Baby Alicia Is Dying

May 3, 1993
With her usual melodramatic flair, McDaniel ( Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep ) wrings out another sad story line, this one centering on a ninth grader who volunteers at a home for HIV-positive babies. Caring for the infants fills a void for Desi, who has always been overshadowed by her older sister, Val, a tennis ace. With her beloved Val recently gone off to college, Desi's mother has taken a full-time job, and she has little time for or interest in her younger daughter's activities. She certainly doesn't understand Desi's growing attachment to Alicia, a five-month-old who was abandoned by her mother at birth. Given the novel's tell-all title, there is no suspense surrounding the direction of the plot, which explores Desi's grief over the baby's death--as well as her reconciliation with her troubled mother. McDaniel's theatrical prose and her characters' occasionally contrived statements (``Maybe if I didn't care so much, this wouldn't hurt so bad'') probably won't bother her young fans, who will wipe away more than one tear. And, as always, the author gives her tale's dark cloud a suitably silver lining. Ages 10-up.

July 1, 1993
Gr 8-10- -Desi feels unloved by her distant mother, who worships Desi's athletic, popular older sister. Entering ninth grade and tired of living in her sister's shadow, she searches for something uniquely hers. She finds it at ChildCare, a house devoted to helping HIV-positive and AIDS babies, where she works with the infant Alicia. Even though volunteering there causes problems at home, at school, and with her best friend, Desi feels a bond to the baby that transcends all concerns. Alicia's illness and eventual death are the catalysts that bring her family's secrets to the surface to be resolved. The plot moves along at a steady pace with helpful background information about HIV and AIDS woven into the story. Desi's character is developed fairly well, while secondary players are more stereotypical in nature. The writing is somewhat pulpy, using various cliches reminiscent of adult romances. The theme is spoon-fed to readers. Desi's adultlike realizations ("Suddenly she understood that mature love, marriage, and having babies was truly a logical progression, a natural order that got all out of whack when people jumped into a sexual relationship outside the framework.") make the text somewhat preachy and moralistic. Despite its faults, however, this novel will find a wide audience among teenagers who will enjoy the fast pace and timely subject matter. -Amy Baumann, Berne Knox Westerlo High School, NY