Stacey's Mistake (GN#14)

 Publication Date: 2023

Ghostwriter? No, the text copyright is for Ann M. Martin.

Illustrator: Ellen Crenshaw, with color by Braden Lamb and Hank Jones

Synopsis:

The plot is, as expected, pretty much like the non-graphic version, although here the need for sitters is because of a fundraiser for a community theater rather than a meeting of the residents of Stacey's apartment building, and Mallory and Jessi are able to visit as well.

Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: none mentioned

Reuniting in New York City

Their Families: 

Tigger!

The Club (and clients): 

When Stacey takes the club around to meet the families they'll be sitting, I was surprised to see Stacey call the first mother by her first name. I do NOT like being called Mrs. LastName, and encourage everyone regardless of age to just call me by my first name. I know that the BSC books were written a little while ago when it was more common for children to default to Mr. and Mrs. LastName for adults, so I figured this was an update. Then I realized that Stacey was greeting the nanny, not the mother--so she calls The Help by their first names, but not other adults...?

SMS: nothing new

PSA Time: nothing stood out

Misc:

Martin dedicates this book to her new godson, Andrew Cleveland Gordon.

Crenshaw dedicates it to "Chris and Erin, my first--and best--baby-sitters. May our fledgling film series, The Average Family, live forever in legend and infamy."

Laine

Stacey's party

The man with the long beard, tricycle, and cats in the wagon!
I remember him distinctly from the original book.

The Baby-sitters Club Netflix TV Series: Stacey's Emergency

Netflix has a new original series: The Baby-sitters Club! The second season and final covers eight books: Kristy and the Snobs, Claudia and the New Girl, Stacey's Emergency, Jessi and the Superbrat, Mary Anne and the Great Romance, Dawn and the Wicked Stepsister (notice the title change?),  Claudia and the Sad Goodbye, and Kristy and the Baby Parade. 

The plots are largely the same as the original books, so I won't rehash that except for the episodes that veer way off. But here are some things I noticed:

What stood out as surprisingly (not necessarily good or bad) different to me:

It's nice to see the friendship between the girls' parents, like Dawn's mom and Kristy's mom.

Stacey's parents are still together at this point--they might not divorce at all in the Netflix series, come to think of it.

What I was happy stayed the same:

I love seeing Jessi's barre.

Mary Anne struggles with sewing. It's subtle, but she pokes herself in the finger with a needle while hand-stitching.

Other interesting touches: 

Dawn's mom's absent-mindedness shows up in her casually telling Dawn that Kristy's mom and stepdad are considering having a baby together, without regard to whether there should be any discretion involved.    

Good-bye Stacey, Good-bye (GN#11)

Publication Date: 2021

Ghostwriter? No, the text copyright is for Ann M. Martin.

Illustrator: Gabriela Epstein with color by Braden Lamb

Synopsis:

The plot is, as expected, pretty much like the non-graphic version. 


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

The club in its current form at the start of the book (minus associate members):

We only see the older members get the news about the move, as Stacey announces it at an emergency club meeting during lunch. Mallory and Jessi are told off-screen.

Claudia candy:

Just chips again.

Their Families: 

Gotta love the disgusted look on Stacey's mom's face when Stacey horks down her dinner:

Claudia's family reacting to the news:

Trouble brewing at Dawn's house with Jeff's wanting to move back to California:

The Club (and clients): 

Stacey's goodbye party with the baby-sitting clients:

SMS: nothing new

PSA Time: nothing stood out

Misc:

Martin dedicates this "with love to Peanut Butter from Jelly."

Epstein dedicates it to "the Menapace family: no matter what city you're in, you've always made your house a home to me. Thank you."

A picture of Laine:

A lot of little moments from this book have stuck in my memory for years: Stacey jumping on a box to help her mom close it only to find it's full of books instead of clothes, the BSC pricing all the garage sale items including how low things should be priced, Dawn selling spider plants, someone asking to buy the shutters off  the house during the garage sale... I'm happy they made it in the graphic novel!

The Baby-sitters Club Netflix TV Series: Boy-Crazy Stacey

Netflix has a new original series: The Baby-sitters Club! The first season covers the first eight books plus a sort of adaptation of of the second super special, Baby-sitters Summer Vacation. AND...it's set in the present day (2019/2020), updated accordingly, and much more diverse. The plots are broadly the same as the original books. Here are some things that I noticed:

What stood out as surprisingly (not necessarily good or bad) different to me:   

The Sea City trip takes place over spring break instead of summer vacation, so there's not so much swimming.

Adam, Byron, and Jordan aren't identical. Byron is noticeably shorter than the other two, so they might not even be triplets at all. 

Alex is gay in this version. Part of me misses Mary Anne's first crush from the books, but on the other hand, she's already developing feelings for Logan at this point in the TV show. Stacey and Toby have a brief flirtation, culminating a good-bye kiss at the end of the vacation.

What I was happy stayed the same:

Dawn and Mary Anne want their parents to get back together, since they broke up a couple episodes ago during the initial room makeover. Dawn uses her knowledge of their high school dating to facilitate.. The yearbook that the two found in the book version of Mary Anne Saves the Day is moved here, which is how Dawn learns more about their prior relationship. This sparks Richard making an overture via the gift of a pet turtle--Sharon used to call him "Turtle."

The incident with Karen and Andrew washing the car with steel wool happens here--this time, it's a classic car, and Kristy knows right away they're using steel wool, but can't stop them because she accidentally got locked in a storage shed. She tries to arrange for the car to be repainted before Watson finds out, but ultimately comes clean to him, which helps them trust each other.

Other interesting touches: 

Dawn calls her mom "Sharon" instead of "Mom." 

Stacey informs the club (and me) that she can go without her insulin pump for up to an hour, so she swim.

Elizabeth and Watson's wedding plans are happening in the background, and the subsequent moving plans.

The Pike kids bury Mary Anne in the sand. She's rescued by Alex and Toby, but not before they ask her if she wants to be buried "for the 'Gram."

The Baby-sitters Club Netflix TV Series: The Truth About Stacey

Netflix has a new original series: The Baby-sitters Club! The first season covers the first eight books plus a sort of adaptation of of the second super special, Baby-sitters Summer Vacation. AND...it's set in the present day (2019/2020), updated accordingly, and much more diverse. The plots are broadly the same as the original books. Here are some things that I noticed:

What stood out as surprisingly (not necessarily good or bad) different to me:

Stacey keeps her diabetes secret until this episode, She uses an insulin pump instead of having daily injections. Her mom seems more invested in hiding Stacey's diabetes than her dad does.

Some of the adults are called by their first names--which is how I prefer everyone to address me.

Charlotte Johanssen is adopted rather than either of her mothers doing IVF with one of their ova. At least, I think she's not the same ethnicity as her moms, but I'm not great with faces.

The Baby-sitters Agency sends the BSC on fake jobs, including one for an elderly man.

