Original Publication Date: 1992
Ghostwriter? No, Ann wrote this one herself
Synopsis:
Stacey finds herself stuck in the middle again. Her parents both need her: her dad has gotten a huge promotion (to vice president of his company) and is being honored at a celebratory dinner. Her mom comes down with pneumonia pretty bad, and needs help. Stacey at first plans to stay home with her mom, but is torn because she did commit to her dad's dinner before her mom got sick, and it is very important to him. She eventually decides to go to New York for just one day and arrange for her mom's friends to check in on her. At the same time, her dad has arranged a nurse service to care for her mom, which causes scheduling confusion. Stacey is stretched too thin to do a good job, essentially. Her parents commiserate when she explains, though. And more good news: her mom is very close to getting a job at Bellair's department store.
Meanwhile, several BSC charges get suckered into buying trinkets from mail-order magazines. They soon realize that the items either don't work well or aren't necessary (or both) and that they'd rather have yo-yos to play with. So they put on a traveling salesmen show to try to offload their stuff. They sell very little, but some parents give them spare change for their performances, and they're able to buy the yo-yos. Hooray, I guess.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: none mentioned
Stacey and Sam Thomas have a date...
When Stacey calls her dad, she says, "Hi, Dad. It's me, Stacey." How many other people call him "Dad" anyway?
Their Families:
Though Stacey's parents haven't done a stellar job in helping her deal with their divorce, I do give her dad points for having a bedroom for her as the non-custodial parent. I know a woman whose ex-husband has air mattresses for their two daughters that he sets up in the living room when they spend the weekend at his place. They've been divorced for about three or four years.
Dee is just the nickname Stacey's mom has given Mrs. Pike; it's not really her first name.
Mary Anne's mom showed up to watch Stacey's mom. That...can't be a good sign.
The Club: nothing new
SMS:
Mrs. Downey is still the school secretary and Mr. Zizmore is still Stacey's math teacher.
PSA time:
If you have to tell a person that her loved one is the hospital or had an accident, start with "Your mom is fine, but..." I still remember my heart skipping a beat when my friend's mom had to give me a ride home from something because someone had rear-ended my mom. She said, "Your mom's been in an accident." Then she said NOTHING until I caught my breath and asked how she was. "Your mom? Oh, she's fine. I just need to give you a ride home."
Misc:
I like that school started two books ago, and that Stacey mentions it being autumn.
This is the first appearance of the Rosebud Cafe.
Stacey has an impossible math problem on her test: x=3y+4. You can't solve for two unknowns with just one equation.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 4
Halloweens in 8th grade: 2 (plus one in seventh)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 3
BSC Fights: 7
SMS Staff: 29
Students (other than the BSC): 85; 60 8th graders, 2 7th grader, 11 sixth-graders, 11 unspecified
Clients: 29
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 62 (bonbons, bubble gum, Butterfingers, butterscotch candy, candy hearts, Cheese Doodles, Cheetos, a chocolate bar, chocolate-covered cherries, chocolate marshmallow cookies, Chunky bar, cookies, Cracker Jacks, crackers (unspecified and whole wheat), cupcakes, dark-chocolate caramels, Ding-Dongs, Doritos, Fig Newtons, Fritos, fruit pie, gumdrops, Gummi Bears (regular and sweet-n-sour), Heath bars, Hershey's kisses, Ho Hos, jawbreakers, jellybeans, Kit-Kats, licorice, licorice whips, Lifesavers, M&Ms (regular and peanut), Mallomars, malt balls, marshmallows, Mentos, Milky Ways, mini candy bars, Necco wafers, Oreos (Double Stuf and chocolate-dipped), Payday bars, Planter's Peanut bar, popcorn, potato chips, pretzels, pretzel sticks, red hots, Ring Dings, root beer barrels, salt water taffy, Snickers, taco chips, Tootsie Roll Pops, Tootsie Rolls, tortilla chips, Triscuits, Twinkies, Yodels)
Crushes: Claudia-8 (Guy, Terry, Austin Bentley, Timothy Carmody, Arthur Feingold, Woody Jefferson, Trevor Sandbourne, Will Yamakawa), Dawn-5 (Travis, Lewis Bruno, Parker Harris, Price Irving, Richie Magnesi), Mary Anne-2 (Alex, Logan Bruno), Stacey-7 (Toby, Kelsey Bauman, Pete Black, Ross Brown, Pierre D'Amboise, Scott Foley, Sam Thomas), Kristy-1 (Bart Taylor), Mallory-1 (Ben Hobart), Jessi-3 (Daniel, Curtis Shaller, Quint Walter)
6/30/11
6/24/11
Dawn Saves the Planet (RS#57)
Original Publication Date: 1992
Ghostwriter? Yes, Jahnna Beecham and Malcolm Hillgartner
Synopsis:
Ah, the book in which Dawn goes full self-righteous, narcissistic, sanctimonious insane.
Dawn's science class is studying ecology, and assigned to come up with an idea to save the planet. Dawn and Stacey team up to teach a series of classes to BSC charges and help them hold a Green Fair at the end of them. Dawn also spearheads a project to get a recycling center at SMS. All good.
But she goes overboard, lecturing people and yelling at them when they screw up, acting as if she's the first person to know about recycling. She gets so obnoxious that when it comes time to elect a chairperson to head the recycling center, Dawn's science teacher wins in a landslide. Dawn is disappointed (to be honest, I would be too) and withdraws a bit from the project. When the recycling center is unveiled, no one acknowledges Dawn's significant part in it (again, I'd be upset too). But this does help her realize how overbearing she was, and she apologizes the BSC, especially Stacey, and things work out. The Green Fair is a success, and the kids donate to proceeds to the SMS recycling center. Dawn's science teacher nominates Dawn as a co-chair, but I don't think it's ever brought up again.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Mallomars behind her bed
There's a lot of accurate callbacks to Dawn's Wicked Stepsister; things like Dawn's needing music to do homework and Richard's sock drawer.
