Beware, Dawn! (M#2)

Original Publication Date: 1991

Ghostwriter? Yes, Ellen Miles

Synopsis:

The girls are in a competition for Sitter of the Month. They're trying to not let the contest get them in a fight, but they do each want to win.

Then creepy things start happening during sitting jobs: phone calls with no one on the other end, threatening notes, a bouquet of dead flower stems, a decapitated doll (seriously). At first, Dawn thinks it's Alan Gray, remembering what she's been told about the incident way back in book #2. But he's quickly ruled out. For a little bit, Dawn even wonders Kristy (to whom nothing has happened) might be trying to scare the other sitters in order to win the contest. Eventually, it slips that Mel Tucker (remember him from teasing Susan and the Hobarts?) is doing "sitter checks" for the contest. The BSC sets up a sting operation and catch him in the act. Turns out he was scaring them to get back at the club for telling Mrs. Hobart about his continued teasing, which got him in trouble. This isn't the first issue he's had, and the Tuckers tell Dawn they're going to set up an appointment with a child psychologist to help figure out why he acts out so much.

As for the contest? A seven-way tie. I'd call foul, but several years ago my older brother and I did win "Best Sitter" along with five other sitters in our area. It can happen!


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: Hershey bar under her pillow, pretzels and Tootsie Pops

Dawn thinks Mary Anne and Logan will always be together.

Dawn also thinks it's her place to lecture Claudia about her eating habits.

Dawn hates Candy Land. So does Kristy...I wonder if all the sitters do.


Their Families:

It's implied that Adam is the oldest triplet, then Byron, then Jordan. But it's subtle so I'm not sure.

Becca's favorite TV show is The Cosby Show, dame as Charlotte Johanssen.

The only food all the Pikes like is spaghetti. What happened to Daddy Stew?


The Club:

I think it's interesting that Stacey and Dawn both needed the BSC as a solid group of friends when they first moved to Stoneybrook, but that Dawn was never as into in as Stacey. Can you see Dawn being willing to wear a BSC sandwich board to school? On the other hand, we have the Stacey story arc that's coming up in about 35 books...

Dawn says she's glad she doesn't have to sit for all four Hobarts at once. I guess this is when Ben Hobart goes from capable eleven-year-old to sittee? But he's still going out with Mallory in this book.

The Kormans are still doing the stupid toilet monster thing.


SMS:

Staff: Mrs. McCarthy (6th grade)


PSA time:

Jessi learned from my PSA a few posts back! She gives Squirt plain water, not milk or juice for his nighttime bottle. Hooray for no rotten milk or tooth decay!


Misc:

Calling Stamford is long-distance from Stoneybrook.


The numbers:

Starting 8th grade: 3

Halloweens in 8th grade: 2 (plus one in seventh)

Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 1

Summers after 8th grade: 2

BSC Fights: 6

SMS Staff: 21

Students (other than the BSC): 63; 40 8th graders, nine sixth-graders, nine unspecified

Clients: 27

Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 52 (bubble gum, Butterfingers, butterscotch candy, candy hearts, Cheese Doodles, Cheetos, a chocolate bar, chocolate-covered cherries, Chunky bar, cookies, Cracker Jacks, crackers (unspecified and whole wheat), cupcakes, dark-chocolate caramels, Ding-Dongs, Doritos, Fig Newtons, Fritos, gumdrops, Gummi Bears, Heath bars, Hershey's kisses, Ho Hos, jawbreakers, Kit-Kats, licorice, licorice whips, Lifesavers, M&Ms (regular and peanut), Mallomars, marshmallows, Mentos, mini candy bars, Necco wafers, Oreos (Double Stuf), 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, Triscuits, Twinkies, Yodels)

Crushes: Claudia-7 (Guy, Terry, Austin Bentley, Timothy Carmody, Woody Jefferson, Trevor Sandbourne, Will Yamakawa), Dawn-4 (Travis, Lewis Bruno, Parker Harris, 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-1 (Quint Walter)

Claudia and the Genius of Elm Street (RS#49)

Original Publication Date: 1991

Ghostwriter? Yes, Peter Lerangis

Synopsis:

In this books, Laura Ingalls and Almanzo Wilder apparently need the services of the BSC, as Claudia starts sitting for one Rosie Wilder. I wonder if she was born in December.