The Agency finds a cell phone video of Stacey having a seizure brought on by diabetic shock and post it online to discredit the BSC. There's a brief mention of cyber-bullying, but it's pretty disappointing to see the parents of the BSC charges so ready to think that it's better to trust the group that sent the video as retaliation for being called out on leaving a four-year-old unsupervised outside over a group that includes someone who had trouble getting an accurate medical diagnosis. Stacey has to basically hold a press conference to explain and nearly apologize, and offers to resign from the BSC. Dr. Johanssen comes to her defense, explaining how maturely Stacey handles her diabetes. Even then, it takes Kristy reminding the other parents about the cyber-bullying for them to trust the BSC.

What I was happy stayed the same:

Kid-kits make their debut.

The scene with Jamie Newton alone in the street and talking to his mom is done well.

Other interesting touches: 

Watson gives Elizabeth a family heirloom ring for an engagement ring.

I'm impressed that the cars have Connecticut license plates.

Kristy says the club has to do the most responsible thing possible. Mary Anne confidently replies, "Vacuum."

Boy-Crazy Stacey (GN#7)

Original Publication Date: 2019

Ghostwriter? No, the text copyright is for Ann M. Martin.

Illustrator: Gale Galligan

Synopsis:

Not a ton of difference between this and the original version. Three things that stood out to me: Mary Anne wears a more modest two-piece swimsuit than Stacey but doesn't seem embarrassed that Stacey's is more mature, Stacey doesn't ask what the secret sauce is at Burger Garden, and Claire brings a sun-burnt Mary Anne peanut butter "because it's yummy" rather than butter which avoids the poor medical advice about putting butter on burns.

Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Stacey's diabetes explained in picture form:

Kristy's new room:

Mary Anne's sun protection get-up:

Claudia candy: She's hardly in the book, but there is a one drawing of her eating from a bag of chips.


Their Families:

The Pike kids:

The beach house:

The Club (and clients): nothing new, aside from a different artist's take on the Pikes


SMS: summer vacation!

PSA Time: I'm glad this version took out the part about butter being good for burns--it's not!


Misc:

Martin dedicates this book to "June and Ward Cleaver (alias Noel and Steve) from the Beav."

Galligan dedicates it to "Mom, Dad, Lori, and all our childhood beach adventures. And [to] Patrick, who I forgive for pretending to be a sea monster and grabbing my ankle that one time."

What Stacey packs for the trip:

Stacey in LUV:

The beach at Sea City:

Burger Garden:

Stacey and Mary Anne's double date with Alex (shorter hair) and Toby:

Logan Like Mary Anne! is slated for a graphic novel release. I doubt we'll get all the books, because already they've skipped Claudia and the Phantom Phone Calls and The Ghost at Dawn's House (two of my favorites), but wouldn't it be great to get the Super Specials?

The Truth About Stacey (GN#2)

Original Publication Date: 2006

Ghostwriter? No, the text copyright is for Ann M. Martin.

Illustrator: Raina Telgemeier

Synopsis:

Like all the graphic novels, this is a re-telling of one of the first books in a different format: The Truth About Stacey. Things are pretty much the same, even down to the fake names Kristy gives the Baby-sitters Agency. There are some more details about Stacey's diabetes (like a conversation with her parents about her blood sugar numbers) and reaction shots to things like Stacey being diagnosed with diabetes (this time in a hospital after fainting and being rushed in an ambulance) and the Baby-sitters Agency.


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: Lifesavers, package of cookies

The girls with their Kid-Kits (they used the same sort of boxes I did):




Their Families:

Claudia's family has lots of board games.

The McGills:




The Club (and clients):

Stacey's handwriting:



Lucy Newton weighed NINE POUNDS at birth. Terrifying. (My kids weighed 6 lb 11 oz, 7 lb 3 oz, and 7 lb 1 oz; in that order)

Stacey and Charlotte:




SMS:

The drawings of the school look about how I'd pictured SMS.


PSA Time:

Stacey leaves opened scissors on the floor as she wraps Christmas presents. Looking at the picture, it's like I can hear my dad saying not to leave scissors open.


Misc:

Martin dedicates this book to her "old pal, Claudia Werner," and Telgemeier gives "very big thanks to Marion Vitus, Adam Girardet, Duane Ballanger, Lisa Jonte, Arthur Levine, KC Whitehall, and Hope Larson. As always, a huge thank you to my family, my friends, and especially, Dave."

Okay, here's a big difference from the 1986 book: they play music on a CD!

Laine's wearing braces on her teeth.

Stacey and Laine in Times Square:



Stacey's dinner broken down into diabetic-relevant nutritional information:

Stacey Takes a Stand (TV#12)

What happens:

The BSC is planning a Father-Daughter Banquet. Jessi comes up with the idea of putting together a dance for the entertainment, because Jessi dances. Stacey's a little down because she won't be able to come, as she's spending that weekend with her dad in New York. Dawn also mentions that she misses her dad, but she and Mary Anne agree that Richard is a good stepfather for her. Stacey's grateful in light of Dawn's issue that her dad lives so close, but the fact that her parents are close and that their divorce is (slightly) more recent means that she feels torn between them. It doesn't help that her parents badmouth each other in front of Stacey. She starts to feel even more pressured when her dad brings up the idea of her going to high school in NYC. Not a terrible idea necessarily, but he doesn't bring it up well.

The prospect of having to pick which parent to live with--again--brings up a lot of confusion and hurt in Stacey. She hates that she can't tell her mom what she does with her dad and vice versa, for fear of making one parent or the other jealous, and that she feels out of place a lot, and that she's sometimes in the wrong place at the wrong time. Mary Anne prompts her to talk to her parents, and they realize the awkward position they've put her in. Her mom even calls her dad to tell him about the banquet, and he shows up to it. (Yeah, she ends up back in Stoneybrook in time for the banquet)

There's also a little aside about Buddy Barrett feeling like he needs to step up to fill his dad's role after his parents' divorce, and Dawn helping him realize that while he is a big help to his mom, he's still a kid. I'm glad Dawn was the one to help him, since she has a special relationship with the Barretts.


Things I noticed:

The captioning spells Prezzioso as Francioso.

It's implied that Stacey's dad has a car, but in the book series he doesn't aside from a brief midlife crisis.

Dawn wipes up spilled milk with a dishcloth rather than a paper towel, which is consistent with her character.

This is the second time in the TV that there have been two sitters for only three kids (the Barretts this time; last time it was a new client requesting one sitter for her infant and one for the older kids). So, can I brag that earlier this month the kids I nanny had friends over, and my two kids were with me too, so I was watching nine kids?

"Barrett" is pronounced "Bar-RET" while I've always read it as "Buh-RET." And Stacey's dad pronounces her full name "Ah-nuh-STA-zee-ah" rather than "Ann-uh-STA-zhu" like I do in my head. I wish we'd get more names to learn to pronounce.

