Customer Reviews

Jay's Journal

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(28)

 

 

When I first read this book, I was blown away. That was because I was 12. After a few years, when I happened to pick it up again, a lot of things about this "true" story seemed a little.. well... false, so I decided to do some research on the net. This is what I found out: The real "Jay" was a young boy named Alden, who grew up in Pleasant Grove. He was quite depressed and involved with drugs, and he committed suicide, but he was never involved with the occult. Mrs. Sparks came to Alden's family when they were still greiving, and received Alden's journal under the guise that she wanted to help other people with "his problem". She then took a bunch of supposed accounts of other teenagers involved with the occult, and combined them with entries from Alden's journal (which never mentioned the occult). She also didn't bother to hide some very identifying details about Alden very well. The result of all this was that people in Pleasant Grove figured out who "Jay" was, and not only did his poor parents have his death to deal with, but vicious rumors of their deceased son being a animal-sacrificing Satanist. His grave was desecrated several times, and his parents ended up divorcing under all the strain. Why was this book passed off as a journal? Well for one thing, any book about Satanism sold really well at the time this was published (more bucks for the renowned Beatrice Sparks). Another reason might be because Mrs. Sparks is a devout Mormon, and if you write a book that basically shouts "Hey! See, this kid strayed from Christianity and started exploring other religions, and look! He got mixed up with Satan and died!" and direct it to teenagers, thats a great way to evangelisize your religion. I find this book completely disgusting. It would have been fine if it had been labeled as a work of fiction, but to take some poor kid's misery, mix it up with sensationalism, and call it "a true story" to make a point and some money is in my opinion... Satanic.

To all of you people from Utah that claim "Jay's Journal" is a true story, well, lets just say that Beatrice Sparks has convinced you, once again, that her self righteous fantasy view of the world is fact, and teenagers can gain some sort of phenomenal "powers" by killing cats and drinking cow's blood, and only by obeying your parents and going to church will save you from the evils of the real world. Some of you claim to have known members of my family when you have no idea what we have gone through since the publication of this book. right now I have Alden Barrett's original journal in my possesion. I am here to tell all of you the facts. My brother, Alden Neil Barrett, died of an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound to the right temple on March 13, 1971. He was posthumously diagnosed with clinical depression after his psychiatrist, (NOT Beatrice Sparks) read his journal, which sporadically detailed the last six months of his life. Exactly 21 of 69 entries from Alden's journal were used by Beatrice Sparks in "Jay's Journal"; some of which include, "The Joys Of the Theater", and "The Joys of Debate." She has several different accounts as to where she recieved information that Alden was involved in occult activities, none of which I believed when I interviewed her for my book. She was vague and apologetic, and would not reveal her "sources." Side-by-side comparisons of "Jay's Journal" and "Go Ask Alice" reveal suspiciously similar writing styles. (Entries that repeat words three times for emphasis, for example.) No where in Alden's journal is there any mention of drinking cow's blood, or any of the other alleged occult or satanic activities mentioned in "Jay's Journal." The letter at the end of the book was actually written by my mother, Marcella. The part about "Jay's" two friends dying in car accidents is true, except the timeline was fictionalized. The first one died three months after Alden. The second friend died five years after Alden. The "note from Jay's mother's scratch pad" was not Marcella's, but does reveal the intent of the book, and apparently justifies all of the creative license employed in the book.
It is my opinion that, while "Jay's Journal" has frightened some teenagers away from occult-like activities, it has also made many more children curious with the promise of special powers, and influences impressionable youth to this day in many negative ways. "Jay's Journal" ranks up there with "Plan 9 From Outer Space" as a poorly planned, low budget special effects type of pulp book that has gathered a cult following based solely on the premise that it is a true account. This book is a prime example of the phrase, "Don't believe everything you read."

This book is a big lie!