Kristy only gives a look here, not A Look.
People act like it's a novel idea to catch-and-release spiders found in homes, but Mary Anne has always done that, and brought it up when the snake escaped in Jessi Ramsey, Pet Sitter.
Kristy still doesn't like spiders.
Claudia's back in her role as peace-keeper, trying to smooth things over.
Their Families:
Richard gets called "Sir" by an SMS student (Pete Black), which I assume is because he's Richard, not because of politeness.
The Club:
Dawn says Mary Anne's never made a mistake, but she did in the last book (chronologically). I guess she means one that wasn't caught and actually screwed up a job.
Buddy Barrett has a bit of trouble sounding out some words, but is able to read them, which fits with Mallory and the Mystery Diary.
The Ohdner kids, who we only ever hear about but never meet, have the measles. In 1992. The MMR vaccine has been available since the 1960s, and the falsified "study" about its (unproven and faked) link to autism wasn't (irresponsibly) published until 1998, so I wonder how they managed to catch the measles.
The Johanssens say that they can't remember the last time Charlotte got so excited about something when they see how excited she is about the Green Fair. I guess they forgot about the Heritage Day project she did in the last book.
SMS:
Faculty/staff: Mrs. Ensign (lunchroom monitor), Mrs. Gonzalez (8th grade science)
Student: Amelia Freeman (8th)
The SMS band is terrible, apparently.
PSA time:
Generally speaking, muffins aren't terribly healthy. They're basically cake, unless you're careful with the ingredients.
Another good reason to rinse out used milk containers? Old milk stinks.
Canvas bags are a great idea, but please wash them. Juices leak from different foods onto them and...it's not pretty.
Misc:
I have to admit, as annoying as I find Dawn in this book, I have always cut up my six-pack plastic rings since reading it.
Why is no one concerned about using so much paper for the posters and the newsletter? Obviously, no internet when this was published, but you'd think it would have at least been mentioned.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 4
Halloweens in 8th grade: 2 (plus one in seventh)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 3
BSC Fights: 7
SMS Staff: 29
Students (other than the BSC): 85; 60 8th graders, 2 7th grader, 11 sixth-graders, 11 unspecified
Clients: 29
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 62 (bonbons, bubble gum, Butterfingers, butterscotch candy, candy hearts, Cheese Doodles, Cheetos, a chocolate bar, chocolate-covered cherries, chocolate marshmallow cookies, Chunky bar, cookies, Cracker Jacks, crackers (unspecified and whole wheat), cupcakes, dark-chocolate caramels, Ding-Dongs, Doritos, Fig Newtons, Fritos, fruit pie, gumdrops, Gummi Bears (regular and sweet-n-sour), Heath bars, Hershey's kisses, Ho Hos, jawbreakers, jellybeans, Kit-Kats, licorice, licorice whips, Lifesavers, M&Ms (regular and peanut), Mallomars, malt balls, marshmallows, Mentos, Milky Ways, mini candy bars, Necco wafers, Oreos (Double Stuf and chocolate-dipped), Payday bars, Planter's Peanut bar, popcorn, potato chips, pretzels, pretzel sticks, red hots, Ring Dings, root beer barrels, salt water taffy, Snickers, taco chips, Tootsie Roll Pops, Tootsie Rolls, tortilla chips, Triscuits, Twinkies, Yodels)
Crushes: Claudia-8 (Guy, Terry, Austin Bentley, Timothy Carmody, Arthur Feingold, Woody Jefferson, Trevor Sandbourne, Will Yamakawa), Dawn-5 (Travis, Lewis Bruno, Parker Harris, Price Irving, Richie Magnesi), Mary Anne-2 (Alex, Logan Bruno), Stacey-7 (Toby, Kelsey Bauman, Pete Black, Ross Brown, Pierre D'Amboise, Scott Foley, Sam Thomas), Kristy-1 (Bart Taylor), Mallory-1 (Ben Hobart), Jessi-3 (Daniel, Curtis Shaller, Quint Walter)
Ghostwriter? Yes, Jahnna Beecham and Malcolm Hillgartner
Synopsis:
Ah, the book in which Dawn goes full self-righteous, narcissistic, sanctimonious insane.
Dawn's science class is studying ecology, and assigned to come up with an idea to save the planet. Dawn and Stacey team up to teach a series of classes to BSC charges and help them hold a Green Fair at the end of them. Dawn also spearheads a project to get a recycling center at SMS. All good.
But she goes overboard, lecturing people and yelling at them when they screw up, acting as if she's the first person to know about recycling. She gets so obnoxious that when it comes time to elect a chairperson to head the recycling center, Dawn's science teacher wins in a landslide. Dawn is disappointed (to be honest, I would be too) and withdraws a bit from the project. When the recycling center is unveiled, no one acknowledges Dawn's significant part in it (again, I'd be upset too). But this does help her realize how overbearing she was, and she apologizes the BSC, especially Stacey, and things work out. The Green Fair is a success, and the kids donate to proceeds to the SMS recycling center. Dawn's science teacher nominates Dawn as a co-chair, but I don't think it's ever brought up again.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Mallomars behind her bed
There's a lot of accurate callbacks to Dawn's Wicked Stepsister; things like Dawn's needing music to do homework and Richard's sock drawer.
Kristy only gives a look here, not A Look.