Whoa. Hi, Twin Towers. Establishing shots of New York City before 2001 still catch me off guard.

Uh...Here's a direct quote from Stacey's dad (emphasis mine): "What time are you and Jason taking your sister to the Statue of Liberty?" The line was mean to be about Jason's sister. But if Stacey's dad forgot about his and Maureen's fertility problems to the extent that he imagined another child, then I can see why they divorced!

Sacrilege! We see a glimpse of Stacey's handwriting and there's an "i" WITH NO HEART DOTTING IT. (Other than that it's close-ish)

Interesting; the girls refer to their friends' dads by their first names. Obviously Dawn would call Richard by his first name, and the BSC seems to always be on a first-name basis with Watson, but in the books the parents are usually Mr./Mrs. LastName.

Charlie drives the BSC (minus Stacey) to New York! The Junk Bunket is a littler nicer-looking than I'd imagined.

We get to see the dads (except Dawn's, who sends flowers to her since he can't fly over for the banquet). None of them look like they do in my head! Compared to how I picture them, Watson's taller, thinner, and less bald; Jessi's dad is less muscular; Stacey's dad looks less professional/high-powered attorney; Mary Anne's dad is far more nerdy; Mallory's dad is more meek-looking; Claudia's dad is shorter and has a stockier build.


Special guest stars: Tom Garlick as Jason, Michael Tomlinson as Stacey's dad, Geoffrey Wigdor as Buddy, Nancy Youngblut as Stacey's mom (the other dads aren't credited)

Stacey's Big Break (TV#3)

What happens:

Stacey gets a short-term modeling job that has a good chance of landing her more in the future. Soon she finds her time eaten up with modeling things and the BSC's plan to stage a production of Snow White, with Charlotte Johanssen as the lead (Kristy plays Prince Charming...'kay). Charlotte has only agreed to do this because she knows Stacey will be there to support her, but Stacey's photo shoots start to interfere with play rehearsals. Also troubling is that the modeling director instructs Stacey--a growing adolescent who happens to have diabetes and is already thin--to lose ten pounds. She wins a contest that earns her a year-long contract, but realizes she's not willing to devote that much of her life to modeling, especially when the agency possibly violates labor laws by adding hours to her schedule the day of without telling her ("Okay, that's done; see you later!" "But we have a thing at 4:00 that we never told you about until now."). She turns down the offer and decides to enjoy being a kid, and worry about a career later. With Stacey there to help, Charlotte does a great job in the play.


Things I noticed:

Jessi does ballet stretches during a meeting.

I've never been a model (unless you count an hour of walking down a mall runway in a couple Nordstrom outfits; I don't) but it seems like the photographer's using a really tiny camera to do his photo shoots. One of my aunts is a photographer and she has those big flash screens to go with a variety of fancy cameras, and had them with her film cameras, too. He also has Stacey pose in summer wear against a backdrop of a local park...in late autumn...when the trees are bare...

Continuity for the win! Charlotte Johanssen's favorite TV show is still The Cosby Show. Although the actor playing her looks younger than eight to me. Maybe that makes up for so many of the book covers portraying the girls as older than thirteen.

Stacey quote: "I don't mean to sound conceited or anything, but we're really good with kids." To a prospective client.

The captioning has decided that the club name needs an apostrophe, as in The Baby-sitters' Club. Maybe Janine finally figured it out after musing over the sign back in Kristy's Great Idea.


Special guest stars: Gina Gallagher as Charolotte, Nilyne Fields as Becca Ramsey, Michael Galeota as David Michael, Danny Tamberelli as Jackie Rodowsky

Stacey

Books narrated: 32 (the most of any character!)

#3 The Truth about Stacey (no ghostwriter)
#8 Boy-Crazy Stacey (no ghostwriter)
#13 Goodbye, Stacey, Goodbye (no ghostwriter)
#18 Stacey’s Mistake (no ghostwriter) my favorite Stacey book
#28 Welcome Back, Stacey! (no ghostwriter)
#35 Stacey and the Mystery of Stoneybrook (gw: Ellen Miles)
#43 Stacey’s Emergency (no ghostwriter)
#51 Stacey’s Ex-Best Friend (no ghostwriter)
#58 Stacey’s Choice (no ghostwriter)
#65 Stacey’s Big Crush (gw: Peter Lerangis)
#70 Stacey and the Cheerleaders (gw: Peter Lerangis)
#76 Stacey’s Lie (gw: Suzanne Weyn)
#83 Stacey vs. the BSC  (gw: Peter Lerangis)
#87 Stacey and the Bad Girls (gw: Peter Lerangis)
#94 Stacey McGill, Super Sitter (gw: Suzanne Weyn)
#99 Stacey’s Broken Heart (gw: Suzanne Weyn)
#105 Stacey the Math Whiz (gw: Peter Lerangis)
#111 Stacey’s Secret Friend (gw: Suzanne Weyn)
#119 Stacey’s Ex-Boyfriend (gw: Suzanne Weyn)
#124 Stacey McGill…Matchmaker? (gw: Suzanne Weyn)
#130 Stacey’s Movie (gw: Suzanne Weyn)

M#1 Stacey and the Missing Ring (gw: Ellen Miles)
M#10 Stacey and the Mystery Money (gw: Ellen Miles)
M#14 Stacey and the Mystery at the Mall (gw: Ellen Miles)
M#18 Stacey and the Mystery of the Empty House (gw: Ellen Miles) my favorite Stacey mystery
M#22 Stacey and the Haunted Masquerade (gw: Ellen Miles)
M#29 Stacey and the Fashion Victim (gw: Ellen Miles)
M#33 Stacey and the Stolen Hearts (gw: Ellen Miles)

Stacey’s Book (gw: Jeanne Betancourt)

FF#2 Stacey vs. Claudia (gw: Suzanne Weyn)
FF# 6 Stacey and the Boyfriend Trap (gw: Suzanne Weyn)
FF#10 Stacey’s Problem (gw: Suzanne Weyn) my favorite Stacey FF

Portrayed by Jessica Prunell in the TV show and Bre Blair in the movie. The TV episodes "Stacey's Big Break" and "Stacey Takes a Stand" are centered around her, and she shares the spotlight with Kristy in the Christmas special.

Stacey’s Crushes-13 (second place)
Toby, Kelsey Bauman, Pete Black, RJ Blaser,  Robert Brewster, Ethan Carroll, Wesley Ellenburg, Ross Brown, Pierre D'Amboise, Scott Foley, Terry Hoyt AKA David Hawhtorne, Jeremy Rudolph, Sam Thomas

Stacey’s birthday is in April. The day isn’t given (I think it can be found in some extras), but the time is specified in her Portrait Collection book as 1:50am. One of my nephews was born at 1:50 pm! When Stacey turned four, she had a fancy birthday dinner during which the whole restaurant sang happy birthday to her. Pavarotti was in the crowd, too. UPDATED: Commenter Donica remembers a bookmark that states her birthday is April 3.

