt or searching-for-her-place Audrey Rhodes. Both characters feel extremely real, as do Audrey's parents, who could easily have been cartoons or been largely absent from the story. Instead, Ms. Behrens brings teenager-parents conflicts gloriously to life, with every situation having added stakes because of Audrey's (often unwanted) place in the national spotlight.

Both the historical elements of this book and the modern-day details of life in the White House are extremely well researched, allowing the reader to have a totally immersive experience in the works of both main characters. And the parallels between their stories are masterfully drawn. I can't recommend this book highly enough!
Profile Image for Christine.
Author 27 books18 followers
March 14, 2014
WHEN AUDREY MET ALICE is a fun breezy read accessable to MG readers. Author Rebecca Behrens cleverly uses a contemporary setting and character--the First Daughter of a Madam President of the United States--and blends it with historical diary accounts of Alice Roosevelt for a wild romp in the White House. Both contemporary and historical First Daughters are characters readers will easily identify with in their quests for friends, social lives, fun, food, and parental attention.

I received an ARC of AUDREY MET ALICE from the author and was not paid for this review.
8 reviews
June 8, 2015
April 13 - 60 minutes
April 19 - 30 minutes
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April 20- 15 minutes
April 21- 15 minutes
April 24 - 60 minutes
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April 29 - 60 minutes
April 30 - 30 minutes
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May 3- 60 minutes
May 4- 30 minutes
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May 9- 90 minutes
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May 14 - 90 minutes
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May 18 - 60 minutes
Profile Image for Nancy Cavanaugh.
Author 5 books119 followers
February 6, 2014
What a wonderful book - full of fun, interesting facts about life in the White House and lots of entertaining stories about Alice Roosevelt. It's contemporary and historical fiction all in one with a main character readers will love!
Nancy J. Cavanaugh
Profile Image for Barbara Benton.
825 reviews34 followers
June 10, 2015
Cute premise of kid living in White House with mother as POTUS. Had some history in it and made me want to learn more about the Roosevelts.
Profile Image for Sage.
28 reviews2 followers
January 2, 2021
I thought it was pretty good, and it's cool to see what a first daughter's life would be like!
Profile Image for C.E. Clayton.
Author 13 books254 followers
January 23, 2018
Let me start by saying that I don’t typically read middle-grade books, but my niece and nephews are getting to that age where they can start reading “real” books, and being the awesome aunt I am, I’m going to shower those ragamuffins with literature. So, I read this in preparation for that. While this book says it’s about the issues First Daughter Audrey faces when she is uprooted from her comfortable life and whisked away to the White House, and then plopped into a school that felt like “Mean Girls” meets “Cruel Intentions” but for children, none of that really mattered for the story. You can take away the whole living in the White House thing and this story stays pretty much the same: a young girl whose parents aren’t giving her enough attention or freedom, acts out in an attempt to be treated as “not a child”. Which, as “not a child” anymore, sounds silly because rebelling in that way has the opposite effect, but I guess this is what sounds good to kids these days…

To be honest, I found this book to be just ok, but mostly frustrating. Audrey came off as shallow and self-centered, where after a year of living in The White House, she is still playing the “woe is me” card, and her parents are so insufferably dense about their own kid’s actions, that I didn’t care for any of the characters. I understood the angst, I could empathize with the loneliness a child would feel when they are stuck in a place they don’t have any control over, where their parents are too busy to see that their child is suffering, but Audrey was terrible at helping her cause, and it left me just not liking her for 85% of the book.

The thing that originally made me excited about this book was the historical fiction aspect. I was so intrigued with how the author would weave that into a book aimed at kids. But, sadly, there isn’t much of a historical fiction tale to this. Alice Roosevelt is a real person, she was a “rowdy” First Daughter, but outside of the, again, superficial basics of this historic woman, we are told very little about her, or the era she’s from. I felt like this was such a missed opportunity to instill a love of history in young readers! I wanted there to be more interesting tidbits about Alice Roosevelt that went beyond the shared angst these two First Daughters seemed to have in common, but that never happened. Additionally, the author does include some civil rights discussions, especially around gay rights, but this felt so tacked on that I don’t feel it got the attention it deserved, either.