People act like it's a novel idea to catch-and-release spiders found in homes, but Mary Anne has always done that, and brought it up when the snake escaped in Jessi Ramsey, Pet Sitter.
Kristy still doesn't like spiders.
Claudia's back in her role as peace-keeper, trying to smooth things over.
Their Families:
Richard gets called "Sir" by an SMS student (Pete Black), which I assume is because he's Richard, not because of politeness.
The Club:
Dawn says Mary Anne's never made a mistake, but she did in the last book (chronologically). I guess she means one that wasn't caught and actually screwed up a job.
Buddy Barrett has a bit of trouble sounding out some words, but is able to read them, which fits with Mallory and the Mystery Diary.
The Ohdner kids, who we only ever hear about but never meet, have the measles. In 1992. The MMR vaccine has been available since the 1960s, and the falsified "study" about its (unproven and faked) link to autism wasn't (irresponsibly) published until 1998, so I wonder how they managed to catch the measles.
The Johanssens say that they can't remember the last time Charlotte got so excited about something when they see how excited she is about the Green Fair. I guess they forgot about the Heritage Day project she did in the last book.
SMS:
Faculty/staff: Mrs. Ensign (lunchroom monitor), Mrs. Gonzalez (8th grade science)
Student: Amelia Freeman (8th)
The SMS band is terrible, apparently.
PSA time:
Generally speaking, muffins aren't terribly healthy. They're basically cake, unless you're careful with the ingredients.
Another good reason to rinse out used milk containers? Old milk stinks.
Canvas bags are a great idea, but please wash them. Juices leak from different foods onto them and...it's not pretty.
Misc:
I have to admit, as annoying as I find Dawn in this book, I have always cut up my six-pack plastic rings since reading it.
Why is no one concerned about using so much paper for the posters and the newsletter? Obviously, no internet when this was published, but you'd think it would have at least been mentioned.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 4
Halloweens in 8th grade: 2 (plus one in seventh)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 3
BSC Fights: 7
SMS Staff: 29
Students (other than the BSC): 85; 60 8th graders, 2 7th grader, 11 sixth-graders, 11 unspecified
Clients: 29
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 62 (bonbons, bubble gum, Butterfingers, butterscotch candy, candy hearts, Cheese Doodles, Cheetos, a chocolate bar, chocolate-covered cherries, chocolate marshmallow cookies, Chunky bar, cookies, Cracker Jacks, crackers (unspecified and whole wheat), cupcakes, dark-chocolate caramels, Ding-Dongs, Doritos, Fig Newtons, Fritos, fruit pie, gumdrops, Gummi Bears (regular and sweet-n-sour), Heath bars, Hershey's kisses, Ho Hos, jawbreakers, jellybeans, Kit-Kats, licorice, licorice whips, Lifesavers, M&Ms (regular and peanut), Mallomars, malt balls, marshmallows, Mentos, Milky Ways, mini candy bars, Necco wafers, Oreos (Double Stuf and chocolate-dipped), Payday bars, Planter's Peanut bar, popcorn, potato chips, pretzels, pretzel sticks, red hots, Ring Dings, root beer barrels, salt water taffy, Snickers, taco chips, Tootsie Roll Pops, Tootsie Rolls, tortilla chips, Triscuits, Twinkies, Yodels)
Crushes: Claudia-8 (Guy, Terry, Austin Bentley, Timothy Carmody, Arthur Feingold, Woody Jefferson, Trevor Sandbourne, Will Yamakawa), Dawn-5 (Travis, Lewis Bruno, Parker Harris, Price Irving, Richie Magnesi), Mary Anne-2 (Alex, Logan Bruno), Stacey-7 (Toby, Kelsey Bauman, Pete Black, Ross Brown, Pierre D'Amboise, Scott Foley, Sam Thomas), Kristy-1 (Bart Taylor), Mallory-1 (Ben Hobart), Jessi-3 (Daniel, Curtis Shaller, Quint Walter)
6/18/11
Mary Anne and the Secret in the Attic (M#5)
Original Publication Date: 1992
Ghostwriter? Yes, Ellen Miles
Synopsis:
People in Stoneybrook are working projects for Heritage Day, tracing the histories of their families in the town. Mary Anne is forced to acknowledge how little she knows about her family. She decides to look in the attic for clues about her past and her family. To her shock, she discovers letters from her maternal grandparents: Mary Anne lived with them for a while after her mother died, and there was some sort of custody dispute. Mary Anne isn't sure who actually has legal custody (as if her dad wouldn't have taken care of that). And then her grandmother calls Richard! Now Mary Anne's REALLY worried that her grandmother (her grandfather is dead) is going to try to lay claim to her.
As it turns out, Mary Anne has nothing to worry about. Her grandmother merely wants a visit, which Mary Anne and Richard agree would be a good idea. So Mary Anne heads off to Iowa, and we learn through letters that Mary Anne has a good time getting to know her family.
Oh, the letters Mary Anne finds in the attic? Her grandparents were HORRIBLE to Richard. Stuff about not being sure they trust him to raise a daughter on his own, and wanting to check up on his progress. I can see why they didn't stay close.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: bonbons
Mary Anne, on adjusting to having a stepfamily: "At first Dawn and I tried to share a room, but we soon discovered that we each needed our own space." That's not quite how I remember it happening...
Dawn likes to analyze dreams.
Dawn is now officially messy. An organized messy (she knows where everything is) but no longer is she the tidy person we met at the beginning.
Mary Anne's been to DisneyLAND. We already knew about Disneyworld.
Their Families:
Until she married Richard, Sharon had never owned a vacuum cleaner.
Mary Anne says she'll never call Sharon "Mom" ("that name is reserved for someone I lost a long, long time ago), which I absolutely respect, but it makes it even funnier that in a couple of books other characters, or Mary Anne herself, refers to her mom in the present tense. Any speculation that the character was referencing Sharon gone.