Stacey has blue eyes and blonde hair. Stacey has one hole pierced in each ear. She loves to wear black, as it looks sophisticated and sets off her blonde hair. She starts out getting her hair permed often. According to #18 Stacey’s Mistake and Super Special 2 Baby-sitters’ Summer Vacation, Stacey stops getting perms and gets body waves instead. As of mystery #33 Stacey and the Stolen Hearts, Stacey no longer does that either and gets it cut short, above her shoulders.

As a young child, Stacey had vivid nightmares.

Stacey has a savings account.

Stacey drinks coffee in Baby-sitters’ Christmas Chiller, but Stacey and the Boyfriend Trap, which was published later, says she and Ethan, who’s fifteen, are too young to drink coffee.

Stacey’s dad has promised her earrings from Tiffany’s when she graduates high school.

Stacey loves going to zoos. So do I! I bought myself a zoo membership for my birthday last year, and I take my daughters a couple times a month. She loves the Marx brothers and the smell of lilacs, two more things she and I have in common. Stacey’s favorite movie is Mary Poppins. Nope, my favorite is The Shawshank Redemption. Mary Poppins is okay, but nowhere near the top for me. Stacey adored Cinderella as a young child. My favorite Disney movie as a kid was Dumbo.

Stacey hates ironing and can’t stand vomit. I’m right there with you, Stacey.

It’s mentioned in Stacey’s Problem that she has a cell phone. Given that she commutes on the train to visit her dad, that makes sense.

In Snowbound! Stacey claims to have never fallen in love, which means that LUV doesn’t count.

Stacey has a great memory for numbers; she says they “imprint” on her brain, so she can memorize a phone number almost instantly and the number will stay with her for a long time.

Stacey has taken French since kindergarten. She continues taking French at SMS.

Due to her diabetes, Stacey can't eat the processed cheese that's on pizza, according to Mary Anne Saves the Day. Doesn't stop her from eating pizza other times.

Revealed in Baby-sitters’ Summer Vacation: Stacey tests her urine as well as her blood for signs of diabetes problems. And for some reason Mary Anne knows that Stacey tests her urine. Why would that come up in conversation?

Stacey often brings her own lunch to school according to Kristy for President. Makes sense with her dietary restrictions. The only BSC member who doesn’t think the fact that Stacey injects insulin (TO SURVIVE) is gross is Claudia.

It’s mentioned during the course of the original series that Stacey reads Agatha Christie and does needlepoint. She must have forgotten the last bit at some point, because in the first Friends Forever Super Special, she decides to learn needlepoint.

Stacey can imitate Porky Pig.

Stacey’s Family

Stacey is introduced as having just moved from New York City with her parents, Ed and Maureen. Her father is later transferred back. Her parents divorce soon after, and Stacey and her mother move back to Stoneybrook. Stacey’s father becomes engaged to a woman named Samantha toward the end of the series. Stacey’s mother doesn’t date anyone seriously, but does decide to open her own clothing boutique, and has her named changed back to her maiden name, Spencer.

Kristy’s Great Idea tells us that Stacey’s parents have been married 15 years. Stacey’s dad proposed during a carriage ride in Central Park. So Stacey’s mom got pregnant about a year into the marriage. Around the time of Stacey’s diabetes diagnosis in her sixth grade year, they learned they were unable to have any more children. When Stacey’s dad later gets engaged to Samantha, she says she wants to have children with him, possibly indicating that the secondary infertility was a medical issue of Stacey’s mom’s. The secondary infertility is part of why Stacey’s parents became so overprotective of Stacey with regards to her diabetes.

The divorce seems to have stemmed from a combination of Stacey’s dad being a workaholic and her mom spending too much money, possibly out of boredom. Stacey’s mom seems to be more bitter about the divorce, while Stacey’s dad moves on faster, already engaged to Samantha before Stacey’s mom has dated anyone seriously.

Stacey’s mom enjoys jogging.

In The Fire at Mary Anne’s House, Stacey's mom makes a stack of sandwiches for Mary Anne's family and the firefighters while the house burns. That's very thoughtful of her.

Stacey’s mom drives a rear-wheel drive car. She’s not a confident driver, especially in snow (rear-wheel drive cars are the worst for snow, by the way; they handle like a shopping cart).

Stacey’s mom likes Vivaldi, and this fact is referenced more than once.

Stacey’s parents go to a church service in Stacey’s Mistake but other than that aren’t shown to have any religious leanings.

Stacey’s dad has a fax machine in his apartment.

Stacey’s dad was born and raised in New York City. He didn’t get a driver’s license until he was 20. He attended college at Wesleyan.

Samantha (Stacey's soon-to-be stepmother) wants to have kids. Assuming the infertility issues that plagued Stacey's parents after she was born aren't an issue this time around, Stacey is excited at the prospect of having a sibling or siblings.

Stacey has an Aunt Carla and Uncle Eric who have a daughter named Cheryl, and an Aunt Beverly and Uncle Lou who have children named Jonathan and Kirsten. Stacey prefers the latter family. Both families live in New York City.

Stacey's Problem (FF#10)

Original Publication Date: 2000

Ghostwriter? Yes, Suzanne Weyn.

Synopsis:

When Stacey goes to visit her dad, she finds out some big news: he and Samantha are engaged. Stacey likes Samantha a lot, and sees that she and her dad are a good fit, but she's worried about how her mom will take it. Her mom's seemed distracted by something lately, and Stacey's concerned about how she hasn't dated much since the divorce. Sure enough, it is hard news for Stacey's mom to hear; for reasons she can't really articulate it's overwhelming. Stacey and Claudia decided to get some tapes from a video dating service and get her some dates, and they go over the candidates with Kristy, Mary Anne, and Mallory. They don't find anyone, but Stacey's mom does get asked out by a coworker, and Stacey helps her get ready for the date. It doesn't go well, and Stacey takes it harder than her mom, because she's sure that the reason her mom has been upset is that her dad has moved on and is getting married. But Stacey doesn't need to worry long, because what's been getting to her mom is that she's felt stuck in a rut and not herself. Her solution is to go back to her maiden name (she makes sure Stacey is okay with this) and to quit her job in favor of opening her own clothing store.

Mallory is back from boarding school for the summer, as her school lets out earlier than SMS. She has some trouble adjusting to how different her family's become in her absence, like how Byron is now in the position of The Oldest (even though technically he's not) instead of her, and Vanessa's acting resentful of her. Stacey helps her sort through things.


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: potato chips (that she brings to Mallory's welcome back party)

Stacey implies that Jessi and Mallory aren't as close as they used to be.

Stacey has a cell phone. Since she commutes to and from New York City on a train, that seems reasonable.