Unintended crossovers aside...the Wilders (actually Ginger and George) need a sitter three days a week until Rosie's grandmother (Caroline?) recovers from a broken ankle, the flu, and shingles. I hope she doesn't get post-herpetic neurolgia, a complication my dad got after shingles. Claudia is available all but two of those days, so she gets the job.

As it turns out, the job mostly consists of sitting around while Rosie has various lessons, rehearsals, and practices. She's very talented and her parents push into recitals, TV appearances, competitions, and the like. Rosie rubs the BSC the wrong way at first; she's so smart, and she knows it, that she acts conceited. They even have to bring in Janine to help with Rosie's homework. But Claudia eventually figures out that Rosie doesn't like most of what she's forced to do, which puts her in a bad mood. What does Rosie really like? Art, of course. She's been hiding it from her parents because they'll just turn it into another chore for her. Claudia discovers this while working on sketches of junk food for a. Andy Warhol-inspired art exhibit she's planning to hold in her parents' garage (I know, but it actually turns out really well, despite Alan Gray's sabotage efforts).

Claudia eventually convinces Rosie to talk to her parents about how overbooked she is, and they agree to cut down on her activities to just math club, violin, and art. And there was great rejoicing.


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: A Kit-Kat in her night table, Milky Ways, M&Ms, and a Chunky bar (that just sounds gross)

Claudia read (and enjoyed) Oliver Twist and The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe.

It's sad how insecure Claudia can be. She worries about her friends mocking her spelling behind her back. Though I wouldn't be surprised if Dawn does.

Stacey has the insight that Rosie might be insecure. Considering she had the trick with using reverse psychology on the Delaneys way back in RS#11, it makes sense for her to think of this idea.


Their Families:

Claudia says that she and Janine are getting along better, and it shows in this book. Hooray! Janine seems nice, if a bit unrelateable at times.


The Club:

New client: Rosie Wilder

Mary Anne color-codes the scheduling book.


SMS: nothing new


PSA time:


Misc:

Is it necessary to check a crossword puzzle for accuracy? If one word is wrong, won't it throw off the other words, too?

Claudia references her lessons with MacKenzie Clark in New York from SS#6.


The numbers:

Starting 8th grade: 3

Halloweens in 8th grade: 2 (plus one in seventh)

Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 1

Summers after 8th grade: 2

BSC Fights: 6

SMS Staff: 20

Students (other than the BSC): 63; 40 8th graders, nine sixth-graders, nine unspecified

Clients: 27

Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 52 (bubble gum, Butterfingers, butterscotch candy, candy hearts, Cheese Doodles, Cheetos, a chocolate bar, chocolate-covered cherries, Chunky bar, cookies, Cracker Jacks, crackers (unspecified and whole wheat), cupcakes, dark-chocolate caramels, Ding-Dongs, Doritos, Fig Newtons, Fritos, gumdrops, Gummi Bears, Heath bars, Hershey's kisses, Ho Hos, jawbreakers, Kit-Kats, licorice, licorice whips, Lifesavers, M&Ms (regular and peanut), Mallomars, marshmallows, Mentos, mini candy bars, Necco wafers, Oreos (Double Stuf), 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, Triscuits, Twinkies, Yodels)

Crushes: Claudia-7 (Guy, Terry, Austin Bentley, Timothy Carmody, Woody Jefferson, Trevor Sandbourne, Will Yamakawa), Dawn-4 (Travis, Lewis Bruno, Parker Harris, 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-1 (Quint Walter)

Jessi's Wish (RS#48)