Mary Anne's mom is established as having been a good baker.
Kristy's family moved next door to Mary Anne's a little after Mary Anne was born. Kristy would have been an infant.
The Club:
The horror! Mary Anne makes a scheduling mistake! Jessi catches it before it's an issue.
SMS:
School is in session again...still not sure if it was last book. But either this or the previous book marks the fourth time Mary Anne has started 8th grade.
***Commenter Laura pointed out that there is mention of Jessi's French class in the last book (Keep Out, Claudia!), so THAT was the next time the current school year had started***
PSA time:
You wouldn't think I'd have to say this, but given the events of the book: when painting life-size replicas of historical figures, do it outside or in the garage, or your barn if your have one. Not in your den on the carpet. Idiots.
Misc:
This is a really hard book to read now that I have a baby girl (the same age as Mary Anne when her mother died: about six months). I think I'm still hormonal...
While researching, the Pike triplets come across some information about Old Hickory, which all lines up with what's been established before.
One of the names Mary Anne reads on a headstone that can't help giggling at is the last name of someone I graduated high school with.
A census worker comes to Mary Anne's house, but this book was published in 1992. The US census is taken every ten years in years that end in zero (1990, 2000, 2010) and as far as I can tell, Connecticut doesn't take a state census. **update: according to commenter Bazu, census workers collect other information during other times, so this is plausible**
In a letter, Mary Anne writes "awhile" when she should have written "a while."
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 4
Halloweens in 8th grade: 2 (plus one in seventh)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 3
BSC Fights: 6
SMS Staff: 26
Students (other than the BSC): 84; 59 8th graders, 2 7th grader, 11 sixth-graders, 11 unspecified
Clients: 29
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 62 (bonbons, bubble gum, Butterfingers, butterscotch candy, candy hearts, Cheese Doodles, Cheetos, a chocolate bar, chocolate-covered cherries, chocolate marshmallow cookies, Chunky bar, cookies, Cracker Jacks, crackers (unspecified and whole wheat), cupcakes, dark-chocolate caramels, Ding-Dongs, Doritos, Fig Newtons, Fritos, fruit pie, gumdrops, Gummi Bears (regular and sweet-n-sour), Heath bars, Hershey's kisses, Ho Hos, jawbreakers, jellybeans, Kit-Kats, licorice, licorice whips, Lifesavers, M&Ms (regular and peanut), Mallomars, malt balls, marshmallows, Mentos, Milky Ways, mini candy bars, Necco wafers, Oreos (Double Stuf and chocolate-dipped), Payday bars, Planter's Peanut bar, popcorn, potato chips, pretzels, pretzel sticks, red hots, Ring Dings, root beer barrels, salt water taffy, Snickers, taco chips, Tootsie Roll Pops, Tootsie Rolls, tortilla chips, Triscuits, Twinkies, Yodels)
Crushes: Claudia-8 (Guy, Terry, Austin Bentley, Timothy Carmody, Arthur Feingold, Woody Jefferson, Trevor Sandbourne, Will Yamakawa), Dawn-5 (Travis, Lewis Bruno, Parker Harris, Price Irving, Richie Magnesi), Mary Anne-2 (Alex, Logan Bruno), Stacey-7 (Toby, Kelsey Bauman, Pete Black, Ross Brown, Pierre D'Amboise, Scott Foley, Sam Thomas), Kristy-1 (Bart Taylor), Mallory-1 (Ben Hobart), Jessi-3 (Daniel, Curtis Shaller, Quint Walter)
Ghostwriter? Yes, Ellen Miles
Synopsis:
People in Stoneybrook are working projects for Heritage Day, tracing the histories of their families in the town. Mary Anne is forced to acknowledge how little she knows about her family. She decides to look in the attic for clues about her past and her family. To her shock, she discovers letters from her maternal grandparents: Mary Anne lived with them for a while after her mother died, and there was some sort of custody dispute. Mary Anne isn't sure who actually has legal custody (as if her dad wouldn't have taken care of that). And then her grandmother calls Richard! Now Mary Anne's REALLY worried that her grandmother (her grandfather is dead) is going to try to lay claim to her.
As it turns out, Mary Anne has nothing to worry about. Her grandmother merely wants a visit, which Mary Anne and Richard agree would be a good idea. So Mary Anne heads off to Iowa, and we learn through letters that Mary Anne has a good time getting to know her family.
Oh, the letters Mary Anne finds in the attic? Her grandparents were HORRIBLE to Richard. Stuff about not being sure they trust him to raise a daughter on his own, and wanting to check up on his progress. I can see why they didn't stay close.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: bonbons
Mary Anne, on adjusting to having a stepfamily: "At first Dawn and I tried to share a room, but we soon discovered that we each needed our own space." That's not quite how I remember it happening...
Dawn likes to analyze dreams.
Dawn is now officially messy. An organized messy (she knows where everything is) but no longer is she the tidy person we met at the beginning.
Mary Anne's been to DisneyLAND. We already knew about Disneyworld.
Their Families:
Until she married Richard, Sharon had never owned a vacuum cleaner.
Mary Anne says she'll never call Sharon "Mom" ("that name is reserved for someone I lost a long, long time ago), which I absolutely respect, but it makes it even funnier that in a couple of books other characters, or Mary Anne herself, refers to her mom in the present tense. Any speculation that the character was referencing Sharon gone.
Mary Anne's mom is established as having been a good baker.
Kristy's family moved next door to Mary Anne's a little after Mary Anne was born. Kristy would have been an infant.