Like I mentioned, this book was just ok. I was hesitant about giving it to my niece as she’s a bit young right now, but after reading it, I think Audrey’s antics, how oblivious her parents are, and the superficial history and civil rights elements that are present, makes this book better suited to younger readers, not middle-grade in my opinion. Despite the mild romance elements, there’s nothing even on the cusp of being “mature”, hence why a reader as young as 7 would probably enjoy it much more. I’ll give this book to her and see what she thinks, though I doubt it’ll bump up my rating from the “it was just ok” 2 star rating.
520 reviews59 followers
January 10, 2022
*2.5- I'm sad to say that I wasn't that big of a fan of this book. I didn't really have an expectation going into this book because I haven't read a lot from this author before, so I was just kind of feeling everything out. First off, I was not a fan of Audrey. I just found her kind of stuck-up, whiney, and annoying. I just found her kind of exhausting. She also was pretty immature for a girl that is supposedly going into high school soon. I did like Alice. Though I found her a touch dramatic, I recognize that is likely part of her time period. The plot was decent. I think that the concept and idea were interesting. I think that the feeling of being trapped even though you are interpreted to be a person who has everything is something that is interesting to explore. I did like seeing the connection between Audrey and Alice. I liked how Audrey drew inspiration from the former first daughter. This book just ended up falling flat for me. There were some side-ish topics that were still fairly important that I'm just not interested in reading about. I just wasn't that entertained, and the fact that I was annoyed by the main character didn't help. I'm fine with disliking a main character, but that character either needs to grow or the book needs to have some much bigger theme. I just want the book to do more for me if the main character isn't going to. There wasn't any cursing that I can remember, and there wasn't any violence. There also wasn't any sexual content either. This book fits best into the middle-grade category. I think that younger readers are more likely to enjoy this novel, but I don't think that a book being intended for a younger age group should stop someone from picking it up. I can't say that I recommend this book. I didn't hate it, but I just didn't like it. I'm sure that there are people that like this novel and would enjoy it. In the end, I just wasn't a fan. I'm not going to say that I would never pick up something from this author again, but I'm not in a rush to do so.
Profile Image for hpboy13.
916 reviews43 followers
August 21, 2023
This book had a slow start, but ended up being a really cute read.

Going in, all I knew about Alice Roosevelt was her father’s famous quote that he could either run the country or manage her. This book was a great launching point for me to read up on one of American history’s liveliest personalities. (And imagine my surprise when it turned out that she was indeed pretty chill regarding LGBT rights, a century before that was mainstream!) I thought Behrens did an admirable job portraying Alice for the reader, and the only thing that felt truly shoehorned in was the pillow with the iconic quote, “If you don’t have anything nice to say about someone, come sit here by me.”

Of the titular characters, it was Audrey whom I took a while to warm up to. A solid chunk of the novel’s beginning involves Audrey doing precious little aside from sulking and reading Alice’s diary. It was only once she started acting out, in an attempt to emulate her heroine, that I became as interested in Audrey’s stories as I was in Alice’s diary. But once it happened, I zipped through this book, fervently rooting for both Audrey and Alice.

I thought Behrens did a great job making a cool historical figure accessible to a middle-grade audience – this book is a solid PG rating, which is often tricky to strike with history.
2,334 reviews49 followers
June 29, 2017
In the fictional diary of Alice Roosevelt she signs off with Alice to Thine Self Be True. Alice Roosevelt definetely was true to herself. I was fascinated by her as a teen and loved her sense of rebellion. Yes cousin Eleanor was a do gooder but I preferred Alice's downright defiance. Audrey is a president's daughter in the White House. She feels stifled in this setting. One evening whilst exploring, she finds Alice Roosevelt Longworth's diary as a teenager. Reading Alice's feelings of being imprisioned and confined, Audrey feels a kinship with the former president's daughter.
17 reviews1 follower
August 28, 2017
Living in the White House sounds like a dream come true. However according to Audrey Rhodes it's not. In fact Audrey feels like she is stuck in prison, but when she finds Alice Roosevelt's diary her whole world changes. She reads Alice's diary, and starts to learn how to make the White House more fun. Even if that means to break the rules a little. But all Audrey is trying to explain to her parents, (and the White House staff) is that first daughter just want to have fun! I recommend When Audrey Met Alice to anyone who likes history, and to people who want a book they can't put down!
Profile Image for Jenna.
350 reviews21 followers
January 14, 2018
Two and a half stars. Overall this book was a big disappointment, and I had been looking forward to it since before it came out. While I liked Audrey well enough, I couldn't get into the Alice's diary parts of the book at all. I almost gave it up until I decided that I would try skipping those sections, and suddenly the book got much better. Yay. I don't feel like I missed much, but this is problematic because why read a book titled When Audrey met Alice if you're just going to ignore Alice?

Meh. I have other books by this author on my TBR so I'll give her another shot. Someday.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 205 reviews

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