The Physician

"The substances were unpredictable and difficult to control, but sometimes the surgeons could operate without the convulsive tremors and the groans and cries of pain. The recipes seemed to him more magic than medicine."-The Physician (Noah Gordon)

I love that in this book, Rob J. Cole, the principal guy, is talented and passionate about what he does. He’s also curious, because he wants to know everything about medicine. I love when people are passionate for what they do. “The recipes seemed to him more magic than medicine”, I think is awesome to be amazed for what you do. Even if you’ve been doing the same thing for lots of years.

I love the idea that even if Rob J. had an extremely difficult life, he could find joy and interest in other stuff. Rob is a strong guy. Yes, in a physical way, but there’s not where you can find his greatest strength.

I like this quote because I can also see magic in the things I love. Not pretty sure if I see magic in things because I love them, or I love them because I see magic in them.       But anyway, I know that feeling, and I feel happy when someone else has de power to feel it too. 

Vocabulary

Handkerchief 

Fabric square used especially for cleaning nose, eyes, etc or for decorative reasons. 

I wish I could wipe his tears away, but my handkerchief is too dirty to do it. 

Shrugged: To raise (the shoulders), specially as a gesture of doubt, disdain, or indifference.

When I asked her if she minded staying home, she just shrugged her shoulders.

Fleeing: To scape from danger or riskiness. 

Wonder if I've spent my life fleeing or searching for happiness.

Shrewd: Adjetive to describe someone who can understand things. 

The leaders of our group was shrewd, hard-bitten and forty years old. 

Swat:to hit quickly

If you don´t shut up, I will swat you.

This book is supposed to be a diary of a girl who begins to use drugs. You can read all of her "process", since she tastes acid for the first time.
This book was published in 1971 and was
very important in the field of psychology. It talks a lot about drugs and how do they supposedly affect adolescents who consume them.
In my opinion, Go Ask Alice may exaggerate about that topic and it is very tabloid.

But even though that's the main topic of the book,  that wasn't what fit my attention. The way in which the supposed Alice expresses everything that she's carrying inside, was what fascinated me.

I've never read a book such full of hate and confusion. Or as crude and explicit. Alice is not just a teenager who uses drugs , but a girl who is lonely and damaged inside also.

" I wish the doctors and nurses would let my soul die, but they are still experimenting with trying to reunite the body and the spirit."
 You can get the feeling internal and external stuff are being totally mixed and this is surprisingly common for Alice. She is able to see the nakedness of everything and although sometimes this may be gross, it is something , I always find it very beautiful.


 This book has a lot of confusion. Confusion I think is necessary, but sometimes, people may forget.

"I don't know what the hell hour or day or even year it is, or even what town. I guess I've had a blackout or they've been passing some bad pills. The girl on the grass beside me is white-faced and Mona Lisa like and she's preggers. I asked her what she was going to do with the baby and she just said. "It will belong to everybody. We'll all share her."


VOCABULARY-

TOMBSTONE- A gravestone.

"Your name and day of death will be written in yout tombstone."

DECAY- To fall into ruin

"There's a civilization that had begun to decay."

 

 

BUMMER- One that depresses, frustrates, or disappoints

 

"Getting stranded at the airport was a real bummer."

 

 

CLUSTER- A group of the same or similar elements gathered or occurring closely together; a bunch

 

"She held out her hand, a small tight cluster of fingers"

 

 

SHAG-A tangle or mass, especially of rough matted hair.

 

"My hairstyle is a shag"

 

 

It's a good thing most people bleed on the inside or this would really be a gory, blood-smeared earth.”

This is the book that’s most infected of hate that I've ever read. But it is this kind of hate where creative thinking can come from. Some people say they hate Go Ask Alice, but I think is a really special book, one of my favorite in fact. Because, the way I see it, it’s made up by lots of awesome quotes, and the one above is one of my favorite. 

And actually, I believe people do bleed on the outside. Sometimes you can actually feel the wound just by watching someone else bleeding. People just don’t get hurt on the inside. Actually, I think this world is already gory, and blood-smeared. It’s just that sometimes we don’t remember. Sometimes we just don’t notice. Or sometimes we just don’t want to see it.

I mean, people suffer. They suffer for different reasons; and you can notice their suffering, but most of all, I believe that people that suffers makes other people suffer in a different way. We¿re all connected. And that's why I think this world is already gory.

Maybe this book made a lot of influence in me because when I read it, I had fears that were very similar to the ones of Alice. But well, I feel like I can create awesome things after reading her.

 

VOCABULARY

COED- A woman who attends a coeducational college or university.

"I asked the coed for information related to the university."

JANITOR- One who attends to the maintenance or cleaning of a building.

"The floor is wet because the janitor was cleaning."

PAROLE- A password

"She forgot the parole."

LOUSY- Inferior or worthless

"That was a lousy play."

BASH- To strike with a heavy, crushing blow

"The thug bashed the hood of the car with a sledgehammer."

“I've been asleep and I don't know if it's the same day or week or year, but who the hell cares anyway?”

¿Haven’t you ever felt like you don’t want to know anything else about the rest of the world? Just because you are tired of its heaviness. Some people think they are carrying the entire Earth, but it’s a feeling that almost nothing can help you to get rid of it. I know how this girl feels, because I’d felt just like that. Nothing really matters; nothing is good enough to take the pain and the heaviness away. So all you can just do is lie face down, put your hands covering your neck, and wish that the bad stuff finally ends. But then you realize that the main source or the bad stuff is yourself, which leads you to the tearing and desperate wish to disappear. And when you realize you can’t, everything starts to matter less than before, even when you thought that was not possible. You may scream all day, you may be paralyzed of fear. But even if you scream, it feels like no one can hear you. Because no one else exists. Tired of hating, hating to be tired. You only know you are in a safe place, when you stop being there, in that whole where you’ve got to carry the universe.

"used to think I was the only one who felt things, but I really am only one infinitely small part of an aching humanity."

It also helps you to remember you're not the only one who matters...

VOCABULARY

ZEALOT-a fervent and even militant proponent of something

“The religious zealot was willing to break the law to follow his prophet’s orders.”

WONKY- turned or twisted toward one side

“And will now fly to Melbourne for a re-assessment of his wonky right knee.” 

VERMILLION- of a vivid red to reddish-orange color

“Mi pants were unique because they were vermillion.”

 

QUELL- suppress or crush completely

“Her words did nothing to quell the anger boiling within him.”

UNCANNY-surpassing the ordinary or normal

“It was uncanny the way he could anticipate trouble.”