Their Families:

Maybe my neck is unusually short, but how can one put shoulder length hair into a bun? On the rare occasion my hair is that short, some pieces are too short for a ponytail. Maybe a low bun, but wouldn't the hair at the front still not make it into a bun shape? Maybe she has bangs.

I would mention that Stacey's dad should have talked to Stacey before proposing, since the possibility of a remarriage affects his minor child a lot, but since he'd already brought up the idea of Samantha moving in, he's already put out feelers for how Stacey would react to Samantha becoming a more permanent presence.

Point for Samantha: when Stacey's dad hints that maybe Stacey's mom would handle the news of the engagement best if heard from Stacey, Samantha steps in to say that it's really his job. (Stacey slips and says something before he calls, but at least he meant to)

Byron is the youngest triplet.

Stacey's mom's last name is now Spencer, and she tells Stacey's friends to call her Maureen.


The Club (and clients):

When Mallory returns, Jessi and Abby join the remaining BSC members in welcoming her home (Dawn is in California). They also reunite for a sleepover at Stacey's.


SMS: nothing new.


PSA Time: nothing stood out.


Misc:

This is Stacey's last book.



The numbers:

Starting 8th grade: 12

Halloweens in 8th grade: 6 (plus one in seventh)

Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 5

Winter holidays in 8th grade (that BSC members celebrate in the plot of a book, not just reference): Christmas-6, Hanukkah-2, Kwanzaa-3

Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 6

St. Patrick's Days in 8th grade: 1

Summers after 8th grade: 12

BSC Fights: 13

SMS Staff and Faculty: 69

Students (other than the BSC): 218: 123 8th graders (not including Amelia Freeman, who is deceased), 31 7th graders, 48 6th graders, 16 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.

Clients: 38 families

Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 151

Crushes:
Stacey-13
Claudia-13
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-3
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-2
Abby-0

Stacey and the Boyfriend Trap (FF#6)

Original Publication Date: 2000

Ghostwriter? Yes, Suzanne Weyn.

Synopsis:

Through a variety of coincidences, several of Stacey's former crushes and boyfriends are going to be in the area at the same time: Ethan, Robert, Toby from Sea City, Pete Black, Sam Thomas, Mr. Ellenburg, and of course Jeremy is around, too. Most of them are helping with a teacher's going-away party; Toby happens to be in town on the same day the party is scheduled and Ethan drops by for a visit while looking at a nearby art exhibit. All the guys end up at the party for various reasons. One good thing about the party: it finally allows a conversation between Claudia and Stacey that leads to their making up.

Back to all the guys. Seeing Stacey around so many ex-boyfriends makes Jeremy realize that he and Stacey have very little in common, especially compared to the other guys. They break up, but Stacey isn't too upset about it, because she realizes that Jeremy was right. The party goes well, and after it, Stacey and her mom give Ethan a ride to the train station so he can get back to New York. He and Stacey talk, and Stacey sees that maybe of all the guys, he's the best one for her.


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: none mentioned

Stacey orders shrimp cocktail, but I'm almost certain that an earlier book mentioned she can't have the cocktail sauce due to her diabetes.

Stacey says she and Ethan aren't old enough to drink coffee, but they have before...plus, 13 and 15 isn't that young for someone to drink coffee once in a while. So I've heard; I still don't like it and I'm almost twice Ethan's age.


Their Families: nothing new.


The Club (and clients): nothing new.


SMS:

I'll have to subtract a teacher from my SMS roster: Mr. Zizmore is moving to Houston, where his wife has secured a job with NASA. But the number stays the same, since Mr. Ellenburg is hired to replace him.

Robert seems to not be completely back to his old self, which seems reasonable if he was suffering from depression. Unfortunately, clinical depression isn't something you recover from instantly.


PSA Time: nothing stood out.


Misc:

When Stacey tells the readers about Toby, she explains how she met him one summer, they broke up the next, then he went after Mallory the next summer. Thanks to the repeating cycle of the books, those last two summers are the same ones, taking place before eighth grade (and in the case of the latter, after eighth grade).

College and the military aren't mutually exclusive. In fact, ROTC has some great scholarships for people interested in military.



The numbers:

Starting 8th grade: 12

Halloweens in 8th grade: 6 (plus one in seventh)

Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 5

Winter holidays in 8th grade (that BSC members celebrate in the plot of a book, not just reference): Christmas-6, Hanukkah-2, Kwanzaa-3

Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 5

St. Patrick's Days in 8th grade: 1

Summers after 8th grade: 12

BSC Fights: 13

SMS Staff and Faculty: 69

Students (other than the BSC): 217: 123 8th graders (not including Amelia Freeman, who is deceased), 30 7th graders, 48 6th graders, 16 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.

Clients: 38 families

Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 150

Crushes:
Stacey-13
Claudia-12
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-3
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-2
Abby-0

Stacey vs. Claudia (FF#2)

Original Publication Date: 1999

Ghostwriter? Yes, Suzanne Weyn.

Synopsis:

Just as Stacey's feeling upset about how little she gets to see Ethan, a new boy arrives at SMS: Jeremy Rudolph, from Olympia, WA (just a little south of me!). Then Stacey and Ethan break up. This is also at the same time that Stacey realizes Claudia has a crush on Jeremy...and so does she. Trying to be a good friend, Stacey sets up a date for Claudia and Jeremy, but even after that, Jeremy asks Stacey out. Stacey wants to accept, and talks to Claudia. Claudia is understandably hurt, and also very surprised because she thought Jeremy liked her. She does go overboard though, accusing Stacey of stealing her boyfriend when she and Jeremy haven't actually been dating, and Stacey reacts to this, causing a fight. Claudia tells Jeremy that Stacey and Ethan's break up is really more of a cooling off, which is how Ethan seems to view it ("We were on a break!" -Friends), so while what Claudia says is true, it's still underhanded. The fight continues, with Stacey putting down Claudia's intelligence ("brainless...can't even spell, [and] was held back a grade") and Claudia retorting with pointing out that Stacey's nothing special ("ten million other people live in [New York] City") and so on. Then Jeremy asks Stacey out again, and a little bit before he arrives to pick her up, Ethan stops in for a surprise visit, still thinking they're just on a break. Soon the break up is official though, and Stacey heads out with Jeremy, wondering at times if she and Claudia will mend their friendship.


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: Ring Dings, potato chips

Mary Anne and Stacey have a conversation centered around whether noticing that a boy they're not dating is good-looking is a sign of anything.


Their Families:

Stacey's mom likes going for jogs.


The Club (and clients):

At the end of Everything Changes, the BSC had considered cutting down on the number of meetings, but this book establishes that meetings are still Monday, Wednesday, Friday and at the usual time.

Abby's departure from the BSC hasn't affected her friendships with the members; she still eats lunch with them and hangs out with them.


SMS:

New students: Rachel Griffin (really an old student returning to Stoneybrook), Jeremy Rudolph (8th).

School's back in session. Again.

School lunch at SMS costs $1.65.