Original Publication Date: 1991

Ghostwriter? No

Synopsis:

Jessi volunteers to help with her sister's after-school club, which organizes charity activities for its members. She's helping out for a month while one of the teachers is on a trip; otherwise the club would have had to disband. The rest of the BSC also backs off from baby-sitting to volunteer: Stacey with a new diabetes clinic for recently-diagnosed kids, Kristy with the daycare her younger brother used to attend, Dawn with kids who have physical disabilities like muscular dystrophy, Claudia teaches an art class at the community center, Mary Anne's helping watch a family friend's brain-damaged son, and Mallory volunteers at the park's recreation program.

Through the club, Jessi meets Danielle, a nine-year-old with leukemia. She's just gotten out of the hospital and is rejoining the club. At first, the students who knew her when she was healthy are hesitant, worrying about how sick Danielle is. But she's able to do most of the same things, she just gets tired sooner. Jessi also finds out about a Make A Wish-like program and through it, Danielle and her family are able to go to Disney World. Sadly, Danielle has a relapse, and is in the hospital again at the end of the book.


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Mallory expects to make a lot of money from her writing, and plans to use to pay for a nose job.

I wish we'd read about Logan and Shannon doing something. They just end up baby-sitting more.

Kristy's good at spelling.

Jessi has a collection of ceramic horses and of stuffed animals.


Their Families:

Claudia's reaction to learning Margo Pike will be in her art class: "Great!" And to learning Karen Brewer also will: "I'll be prepared." Claudia's awesome.



The Club:

New client: the Roberts family, Danielle and Greg.


SMS: nothing new


PSA time:

I agree with Jessi's mom, it's a good idea to not inundate a family with calls when a member has to go to the hospital. Do call, but maybe wait a day or two.


Misc:

Kristy feels a need to explain that daycare is for parents who work.

It was very thoughtful of the Roberts to get a kitten for Danielle's brother, Greg. He must feel lost with all the attention Danielle needs.

The part with fingerpainting reminds me of an exchange I had with a five-year-old when he came back from playing at a friend's house. He had been painting and it got all over him and his clothes, too. I asked what he made, and he looked at his painting, then himself, and said, "A mess."

Margo sculpts a Hamburger Man. When I worked at a bike store, a customer told me he was making a Hamburger Bike: tan wheels for the bun, a brown frame for the meat, a green seat for the lettuce, red and yellow handlebar tape for the ketchup and mustard. He had some other ideas, too.


The numbers:

Starting 8th grade: 3

Halloweens in 8th grade: 2 (plus one in seventh)

Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 1

Summers after 8th grade: 2

BSC Fights: 6

SMS Staff: 20

Students (other than the BSC): 63; 40 8th graders, nine sixth-graders, nine unspecified

Clients: 26

Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 50 (bubble gum, Butterfingers, butterscotch candy, candy hearts, Cheese Doodles, Cheetos, a chocolate bar, chocolate-covered cherries, cookies, Cracker Jacks, crackers (unspecified and whole wheat), cupcakes, dark-chocolate caramels, Ding-Dongs, Doritos, Fig Newtons, Fritos, gumdrops, Gummi Bears, Heath bars, Hershey's kisses, Ho Hos, jawbreakers, licorice, licorice whips, Lifesavers, M&Ms (regular and peanut), Mallomars, marshmallows, Mentos, mini candy bars, Necco wafers, Oreos (Double Stuf), 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, Triscuits, Twinkies, Yodels)

Crushes: Claudia-7 (Guy, Terry, Austin Bentley, Timothy Carmody, Woody Jefferson, Trevor Sandbourne, Will Yamakawa), Dawn-4 (Travis, Lewis Bruno, Parker Harris, 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-1 (Quint Walter)

Mallory on Strike (RS#47)

Original Publication Date: 1991

Ghostwriter? Yes, Jahnna Beecham and Malcolm Hillgartner

Synopsis:

Mallory is excited about SMS's upcoming writing competition, and has a great idea for a story. Unfortunately, she has very little time between the BSC and her family. Finally, she goes on strike, taking a two-week hiatus from the BSC and taking a day from being the family's gopher. She makes a lot of progress, not just with her story, but with helping her parents see that they have gotten too used to the idea that she should always help out: Mallory needs to be able to do her homework and have her own life, too. Her parents give her a special day to do whatever she wants, and and elects to take Jessi to the mall. They have a great time, and Mallory realizes that when she can have a break from being on-call for her family, she appreciates them more.