The Club:
The horror! Mary Anne makes a scheduling mistake! Jessi catches it before it's an issue.
SMS:
School is in session again...still not sure if it was last book. But either this or the previous book marks the fourth time Mary Anne has started 8th grade.
***Commenter Laura pointed out that there is mention of Jessi's French class in the last book (Keep Out, Claudia!), so THAT was the next time the current school year had started***
PSA time:
You wouldn't think I'd have to say this, but given the events of the book: when painting life-size replicas of historical figures, do it outside or in the garage, or your barn if your have one. Not in your den on the carpet. Idiots.
Misc:
This is a really hard book to read now that I have a baby girl (the same age as Mary Anne when her mother died: about six months). I think I'm still hormonal...
While researching, the Pike triplets come across some information about Old Hickory, which all lines up with what's been established before.
One of the names Mary Anne reads on a headstone that can't help giggling at is the last name of someone I graduated high school with.
A census worker comes to Mary Anne's house, but this book was published in 1992. The US census is taken every ten years in years that end in zero (1990, 2000, 2010) and as far as I can tell, Connecticut doesn't take a state census. **update: according to commenter Bazu, census workers collect other information during other times, so this is plausible**
In a letter, Mary Anne writes "awhile" when she should have written "a while."
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 4
Halloweens in 8th grade: 2 (plus one in seventh)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 3
BSC Fights: 6
SMS Staff: 26
Students (other than the BSC): 84; 59 8th graders, 2 7th grader, 11 sixth-graders, 11 unspecified
Clients: 29
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 62 (bonbons, bubble gum, Butterfingers, butterscotch candy, candy hearts, Cheese Doodles, Cheetos, a chocolate bar, chocolate-covered cherries, chocolate marshmallow cookies, Chunky bar, cookies, Cracker Jacks, crackers (unspecified and whole wheat), cupcakes, dark-chocolate caramels, Ding-Dongs, Doritos, Fig Newtons, Fritos, fruit pie, gumdrops, Gummi Bears (regular and sweet-n-sour), Heath bars, Hershey's kisses, Ho Hos, jawbreakers, jellybeans, Kit-Kats, licorice, licorice whips, Lifesavers, M&Ms (regular and peanut), Mallomars, malt balls, marshmallows, Mentos, Milky Ways, mini candy bars, Necco wafers, Oreos (Double Stuf and chocolate-dipped), Payday bars, Planter's Peanut bar, popcorn, potato chips, pretzels, pretzel sticks, red hots, Ring Dings, root beer barrels, salt water taffy, Snickers, taco chips, Tootsie Roll Pops, Tootsie Rolls, tortilla chips, Triscuits, Twinkies, Yodels)
Crushes: Claudia-8 (Guy, Terry, Austin Bentley, Timothy Carmody, Arthur Feingold, Woody Jefferson, Trevor Sandbourne, Will Yamakawa), Dawn-5 (Travis, Lewis Bruno, Parker Harris, Price Irving, Richie Magnesi), Mary Anne-2 (Alex, Logan Bruno), Stacey-7 (Toby, Kelsey Bauman, Pete Black, Ross Brown, Pierre D'Amboise, Scott Foley, Sam Thomas), Kristy-1 (Bart Taylor), Mallory-1 (Ben Hobart), Jessi-3 (Daniel, Curtis Shaller, Quint Walter)
6/10/11
Keep Out, Claudia! (RS#56)
Original Publication Date: 1992
Ghostwriter? No
Synopsis:
Jackie Rodowsky inspires Claudia to a great idea of her own: a band that the neighborhood kids can play in. A lot of kids join, their skills ranging from actually taking lessons to banging on oatmeal drums. They come together pretty well, and have a well-received concert of songs from Fiddler on the Roof.
That choice of play, however, means the most recent additions to the BSC client roster won't be in the band. At first, the Lowell children (girl-boy-girl) seem sweet and well-mannered; they're angels for Mary Anne. But when Claudia sits for them, they're rude, even the mother. Then Jessi goes to sit for them, and the mother changes her mind and shuts the door in Jessi's face (we never hear about the father). Pretty soon, the BSC catches on: the Lowells are prejudiced, even going so far as to ask for only blonde-haired, blue-eyed sitters. The BSC decides not to sit for them anymore, and hope that their example will instill some wisdom onto the family. Claudia is especially hurt by this, having never experienced racism before, but her family and the BSC help her through it.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Paydays in her dresser, crckers
Claudia likes Bach.
While I understand what she's saying, it's funny that Claudia thinks the English alphabet could do without the letter C. Spell your name, dear. Oh, wait...Caludia...
Kristy and Jessi horde their money.
Isn't it strange that Claudia equates poor fashion sense with intelligence (as seen in Janine, through Claudia's eyes) when Stacey is her best friend?
Shannon's "description" is now relegated to a parenthetical aside. She doesn't even get her own paragraph.
Though Mary Anne doesn't often attend church, when she does, it's Presbyterian.
Jessi takes French class. (thanks, Laura!)
Their Families:
Watson still likes to talk in quotes.
The Club:
The Rodowskys have a dog, Bo. I don't remember reading about him before. When they were introduced in RS#10, Jackie had a pet grasshopper named Elizabeth.
Jackie and Nicky Pike seem to be getting friendly.
SMS: nothing new; I think it's still summer
***Commenter Laura pointed out that Jessi mentions French class homework; school has started again***
PSA time: nothing new
Misc:
I don't think "out" in the title should have been capitalized, as it is on the book cover (at least my version, which is the old style). It's a preposition. Usually those and articles aren't capitalized.