I question the SMS social studies department. The girls don't know their state capitals? (Jeremy is from Olympia, WA. I learned state capitals in grade school.)


PSA Time:

Aspirin is not recommend for children or teenagers, because of a possible link between it and the development of Reye's Syndrome, which can be deadly. Tylenol and Ibuprofen are vastly superior choices. My kids' pediatric dentist recommends Ibuprofen because you need to take several dozen times the regular dose to be in danger.


Misc:

Long-distance relationships can sometimes work (my brother and my sister-in-law spent a while in different states during college but have been married five years now), but this is book is right that it's especially hard for teenagers.



The numbers:

Starting 8th grade: 12

Halloweens in 8th grade: 6 (plus one in seventh)

Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 4

Winter holidays in 8th grade (that BSC members celebrate in the plot of a book, not just reference): Christmas-5, Hanukkah-2, Kwanzaa-3

Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 5

St. Patrick's Days in 8th grade: 1

Summers after 8th grade: 12

BSC Fights: 13

SMS Staff and Faculty: 68

Students (other than the BSC): 215: 121 8th graders (not including Amelia Freeman, who is deceased), 30 7th graders, 48 6th graders, 16 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.

Clients: 38 families

Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 149

Crushes:
Stacey-13
Claudia-12
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-2
Abby-0

Stacey's Movie (RS#130)

Original Publication Date: 1999

Ghostwriter? Yes, Suzanne Weyn.

Synopsis:

It's time for yet another round of Short Takes. This time, the classes will be taught by professionals in various fields. Stacey takes a class from a documentary filmmaker (Kristy and Logan are in it, too). The class is split up into groups of four, each of which will make a movie. Stacey's group, which also includes Pete Black, Erica Blumberg, and Emily Bernstein, decide to make a documentary after their attempts at a horror movie don't go so well. Kristy's in a group with Logan, Anna Stevenson, and Alan Gray. They make a documentary about the funny things BSC clients do or say. But Kristy causes troubles by following around Jackie Rodowsky, waiting for him to slip up. She's not subtle about it either and he ends up feeling pretty hurt. Kristy also steps all over Alan's assigned role as director. Stacey talks to Kristy, and she begrudingly lets Alan be in charge, only to discover that he's really good at it.

Meanwhile, Stacey's team is doing well getting a lot of information from different students at SMS. Interesting revelations including Abby's epiphany that she's a lot like her mother (trying to do too much at once), Jessi admitting that she feels out of place at SMS because with Mallory gone there's no one left that she has much in common with which emphasizes how different she is from most of the students in terms of both race and her love of dance, Cokie pointing out that the BSC can be just as exclusionary and stuck-up as any group, Claudia reacting to the pressure on her to do really, really well in school despite how hard it is for her (as in, not just pass but get great grades), Alan Gray wanting to be taken seriously, and most relevant to the plot, Mary Anne exploding that she gets angry with her mother for dying. Mary Anne really wants to remove her interview from the film, but the rest of Stacey's group think it's such a great one that they refuse. They do let Mary Anne have a moment to speak about how she really feels, which is also in the film after her interview.


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: carrots (for Stacey)

Good continuity with Stacey liking Cinderella as a young child.

Abby's seeming sort of burnt out and stretched very thin between her various commitments.


Their Families:

Mary Anne considers Sharon a mother figure but not her mother, which I think is totally reasonable. My mom has a very nice stepmother who her father married when my mom was an adult (right around the time of my own parents' wedding) and Mom calls her by her first name, but my aunt who was still a minor at the time calls the same step-mother "Mom." It's all about what you're comfortable with and mutual respect.


The Club (and clients):

When BSC members are interviewed, they slip in references to the club. It's funny to me that they're so indoctrinated, but it also makes sense because it's a big part of their lives.


SMS:

This time students can sign up for what Short Takes classes they prefer.

Shouldn't the Short Takes teacher have told her class to secure written permission from anyone appearing in the films?

Alan Gray calls Kristy "Darth Vader" which amuses me more than it should.

New-to-us student: Sarah Gerstenkorn (probably 8th grade)


PSA Time: nothing stood out.


Misc:

This is Stacey's last regular series book.

My copy of this book was sold at a used bookstore for fifty cents.

"[The documentary film maker] told us how she had gone into the Australian outback and spent time with a group of aboriginal people until they trusted her enough to talk about their beliefs..." There has GOT to be a better way to phrase that so it doesn't sound like she gained the trust of a group of animals.

Stacey mentions getting inspiration from an old Twilight Zone episode. From how she describes it--an upopular school-girl wishes everyone would leave her alone and her classmates disappear, only to return as zombies--I don't think she watched a real episode. I'm pretty familar with the Rod Serling era and since she specifies old, I'm pretty sure it's made up. It also doesn't sound like a Twilight Zone episode, which are, frankly, better written.

"You can't make math a career"? What nonsense. Math is intergral so many fields of study! I'm not a huge fan of it and I can admit that. Beyond the obvious like physics, medicine, and engineering, math is important in a ton of things like baking (if you want to halve a recipe for example), travel planning, budgeting...I've even used algebra to write knitting patterns.

Part of the book touches on something that annoys me, which is the insistence some people have to know EVERYTHING. Some things are okay to keep private, in my opinion, and not everything needs to be made public all at once.

Alan's interview raises a good question: would you rather be hated or ignored?



The numbers:

Starting 8th grade: 11

Halloweens in 8th grade: 6 (plus one in seventh)

Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 4

Winter holidays in 8th grade (that BSC members celebrate in the plot of a book, not just reference): Christmas-5, Hanukkah-2, Kwanzaa-3

Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 5

St. Patrick's Days in 8th grade: 1

Summers after 8th grade: 11

BSC Fights: 13

SMS Staff and Faculty: 68

Students (other than the BSC): 213: 119 8th graders (not including Amelia Freeman, who is deceased), 30 7th graders, 48 6th graders, 16 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.

Clients: 38 families

Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 144

Crushes:
Stacey-12
Claudia-11
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-2
Abby-0

Stacey McGill...Matchmaker? (RS#124)

Original Publication Date: 1998

Ghostwriter? Yes, Suzanne Weyn. The book is dedicated to Ren  Roome and Ann Ross Roome.

Synopsis:

Stacey has been musing lately about how her mom has lost touch with most of the friends she had before the divorce, doesn't seem to have much time or inclination to meet anyone new, and hasn't been on a date since splitting up, although her dad, who works more hours, has a steady girlfriend. So when Stacey gets a sitting job with the Brooke family, which is headed by a single dad, she schemes to set him up with her mom. Mr. Brooke is a writer, and Stacey's mom turns out to be a fan of his books. Stacey and the adults are excited about the possibility of a relationship, but the Brooke children aren't. Their parents' divorce is fairly recent; their mom left to pursue an acting career. They haven't had time to really process what's going on yet. The kindergarten-age son is more accepting, but the older daughter...