The competition closes, and Mallory soon finds out that she's won Best Overall Fiction for the sixth grade. She's thrilled, and gets to work on planning a special day for her siblings. She organizes a day of fun and a scavenger hunt for her siblings, with Jessi's help. They all have a great time, and Mallory is happy that she can appreciate her family.


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: Mallomars in her dresser drawers, M&Ms in her jewelry box, pretzels and Tootsie Pops in her shoes.

Mallory's most difficult subjects are math and science.

Mallory references a particular quilt pattern, which is nice as we learned a few books ago that she knows how to sew.

It's funny and kinda sad that Mallory seems to be the only BSC member to regularly use the slang the club has made up (acute, fresh, etc).

Jessi is studying French to learn more about ballet, as we learn when she informs Claudia that her favorite dish at Chez Maurice is eels. But Stacey's been taking French for a couple years. It would have made more sense for her to realize that.

You know, we hear about Mallory's braces, but is she ever wearing them on any book cover?


Their Families:

The finger that Nicky broke back in Mallory's first book is still slightly crooked from getting jammed playing volleyball.

Chez Maurice is Claudia's parents' favorite restaurant.


The Club:

Kristy's getting more uptight about being on time to meetings, leaving less and less room for slack.

Ugh, the BSC still sits for the Betsy Sobak. Why?


SMS:

New SMS staff: Mr. Doughtery, creative writing, who goes by Mr. D.

6th grade student: Rebecca Mason (possible relation to Cokie Mason? But Rebecca is smart.)


PSA time: nothing new


Misc:

Mr. D. asks the class if they have the "Write Stuff" (it's written that way on the blackboard). He explains that the right stuff can mean lots of different abilities, like flying a space shuttle. Where ever, pray tell, did he come up with that idea in relation to the right stuff?

I actually used Kristy's idea from this book in real life. When I was coaching cross country, one athlete was having trouble balancing everything in her life. She was thinking of quitting, and I was dangerously low on numbers, so I suggested a two-week break first instead.

There's a discrepancy within a few pages: Mallory sees some earrings she says Claire would like, but later says she thought of Margo.


The numbers:

Starting 8th grade: 3

Halloweens in 8th grade: 2 (plus one in seventh)

Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 1

Summers after 8th grade: 2

BSC Fights: 6

SMS Staff: 20

Students (other than the BSC): 64; 40 8th graders, 10 sixth-graders, nine unspecified

Clients: 25

Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 50 (bubble gum, Butterfingers, butterscotch candy, candy hearts, Cheese Doodles, Cheetos, a chocolate bar, chocolate-covered cherries, cookies, Cracker Jacks, crackers (unspecified and whole wheat), cupcakes, dark-chocolate caramels, Ding-Dongs, Doritos, Fig Newtons, Fritos, gumdrops, Gummi Bears, Heath bars, Hershey's kisses, Ho Hos, jawbreakers, licorice, licorice whips, Lifesavers, M&Ms (regular and peanut), Mallomars, marshmallows, Mentos, mini candy bars, Necco wafers, Oreos (Double Stuf), 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, Triscuits, Twinkies, Yodels)

Crushes: Claudia-7 (Guy, Terry, Austin Bentley, Timothy Carmody, Woody Jefferson, Trevor Sandbourne, Will Yamakawa), Dawn-4 (Travis, Lewis Bruno, Parker Harris, 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-1 (Quint Walter)