Original Publication Date: 1995
Ghostwriter? Yes, Nola Thacker
Synopsis:
This is Abby Stevenson's introductory book. She's just moved from Long Island to Stoneybrook, and is enjoying life so far. The plot centers around a funding problem with SMS, which will lead to cuts in the school's art and music programs. Since the only reason Abby attends SMS rather than Kelsey Middle School, whose district she lives in, is that her twin sister needs the more challenging orchestra of SMS, this could be a problem. Abby is spurred into action, organizing a fundraising fair. The whole town gets really into it, and it's a huge success.
Although it would seem Abby in integrating well, a particularly bad asthma attack concerns Kristy enough that she wonders if Abby should be sitting as much as she has. What if Abby has another bad attack during a job and can't get help? But Abby proves herself capable, and Kristy lets her worries drop.
There's also a very touching moment when Abby and Anna find a box of their late father's things while unpacking. They show their mom and bond over memories.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Dove chocolates, barbecue potato chips, and pretzels
Kristy and Mary Anne are both described as stubborn.
Mallory gets Abby's jokes better than the rest of the BSC. Perhaps because she's a writer?
Until this book, Shannon had never been in a food fight (Anna helped her out with that).
Their Families:
Anna Stevenson is more serious than Abby. Her passion is playing classical music, violin in particular. She has none of Abby's allergies or asthma, but needs corrective lenses like her twin. However, she prefers glasses to contacts. She ends up becoming good friends with Shannon.
Abby's mom is a widow, Abby's dad having been killed in a car crash four years before this book. She throws herself into her work as an editor. She commutes to New York every day for her job, about a two-hour trip on the train.
Abby and her family are Jewish, of eastern European descent.
The Club (and clients):
Abby is Dawn's official replacement as alternate officer.
SMS:
Two new SMS students: Abby and Anna Stevenson.
PSA Time: nothing stood out.
Misc: nothing stood out
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 8
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC has celebrated it--yet)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 176; 112 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 116
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
Abby-0
4/26/12
Kristy and the Dirty Diapers (RS#89)
Original Publication Date: 1995
Ghostwriter? Yes, Peter Lerangis
Synopsis:
With Dawn permanently in California, the BSC is busier than ever. Kristy is spread thin between her responsibilities there, the upcoming school year, and her Krushers softball team. She's also trying to help out Mrs. Porter's granddaughter (Kristy's next-door neighbor, AKA Mordbidda Destiny), whose parents are divorcing. When a businessman approached Kristy with an offer to sponsor her team, she jumps at the chance. Unfortunately, his business is a diaper service, and he expects the team to change its name to the Diapers. The kids are less than thrilled. Furthermore, he tries to take over the team, interrupting practices and games with unhelpful and discouraging advice. It isn't long before Kristy and the Krushers decide they don't need his sponsorship.
Meanwhile, a new family moves in two doors down from Kristy: a (widowed) mother and her twin daughters, the Stevensons. Kristy gets along better with the quieter twin, Anna, at first. She and the other twin, Abby, bond over the Krushers, Abby even becoming the assistant coach. The rest of the BSC likes Anna and Abby too, and invites the twins to join. Surprisingly, Anna declines, citing her music lessons. But Abby readily accepts, and becomes the newest full-time member.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: mini-Snickers and Candy Corn in her closet, Milk Duds
I keep forgetting that Logan plays volleyball too. In Washington (where I live), volleyball is only offered for girls.
Shannon is "energetic."
Abby's an inch and a half taller than I am (well, Anna too). Five-foot-seven.
One of the many things Abby's allergic to is tomatoes. My mom is allergic to them only when raw, but Abby can't eat the cooked ones either.
Their Families:
Emily Michelle's Engligh is improving.
The Club (and clients):
Abby is the new alternate officer. Stacey initially voices concern about the possibility of her having an asthma attack on the job, which Kristy dismisses by asking what if Stacey has a diabetic reaction. This will be important next book.
Kristy makes sure to explain the BSC rules to Abby and Anna when she invites them to join. Must have learned her lesson after the fiasco with Jessi's friend.
SMS:
School's back in session, for the eighth time. Abby and Anna attend SMS rather than Kelsey Middle School, which is the one in their district, because only SMS has a large enough orchestra for Anna.
PSA Time: nothing stood out.
Misc:
There are cicadas out. Yuck.
Abby and Anna were named by a reader in a contest, but I don't know if we ever find out who won.