Things come to a head when the Brookes come over for Thanksgiving dinner, but Stacey manages to have a nice heart-to-heart with the daughter. Still, even after the rest of the evening goes well, her mom tells Stacey that things aren't going to work in the long term between her and Mr. Brooke. Stacey thinks her mom is just making up excuses, but eventually realizes that she needs to support her mother, who knows better than Stacey what's best for herself. Stacey talks to the kids after the breakup, and agrees to be their honorary big sister. Not that we really hear about them again except in passing...


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: Mallomars in her dresser drawer, carrots (for Stacey)

Stacey's still in the math club at school.

Stacey checks an ingredient list for fructose, among other things. Had this been written today, I'm sure she would have been checking for high fructose corn syrup.

Mallory's troubles at school have escalated to the point that she and her parents take a weekend trip to check out a boarding school in Massachusetts. The BSC as a whole is shocked; Jessi is especially less than thrilled.


Their Families:

Mary Anne's dad dated other women before reconnecting with Sharon. Somehow I pictured him just withdrawing from romantic attachments until one fell into his lap.

Stacey's mom still likes Vivaldi, like she did in Snowbound!


The Club (and clients):

The Brooke family brings the BSC client total to 38.


SMS:

The SMS soccer team seems to still be in its regular season three weeks before Thanksgiving. Usually fall sports are starting playoffs then. But the passage isn't entirely clear, so it could be playoffs.


PSA Time:

"Spaz" is actually a slur against people with cerebal palsy and similar conditions. It refers to the spastic motions they might make, due to issues with muscle control. It's more commonly used that way in Europe than the US, so a lot of people in North America might be unaware of this.


Misc:

I hate terms like "reverse snobbery" and "reverse racism." In my mind, it's just [whatever prejudice] from a different angle. An argument can be made for reverse racism, but reverse snobbery just sounds stupid.


The numbers:

Starting 8th grade: 11

Halloweens in 8th grade: 6 (plus one in seventh)

Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 4

Winter holidays in 8th grade (that BSC members celebrate in the plot of a book, not just reference): Christmas-5, Hanukkah-2, Kwanzaa-3

Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 4

St. Patrick's Days in 8th grade: 1

Summers after 8th grade: 11

BSC Fights: 12

SMS Staff and Faculty: 67

Students (other than the BSC): 216: 122 8th graders (not including Amelia Freeman, who is deceased), 30 7th graders, 48 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.

Clients: 38 families

Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 143

Crushes:
Stacey-12
Claudia-11
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-2
Abby-0

Stacey's Ex-boyfriend (RS#119)

Original Publication Date: 1998

Ghostwriter? Yes, Suzanne Weyn.

Synopsis:

Stacey and other SMS students have been noticing that Robert is acting oddly. He's sort of in a perpetual fog, and losing interest in things he used to enjoy. At the urging of his younger sister, Stacey talks to him and soon it's clear that there's level of clinical depression going on. Stacey tries to pull him out of it, but fortunately realizes before too long that she's in over her head, and encourages Robert to talk to a trusted adult. The book ends without him being 100%, but feeling better about life in general.

There's a pointless subplot about picking strawberries and having a strawberry festival.


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: none mentioned

Stacey wishes she had Abby's hair.


Their Families:

Nicky Pike seems to sunburn easily.

Stacey gets along well with her dad's girlfriend.


The Club (and clients):

Abby brings snacks (strawberries) to a meeting! For once Claudia can relax a bit. However, I hope Abby didn't eat any, because as Anonymous pointed out in the comments section, Abby has been established in both Stacey the Math Whiz and Claudia, Queen of the Seventh Grade as being allergic to strawberries (thank you for catching that!).

I've read a lot of criticisms about how the BSC takes over for parents. But I think they have to. Case in point, this sentence: "Parents had to ask Shannon and her sister to set a two-cake limit [at the strawberry festival] so that their kids wouldn't make themselves sick." Hey, parents? Take responsibility for your own kids and watch what they eat yourselves. When I took my toddler to a festival at my church that included lots of from various nations, I didn't expect anyone but me (my husband was at work, otherwise him, too) to keep an eye on how many cookies she had.


SMS:

The SMS baseball team is doing really well, and on its way to winning a regional championship.

A teacher who has previously only been seen teaching Short Takes classes, Mrs. Boyden, also teaches homeroom for some students (including Robert).


PSA Time:

Stacey claims "you can always use a plain white blouse." Just remember that white becomes see-through when wet. Figured that one out the hard way in a lake...

Assuming you have a car, keep an old towel in the trunk. You'll know why I say this when you need it.


Misc:

A bit of trivia inspired by Claudia painting black stripes on a white leotard to make zebra stripes: zebras are black with white stripes. You can tell because their noses are black.

Kristy uses the internet in this book. Weird!


The numbers:

Starting 8th grade: 10

Halloweens in 8th grade: 6 (plus one in seventh)

Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 3

Winter holidays in 8th grade (that BSC members celebrate in the plot of a book, not just reference): Christmas-5, Hanukkah-2, Kwanzaa-3

Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 4

St. Patrick's Days in 8th grade: 1

Summers after 8th grade: 10

BSC Fights: 11

SMS Staff and Faculty: 67

Students (other than the BSC): 214: 120 8th graders (not including Amelia Freeman, who is deceased), 29 7th graders, 48 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.

Clients: 37 families

Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 139

Crushes:
Stacey-12
Claudia-11
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
Abby-0

Stacey and the Stolen Hearts (M#33)

Original Publication Date: 1998

Ghostwriter? Yes, Ellen Miles. Also, this book and the three remaining mysteries have a different illustrator for the cover art (at least for the US printing). Hodges Soileau did most of the series, while California Diaries has artsy photographs and the Friends Forever books have photographs of girls meant to be the title characters. I can't find information on who designed the cover in the book or online, but I know I've read it somewhere.

Synopsis:

Valentine's Day is coming up, and Stacey is helping with a Valentine gram fundraiser: students can pay a dollar to send notes to other people in the school (the sixth grade president even sends one to a teacher). The notes will be collected for several days, then passed on Valentine's Day with candy. But someone takes the bag that they're being stored in. As if that weren't bad enough, whoever took the bag starts posting information about the stolen cards, like the fact that Cokie sent a dozen cards to her boyfriend but he sent none to her. Narrowing down a list of suspects is almost impossible, until Stacey notices a bit of sleeve on a recent photocopy of a stolen card. It has a striped pattern, and she's almost positive the copy was made that day, so the BSC starts a frantic search for stripes. Cary Retlin is wearing a shirt that matches, but he wasn't at school when the cards were stolen. However, he drops very unsubtle hints that Alan Gray took the cards and Cary did the copying. Why? Because Alan learned that several people, including the girl he actually likes a lot (it's never revealed who she is), are sending him fake cards and he's retaliating. Maybe there's a human being under that annoying exterior, one with feelings, huh? Stacey confront Alan, saying that she knows who took the cards and that she wants them back tomorrow. Sure enough, there's a box full of them outside her homeroom and the crisis is over.