This book does bring up something interesting...religion very rarely plays a part in the books. I know not everyone is religious, but I was always surprised that it came up so infrequently.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 3
Halloweens in 8th grade: 2 (plus one in seventh)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 3
BSC Fights: 6
SMS Staff: 26
Students (other than the BSC): 84; 59 8th graders, 2 7th grader, 11 sixth-graders, 11 unspecified
Clients: 29
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 61 (bubble gum, Butterfingers, butterscotch candy, candy hearts, Cheese Doodles, Cheetos, a chocolate bar, chocolate-covered cherries, chocolate marshmallow cookies, Chunky bar, cookies, Cracker Jacks, crackers (unspecified and whole wheat), cupcakes, dark-chocolate caramels, Ding-Dongs, Doritos, Fig Newtons, Fritos, fruit pie, gumdrops, Gummi Bears (regular and sweet-n-sour), Heath bars, Hershey's kisses, Ho Hos, jawbreakers, jellybeans, Kit-Kats, licorice, licorice whips, Lifesavers, M&Ms (regular and peanut), Mallomars, malt balls, marshmallows, Mentos, Milky Ways, mini candy bars, Necco wafers, Oreos (Double Stuf and chocolate-dipped), Payday bars, Planter's Peanut bar, popcorn, potato chips, pretzels, pretzel sticks, red hots, Ring Dings, root beer barrels, salt water taffy, Snickers, taco chips, Tootsie Roll Pops, Tootsie Rolls, tortilla chips, Triscuits, Twinkies, Yodels)
Crushes: Claudia-8 (Guy, Terry, Austin Bentley, Timothy Carmody, Arthur Feingold, Woody Jefferson, Trevor Sandbourne, Will Yamakawa), Dawn-5 (Travis, Lewis Bruno, Parker Harris, Price Irving, Richie Magnesi), Mary Anne-2 (Alex, Logan Bruno), Stacey-7 (Toby, Kelsey Bauman, Pete Black, Ross Brown, Pierre D'Amboise, Scott Foley, Sam Thomas), Kristy-1 (Bart Taylor), Mallory-1 (Ben Hobart), Jessi-3 (Daniel, Curtis Shaller, Quint Walter)
Ghostwriter? No
Synopsis:
Jackie Rodowsky inspires Claudia to a great idea of her own: a band that the neighborhood kids can play in. A lot of kids join, their skills ranging from actually taking lessons to banging on oatmeal drums. They come together pretty well, and have a well-received concert of songs from Fiddler on the Roof.
That choice of play, however, means the most recent additions to the BSC client roster won't be in the band. At first, the Lowell children (girl-boy-girl) seem sweet and well-mannered; they're angels for Mary Anne. But when Claudia sits for them, they're rude, even the mother. Then Jessi goes to sit for them, and the mother changes her mind and shuts the door in Jessi's face (we never hear about the father). Pretty soon, the BSC catches on: the Lowells are prejudiced, even going so far as to ask for only blonde-haired, blue-eyed sitters. The BSC decides not to sit for them anymore, and hope that their example will instill some wisdom onto the family. Claudia is especially hurt by this, having never experienced racism before, but her family and the BSC help her through it.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Paydays in her dresser, crckers
Claudia likes Bach.
While I understand what she's saying, it's funny that Claudia thinks the English alphabet could do without the letter C. Spell your name, dear. Oh, wait...Caludia...
Kristy and Jessi horde their money.
Isn't it strange that Claudia equates poor fashion sense with intelligence (as seen in Janine, through Claudia's eyes) when Stacey is her best friend?
Shannon's "description" is now relegated to a parenthetical aside. She doesn't even get her own paragraph.
Though Mary Anne doesn't often attend church, when she does, it's Presbyterian.
Jessi takes French class. (thanks, Laura!)
Their Families:
Watson still likes to talk in quotes.
The Club:
The Rodowskys have a dog, Bo. I don't remember reading about him before. When they were introduced in RS#10, Jackie had a pet grasshopper named Elizabeth.
Jackie and Nicky Pike seem to be getting friendly.
SMS: nothing new; I think it's still summer
***Commenter Laura pointed out that Jessi mentions French class homework; school has started again***
PSA time: nothing new
Misc:
I don't think "out" in the title should have been capitalized, as it is on the book cover (at least my version, which is the old style). It's a preposition. Usually those and articles aren't capitalized.