Although i knew nothing about this "true account" when i picked it up, as i got deeper into the book I sensed something was missing. Jay's character didn't add up. He struck me as too sane and objective to be crazy, too moral and connected with himself to be so immoral, too mature in his thoughts and writing to be so immature, and FAR TOO HONEST AND EXPRESSIVE WITH HIMSELF to be so dishonest with everyone around him. The fact that he killed himself just didn't add up to me. I'm a psychotherapist who works with suicidal people (adults now but teens in the past) and i just didn't buy it. At first i wondered if Sparks simply changed too much of Jay's identifying information (which even Freud warns against in recounting case studies) to make the story hold, but later i found myself wondering if she had actually re-written the journal herself to fit HER needs (perhaps to sell books, get famous, whatever - or perhaps some more sinister psychological desire to disguise a worthy person's true story).

Although i still don't know what actually happened in "Jay's" case, ten minutes of internet research showed me claims that Jay (supposedly really Alden Barrett) was never even into the occult at all! Also, there were claims he was schizophrenic (of which this supposed "journal" gives no indication), and that "Dr." Beatrice Sparks (who should lose her license if this proves true) MADE UP whole sections of the book (more than 50%), weaving in "accounts" of other teenagers she supposedly knew.

One thing for which i am grateful about this book is that Sparks is only a mediocre writer. Had she produced a more believable account of "Jay's Journal", i probably never would have become suspicious and taken my suspicions beyond the state of contemplation.

I think what is called for here is the publication of "Jay's" actual journal so the reader sort the rest out for him or herself.

This book is a LIE.

Do the smallest bit of research and you'll see that. Beatrice Sparks defamed the reputation of an entire family and one poor kid through her witchhunt. She didn't care about the truth; she cared about "scaring straight" teens and making a quick buck in the process.

The real person this "journal" is based on was never into the occult. He was a normal kid who was interested in Eastern religions and liberal politics. Maybe that's the same think in Sparks' mind.

I'm very ashamed to have picked up this book. I wish I could get my money back so that Mrs. Sparks doesn't get her royalty check.

First of all, Beatrice Sparks has made a career of fashioning "real" diaries of teenagers out of, well, actually nothing except her own very conservative Mormon religious beliefs. The anti-heroine of "Go Ask Alice" did not exist; she is a figment of Sparks's imagination, although Sparks did claim that there WAS an "Alice" who did die, but the cause of her death was not conclusively determined. Her knowledge of the elusive Alice is totally unsubstantial and vague; there is NO ONE who could verify the actual existence of the girl. And reading the text of "Go Ask Alice" it's quite obvious the writing is not that of a teenager. I read GAA as a teenager; even then I thought Alice sure knew a lot of big words for a silly teenage girl. I read "Jay's Journal" when I was teenager, or tried to. I stopped reading it early on because it was just too absurd. I thought "how can anyone believe THIS?" What is so deplorable about "Jay's Journal" (aside from the laughable attempt to portray the author of this dreck as a teenager) is that it smears the life and death of a young man who was depressed and disturbed, but NOT a devil-worshipping, kitten-killing, blood-drinking Satanist. Alden Barrett was a highly intelligent, sensitive kid. He had problems with a girlfriend. He needed professional help, but didn't get any, and his depression overwhelmed him. His death and the grief his family felt at his loss are bad enough. But the poor family put their trust in Sparks to honor his memory and perhaps help others by giving her his diary entries to fashion into a book, and she does THIS. Now Alden Barrett is considered by a lot of people to be a despicable Satan worshipper who deserved his fate. His grave has been desecrated several times over. "Jay's Journal" is a LIE, a hoax, an awful deception. Beatrice Sparks has caused Alden Barrett's family a lot of agony. And for what? A rotten book where a teenage boy actually talks like this: "Life isn't worth a poop-de-do!" For shame.

Though it has already been said several times, I just want to reiterate that this book is a work of fiction. It has absolutely no basis in fact. Sparks simply wanted to cash in on the growing Satanism scare, and in the process destroyed a family as well as a boy's memory. A boy who, incidentally, had nothing to do with the occult.
In fact, the local police have said that while there was almost no occult activity in town before the book came out, the amount of occult-related crimes committed after the book was published skyrocketed. Luckily, all Ms. Sparks cares about is money, so her job here is done.

Ms. Sparks made this book up from a number of stories. As i live in utah close to the area that 'Jay' lived, this story was a fav with high school kids. We would visit his grave that has a picture of him. it was fun and scary...