Also, the BSC helps with a kids' party at the library.


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: fluffernutter sandwiches and sourdough pretzels (I'll take the latter, thanks)

Stacey's hair is now short and unpermed.

Mallory and Ben Hobart are still an item, but it's an on-again, off-again thing.

Stacey can't tell a robin from a sparrow. Hint: one's about two-thirds the size of the other, and has no red on it. I totally get confusing say, a marsh wren and a sparrow, or a female house finch and a sparrow, or a robin and a towhee, but robins are pretty distinct from sparrows.


Their Families:

Anna Stevenson loves frogs. Adam Pike thinks this is wise. Shout-out to the Wandering Frog People?

Boo Boo might no longer be with us. He's referred to as "Watson's old cat." In context it's unclear whether he's ancient or past. I know that it's not long before Karen gets a kitten in a Little Sister book.


The Club (and clients): nothing new.


SMS:

Stacey's ex, Robert, has been withdrawn and sullen lately. This will be important in a few books.

I always thought it was weird that SMS had so many lunch options on a given day, but judging from the lunch menus of the kids I nanny, I guess my school was the weird one for having just one lunch a day.

Cokie has a boyfriend (Brent Jensen).


PSA Time: nothing stood out.


Misc:

This book was once sold from Paperback Palace in Vienna, WV, a used bookstore which is still around today.

I don't understand the appeal of a plain cheese sandwich. Grilled cheese, yes. But a piece of cold cheese between two pieces of bread...I'll pass.

Apparently the BSC exchanges Valentines. I don't think I've ever given my friends Valentines, except for when we'd happen to be in the same class in elementary school. My husband and I do exchange small things, like candy, and I take pictures of my daughter (plus the baby bump for now) to send out as postcards to our parents, grandparents, and siblings for Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Easter, the Fourth of July, and Halloween, with different props appropriate to the holiday. Last year we got my daughter a little fork and spoon for Valentine's Day, because a couple days before she had started to insist on using utensils. The handles were pink, so I figured it counted. She got a pink cookie this year.

Cary Retlin's dentist needs to talk with the office receptionist about HIPAA laws. She shouldn't be doling out patient information right and left. Stacey just calls and asks if Cary really did have an appointment on a certain day, and it's not okay to just give out that info on the phone.


The numbers:

Starting 8th grade: 10

Halloweens in 8th grade: 6 (plus one in seventh)

Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 3

Winter holidays in 8th grade (that BSC members celebrate in the plot of a book, not just reference): Christmas-5, Hanukkah-2, Kwanzaa-3

Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 4

Summers after 8th grade: 10

BSC Fights: 11

SMS Staff and Faculty: 67

Students (other than the BSC): 214: 120 8th graders (not including Amelia Freeman, who is deceased), 29 7th graders, 48 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.

Clients: 37 families

Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 137

Crushes:
Stacey-12
Claudia-11
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
Abby-0

Stacey's Secret Friend (RS#111)

Original Publication Date: 1997

Ghostwriter? Yes, Suzanne Weyn

Synopsis:

Stacey almost literally runs into a new student: Tess Swinhart accidentally walks into a papier-mache project Stacey's working on with Barbara Hirsch (whose best friend, Amelia Freeman, is the one who was killed by a drunk driver in Mary Anne and the Memory Garden). Stacey's impression of Tess is someone who's very nice but a little awkward. Her physical awkwardness leads to her spilling some papier-mache gunk on Alan Gray, who starts making pig jokes ("Swine-heart"; she dresses in pink a lot, etc) behind her back. Soon half the school is in on it. Stacey and Tess end up working together on an English project, which Stacey takes as an opportunity to "fix" Tess. While Stacey is trying to do something nice, she fails to take into account how Tess actually feels about everything. Then there's this awful part at a pep rally: the school wants to elect a new mascot and someone slips in a poster nominating the cartoon version of Tess that so many students have been laughing about. In her embarassment and the crowd's confusion, Tess slips off the bleachers and sprains her wrist and breaks her ankle. Stacey tries to help, but Tess refuses, confronting Stacey with the fact that Stacey hasn't been a real friend. When Stacey goes to apologize and see how Tess is recovering, she finds out what she'd been missing by ignoring Tess in her quest to fix her: Tess went to school in Paris, and her odd clothing and accessories are actually quite fashionable there. Stacey redeems herself a bit by working with Tess and the BSC to foil a nasty prank that some guys are plotting against Tess to embarass her. The book ends with Tess no longer upset at Stacey, but without them really being friends.

There's a subplot about Jackie Rodowsky having a bully and Nicky Pike protecting him. The bullying started from a misunderstanding about a missing jacket, but Jackie sorts it out.



Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: popcorn, M&Ms

In a strange bit of continuity, Stacey would still like to be a large cat like a panther if she were to be an animal.

I like that Mary Anne and Claudia are the first to note that Stacey is treating Tess as more of a project than a friend. Mary Anne is supposed to be sensitive, and was forced to wear clothes she didn't like by her father. Claudia is something of an oddity in her immediate family and worries that her parents prefer Janine to her.

Apparently, Claudia is back writing her personals column for the SMS paper again. She references working for the paper in present tense.


Their Families: nothing stood out.


The Club (and clients):

Mrs. Rodowsky has a cell phone! And email was mentioned a few books ago. Is the BSC moving into the 1990s?


SMS:

Time for school to start...again.

The SMS mascot is now a jaguar, when it used to be the Chargers. On the other hand, it's mentioned that the papier-mache panther Claudia helped with looks good because of Claudia's help, and in Claudia Kishi, Queen of the Seventh Grade, Claudia doesn't help with a papier-mache lion and it looks terrible. So...some good continuity.

New student: Tess Swinhart (8th grade). Several students who were introduced in previous book show up, too.

Mr. Peters, a math teacher, is called Mr. Peter in this book (it's pretty clear that it's the same person).


PSA Time: nothing stood out.


Misc:

"Panthers" don't exist as a separate animal. They're just all-black (melanistic, as opposed to albino) jaguars, leopards, and mountain lions.

You can too feel mascara, Stacey. Especially if you wear glasses and your eyelashes are long enough to get little dots or even streaks on the glasses.


The numbers:

Starting 8th grade: 10

Halloweens in 8th grade: 6 (plus one in seventh)

Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 3

Winter holidays in 8th grade (that BSC members celebrate, not just reference): Christmas-3, Hanukkah-1, Kwanzaa-2

Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 3

Summers after 8th grade: 10

BSC Fights: 11

SMS Staff and Faculty: 67

Students (other than the BSC): 210: 120 8th graders (not including Amelia Freeman, who is deceased), 26 7th graders, 47 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.

Clients: 37 families

Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 130

Crushes:
Stacey-12
Claudia-10
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
Abby-0