This book does bring up something interesting...religion very rarely plays a part in the books. I know not everyone is religious, but I was always surprised that it came up so infrequently.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 3
Halloweens in 8th grade: 2 (plus one in seventh)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 3
BSC Fights: 6
SMS Staff: 26
Students (other than the BSC): 84; 59 8th graders, 2 7th grader, 11 sixth-graders, 11 unspecified
Clients: 29
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 61 (bubble gum, Butterfingers, butterscotch candy, candy hearts, Cheese Doodles, Cheetos, a chocolate bar, chocolate-covered cherries, chocolate marshmallow cookies, Chunky bar, cookies, Cracker Jacks, crackers (unspecified and whole wheat), cupcakes, dark-chocolate caramels, Ding-Dongs, Doritos, Fig Newtons, Fritos, fruit pie, gumdrops, Gummi Bears (regular and sweet-n-sour), Heath bars, Hershey's kisses, Ho Hos, jawbreakers, jellybeans, Kit-Kats, licorice, licorice whips, Lifesavers, M&Ms (regular and peanut), Mallomars, malt balls, marshmallows, Mentos, Milky Ways, mini candy bars, Necco wafers, Oreos (Double Stuf and chocolate-dipped), Payday bars, Planter's Peanut bar, popcorn, potato chips, pretzels, pretzel sticks, red hots, Ring Dings, root beer barrels, salt water taffy, Snickers, taco chips, Tootsie Roll Pops, Tootsie Rolls, tortilla chips, Triscuits, Twinkies, Yodels)
Crushes: Claudia-8 (Guy, Terry, Austin Bentley, Timothy Carmody, Arthur Feingold, Woody Jefferson, Trevor Sandbourne, Will Yamakawa), Dawn-5 (Travis, Lewis Bruno, Parker Harris, Price Irving, Richie Magnesi), Mary Anne-2 (Alex, Logan Bruno), Stacey-7 (Toby, Kelsey Bauman, Pete Black, Ross Brown, Pierre D'Amboise, Scott Foley, Sam Thomas), Kristy-1 (Bart Taylor), Mallory-1 (Ben Hobart), Jessi-3 (Daniel, Curtis Shaller, Quint Walter)
6/4/11
Baby-sitters at Shadow Lake (SS#8)
Original Publication Date: 1992
Ghostwriter? No
Synopsis:
Watson Brewer's aunt and uncle are updating their wills, and considering leaving him their summer cabin at Shadow Lake. To decide, Watson proposes a two-week vacation to the cabin, and of course, the BSC--minus Logan and Shannon OF COURSE, as they have plans--is invited to come along (so do some friends of Karen's and David Michael's; Sam and Charlie decline to bring friends in hopes of meeting girls). Hmm, the whole club, a fortnight...you know what this means: Super Special. Here are the plots:
Kristy spends her time doing everything she can think to convince Watson to agree to be willed the cabin, including making everyone write in a journal about how wonderful it is. Watson does agree to have the cabin willed to him, and we never hear about it again (that I can think of).
Dawn is obsessed with finding the mystery of Shadow Lake. There was a family who owned and lived on the island in the middle of the lake, but suddenly disappeared, leaving no trace. One night, the BSC has a campout on the island, during which Dawn finds a gold locket that she thinks belonged to an eighteen-year-old who lived there and was engaged to a man Dawn met in town before the disappearance. Dawn gives him the locket.
Jessi finds herself potentially flirting with a boy named Daniel, and wondering about her allegiance to Quint. But it turns out that Daniel has a girlfriend, and was just being friendly.
Stacey is the unwilling object of Sam Thomas's attentions. He does a good job annoying her, until Charlie gives him some advice. Stacey and Sam end up dancing the night away at the lodge dance.
Mary Anne mostly just babysits. She doesn't get much of a plot.
Mallory gets eaten alive by bugs. And made fun of by everyone but Jessi when she covers up to defend herself against the onslaught. The best friends you'll ever have indeed! After the trip, she sends a letter to the bug spray company explaining its product doesn't work, and gets a form letter thanking her for her comments with two coupons for the spray.
Claudia decides to enter the cabin's small boat in a contest, decorated as a lake monster (there's talk of something like Nessie in Shadow Lake). Andrew and Emily Michelle help her come up with ideas. She wins a prize for "Most Spirit."
We are also "treated" to chapters narrated by the kids. It's Karen, Nancy Dawes, and Hannie Papadakis versus David Michael, Linny Papadakis, and Nicky Pike over who will create a better hideaway in the woods. The girls have found a shack they're converting to a playhouse while the boys want to build their own fort, which distracts Linny and Nicky from trying to impress each other. The girls win when the boys' fort collapses. Tragically, Karen was not injured.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Mallomars "under a pile of junk" (yummy)
Claudia still tutors Emily Michelle.
Mary Anne claims to not believe in ghosts. What about the secret passage?
Stacey still can't stand vomit.
Their Families:
I like how Charlie sometimes steps in with the kids while Sam remains a goofball. It's consistent with Charlie having had to suddenly take on more responsibility when their dad walked out.
Haha, Sam finds Karen annoying.
Charlie shaves, but Sam doesn't yet.
Emily Michelle occasionally uses a pacifier.
Watson refers to Kristy as his daughter. Aww...
The Club:
Remember the advice to ask a child "Tell me about your picture" rather than trying to guess what it is? Must be club policy, because Claudia's invoking it here.
SMS: Summer vacation (again)
PSA time: nothing new
Misc: nothing stood out
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 3
Halloweens in 8th grade: 2 (plus one in seventh)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 3
BSC Fights: 6
SMS Staff: 26
Students (other than the BSC): 84; 59 8th graders, 2 7th grader, 11 sixth-graders, 11 unspecified
Clients: 29
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 60 (bubble gum, Butterfingers, butterscotch candy, candy hearts, Cheese Doodles, Cheetos, a chocolate bar, chocolate-covered cherries, chocolate marshmallow cookies, Chunky bar, cookies, Cracker Jacks, crackers (unspecified and whole wheat), cupcakes, dark-chocolate caramels, Ding-Dongs, Doritos, Fig Newtons, Fritos, fruit pie, gumdrops, Gummi Bears (regular and sweet-n-sour), Heath bars, Hershey's kisses, Ho Hos, jawbreakers, jellybeans, Kit-Kats, licorice, licorice whips, Lifesavers, M&Ms (regular and peanut), Mallomars, malt balls, marshmallows, Mentos, Milky Ways, mini candy bars, Necco wafers, Oreos (Double Stuf and chocolate-dipped), Planter's Peanut bar, popcorn, potato chips, pretzels, pretzel sticks, red hots, Ring Dings, root beer barrels, salt water taffy, Snickers, taco chips, Tootsie Roll Pops, Tootsie Rolls, tortilla chips, Triscuits, Twinkies, Yodels)
Crushes: Claudia-8 (Guy, Terry, Austin Bentley, Timothy Carmody, Arthur Feingold, Woody Jefferson, Trevor Sandbourne, Will Yamakawa), Dawn-5 (Travis, Lewis Bruno, Parker Harris, Price Irving, Richie Magnesi), Mary Anne-2 (Alex, Logan Bruno), Stacey-7 (Toby, Kelsey Bauman, Pete Black, Ross Brown, Pierre D'Amboise, Scott Foley, Sam Thomas), Kristy-1 (Bart Taylor), Mallory-1 (Ben Hobart), Jessi-3 (Daniel, Curtis Shaller, Quint Walter)
Ghostwriter? No
Synopsis:
Watson Brewer's aunt and uncle are updating their wills, and considering leaving him their summer cabin at Shadow Lake. To decide, Watson proposes a two-week vacation to the cabin, and of course, the BSC--minus Logan and Shannon OF COURSE, as they have plans--is invited to come along (so do some friends of Karen's and David Michael's; Sam and Charlie decline to bring friends in hopes of meeting girls). Hmm, the whole club, a fortnight...you know what this means: Super Special. Here are the plots:
Kristy spends her time doing everything she can think to convince Watson to agree to be willed the cabin, including making everyone write in a journal about how wonderful it is. Watson does agree to have the cabin willed to him, and we never hear about it again (that I can think of).