His real name is Alden Barrett and none of the satanic stuff in Jay's Journal happened! what you say?!!!
in 1997 Alden's brother Scott published a book call A place in the sun the truth behind Jay's Journal. Scott Barrett includes a facsimile of jay's original journal. Alden was a troubled boy and did kill him self but no satanic items at all.

so this book was scary to read but it is mostly fiction.. :-)

This book claims it is a true account, and the fact of the matter is that it is amply distorted by adding false facts in order to accomplish the author's desire to push her religious beliefs to the reader. I believe that any author who deceives her readers in order to push a personal vendetta should be penalized, no matter if she is right or wrong. I assume that through this book she wants to scare those who are tempted to become Satanists, druggies, etc, but I wonder what her religion has to say about tricking people into being close to God? This book is terrifying, and shockingly enough it is supposed to be for kids; in my opinion, it harms a teenager's mind, rather than accomplishing anything else. I wonder how many teenagers have been traumatized by this book. It is definitely not a read for someone who does not have formed criteria.

I had been interested in this book for a while, mainly because it mentions the Occult. I've been interested in this kind of story since I was about nine.

I had been reading some of the spotlighted reviews people on here had written and despite their negative statements I thought I still wanted to read this book.

Ironic enough, I start reading the book and was surprized at how there isn't anything occult in it. Oh sure, they mention ESP and Psi abilities and hint at voodoo.

There isn't a thing dealing with the occult, witchcraft,or santeria/voodoo anywhere in this book.

Jay, the kid mentioned in the story, starts a decline into drugs. He then in a correctional facility finds a guy named Paul or Peter something who introduces him to fuzzy New Age logic and pretty much tries to indoctrinate him by having him take what I believe to be mushrooms. At school again he finds a few people and becomes indoctrinated into this crazy world of nothing more than kids wanting to do a bunch of 'oogly boogly' stuff and freak eachother out.

Secondly, I would like to point out some of the inconsistencies in the book that any paranormal real researcher would note. Jay and his friends could replicate each and every expiriment they did with eachotehr (no doubt high and stoned on something.) But he mentions also that he couldn't replicate it in front of others. This only proves to me that they're just making it up.

And toward the end it starts to really degenerate into nothingness. Satanism has nothing to do with animal sacrafice, and that ritual where he has an OBE really had nothing to do with any occult ritual that I have ever seen. Again, kids doing 'oogly boogly' to scare eachother, there's some obvious power plays going on here.

And supposedly, according to other posters of reviews of this story, Beatrice Sparks made up the whole occult thing. Great gods, she sucks at it. At least get your facts straight woman! True occult study involves reading, it involves study and contemplation. And as a note to anyone out there, most occult orders (including the roscrucians that Beatrice Sparks so lovingly likes to point out more than a few times) do not include children under the age of 18, unless they are other members kids.

One other last point about inconsistencies of the book. Beatrice sparks in her opening arguments uses similar words and connotations as "jay's" journal. His journal style is varied. One moment he's sniveling and writing in sentence fragments, the next he's writing in perfect grammatical english. Also I would point out the fact that at the end, his mother's emotional letter, she mentions NOTHING of the supposed 'occult' stuff he was into.

Stay away from this book. As a writer, it's amazing I would ever say this, but it's true. Stay away from this book. It's B.S and we know those initals don't stand for Beatrice Sparks.

I read this book because I had heard so many wonderful things about it. Phrases like 'life-changing' and 'stunningly perceptive' were used by people who described their encounter with this book. I found it to be completely the opposite. I mean no slander to 'Jay.' I assume there is a real person this clearly fictional character is based on. It is not the contents of his journal that I critique, rather, Ms. Sparks' presentation of it. She tries to convince us that she had deep insight into this young man, enough to take his journal and throw in sensationalistic anecdotes, and call it a respectable work. I am certain that his family did not want him represented in this way; a drug-crazed loser who drinks animal blood in his free time from debauchery and stupidity. I think anyone who buys into this crap story should consider sense and fact; think if what is written sounds plausible and balanced. Chances are, if you look past the initial glamour of a drug memoir, you'll see that 'Jay' is enormously wronged by this deceitful nonsense.