Dawn is obsessed with finding the mystery of Shadow Lake. There was a family who owned and lived on the island in the middle of the lake, but suddenly disappeared, leaving no trace. One night, the BSC has a campout on the island, during which Dawn finds a gold locket that she thinks belonged to an eighteen-year-old who lived there and was engaged to a man Dawn met in town before the disappearance. Dawn gives him the locket.
Jessi finds herself potentially flirting with a boy named Daniel, and wondering about her allegiance to Quint. But it turns out that Daniel has a girlfriend, and was just being friendly.
Stacey is the unwilling object of Sam Thomas's attentions. He does a good job annoying her, until Charlie gives him some advice. Stacey and Sam end up dancing the night away at the lodge dance.
Mary Anne mostly just babysits. She doesn't get much of a plot.
Mallory gets eaten alive by bugs. And made fun of by everyone but Jessi when she covers up to defend herself against the onslaught. The best friends you'll ever have indeed! After the trip, she sends a letter to the bug spray company explaining its product doesn't work, and gets a form letter thanking her for her comments with two coupons for the spray.
Claudia decides to enter the cabin's small boat in a contest, decorated as a lake monster (there's talk of something like Nessie in Shadow Lake). Andrew and Emily Michelle help her come up with ideas. She wins a prize for "Most Spirit."
We are also "treated" to chapters narrated by the kids. It's Karen, Nancy Dawes, and Hannie Papadakis versus David Michael, Linny Papadakis, and Nicky Pike over who will create a better hideaway in the woods. The girls have found a shack they're converting to a playhouse while the boys want to build their own fort, which distracts Linny and Nicky from trying to impress each other. The girls win when the boys' fort collapses. Tragically, Karen was not injured.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Mallomars "under a pile of junk" (yummy)
Claudia still tutors Emily Michelle.
Mary Anne claims to not believe in ghosts. What about the secret passage?
Stacey still can't stand vomit.
Their Families:
I like how Charlie sometimes steps in with the kids while Sam remains a goofball. It's consistent with Charlie having had to suddenly take on more responsibility when their dad walked out.
Haha, Sam finds Karen annoying.
Charlie shaves, but Sam doesn't yet.
Emily Michelle occasionally uses a pacifier.
Watson refers to Kristy as his daughter. Aww...
The Club:
Remember the advice to ask a child "Tell me about your picture" rather than trying to guess what it is? Must be club policy, because Claudia's invoking it here.
SMS: Summer vacation (again)
PSA time: nothing new
Misc: nothing stood out
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 3
Halloweens in 8th grade: 2 (plus one in seventh)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 3
BSC Fights: 6
SMS Staff: 26
Students (other than the BSC): 84; 59 8th graders, 2 7th grader, 11 sixth-graders, 11 unspecified
Clients: 29
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 60 (bubble gum, Butterfingers, butterscotch candy, candy hearts, Cheese Doodles, Cheetos, a chocolate bar, chocolate-covered cherries, chocolate marshmallow cookies, Chunky bar, cookies, Cracker Jacks, crackers (unspecified and whole wheat), cupcakes, dark-chocolate caramels, Ding-Dongs, Doritos, Fig Newtons, Fritos, fruit pie, gumdrops, Gummi Bears (regular and sweet-n-sour), Heath bars, Hershey's kisses, Ho Hos, jawbreakers, jellybeans, Kit-Kats, licorice, licorice whips, Lifesavers, M&Ms (regular and peanut), Mallomars, malt balls, marshmallows, Mentos, Milky Ways, mini candy bars, Necco wafers, Oreos (Double Stuf and chocolate-dipped), Planter's Peanut bar, popcorn, potato chips, pretzels, pretzel sticks, red hots, Ring Dings, root beer barrels, salt water taffy, Snickers, taco chips, Tootsie Roll Pops, Tootsie Rolls, tortilla chips, Triscuits, Twinkies, Yodels)
Crushes: Claudia-8 (Guy, Terry, Austin Bentley, Timothy Carmody, Arthur Feingold, Woody Jefferson, Trevor Sandbourne, Will Yamakawa), Dawn-5 (Travis, Lewis Bruno, Parker Harris, Price Irving, Richie Magnesi), Mary Anne-2 (Alex, Logan Bruno), Stacey-7 (Toby, Kelsey Bauman, Pete Black, Ross Brown, Pierre D'Amboise, Scott Foley, Sam Thomas), Kristy-1 (Bart Taylor), Mallory-1 (Ben Hobart), Jessi-3 (Daniel, Curtis Shaller, Quint Walter)
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