For some reason I'm making a million typos. Apologies if I didn't catch any before publishing this.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 8
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it--yet)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 175; 111 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 114
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
Ghostwriter? Yes, Peter Lerangis
Synopsis:
With Dawn permanently in California, the BSC is busier than ever. Kristy is spread thin between her responsibilities there, the upcoming school year, and her Krushers softball team. She's also trying to help out Mrs. Porter's granddaughter (Kristy's next-door neighbor, AKA Mordbidda Destiny), whose parents are divorcing. When a businessman approached Kristy with an offer to sponsor her team, she jumps at the chance. Unfortunately, his business is a diaper service, and he expects the team to change its name to the Diapers. The kids are less than thrilled. Furthermore, he tries to take over the team, interrupting practices and games with unhelpful and discouraging advice. It isn't long before Kristy and the Krushers decide they don't need his sponsorship.
Meanwhile, a new family moves in two doors down from Kristy: a (widowed) mother and her twin daughters, the Stevensons. Kristy gets along better with the quieter twin, Anna, at first. She and the other twin, Abby, bond over the Krushers, Abby even becoming the assistant coach. The rest of the BSC likes Anna and Abby too, and invites the twins to join. Surprisingly, Anna declines, citing her music lessons. But Abby readily accepts, and becomes the newest full-time member.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: mini-Snickers and Candy Corn in her closet, Milk Duds
I keep forgetting that Logan plays volleyball too. In Washington (where I live), volleyball is only offered for girls.
Shannon is "energetic."
Abby's an inch and a half taller than I am (well, Anna too). Five-foot-seven.
One of the many things Abby's allergic to is tomatoes. My mom is allergic to them only when raw, but Abby can't eat the cooked ones either.
Their Families:
Emily Michelle's Engligh is improving.
The Club (and clients):
Abby is the new alternate officer. Stacey initially voices concern about the possibility of her having an asthma attack on the job, which Kristy dismisses by asking what if Stacey has a diabetic reaction. This will be important next book.
Kristy makes sure to explain the BSC rules to Abby and Anna when she invites them to join. Must have learned her lesson after the fiasco with Jessi's friend.
SMS:
School's back in session, for the eighth time. Abby and Anna attend SMS rather than Kelsey Middle School, which is the one in their district, because only SMS has a large enough orchestra for Anna.
PSA Time: nothing stood out.
Misc:
There are cicadas out. Yuck.
Abby and Anna were named by a reader in a contest, but I don't know if we ever find out who won.
For some reason I'm making a million typos. Apologies if I didn't catch any before publishing this.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 8
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it--yet)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 175; 111 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 114
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
4/25/12
Portrait Collection: Dawn's Book
Original Publication Date: 1995
Ghostwriter? Yes, Jeanne Betancourt
Synopsis:
Although Dawn has moved back to California, she still gets assigned an autobiography. Her strongest memories include:
West Coast Beginnings: Dawn is born, gets a baby brother when she's three, and attends nursery school, where she builds block towers with her friend Ruthie. But soon her family moves to Palo City.
The New Girl on the Block: Dawn has fun playing with Jill and Maggie at school but has no friends in her neighborhood. Until a hippie family moves in, that is (and gets Dawn started with environmentalism). At first Dawn finds them incredibly bizarre and a little judgemental, but she gets to know them better, and they calm down a bit too. Dawn and Sunny end up best friends.
The Golden Anniversary: Dawn's parents fly her grandparents to San Francisco so all six can celebrate Granny and Pop-pop's fiftieth wedding anniversary (I'd find it odd that my kid was planning my anniversary, but whatever). Because her grandparents don't seem to enjoy the same things or want to spend as much time together as her own parents, Dawn surmises that they don't love each other. But as the trip continues, she sees that they are truly in love.
Fire!: In the midst of her parents' marriage troubles, Dawn deals with a bit of a fire phobia. She gets pretty obsessed thinking about fires and the damage they can cause. She worries that if a fire happens, she won't know what to do, and so plan and plans and plans. Then one day at a sitting job, there is a fire--for real. Dawn is able to stay level-headed and gets her charges (Clover and Daffodil) safely out, and call 911. The fire is confined to the kitchen, fortunately. Dawn receives a medal from the mayor, and, having seen how things turned out, stops panicking about fire. But there's another reason fire no longer weighs so heavily on her mind: her parents divorce soon after.
A New Life on the East Coast: Dawn relates some backstory about moving to Connecticut and joing the BSC. Then she talks about a client for whom she sat twice, and screwed up big time. She was sifting through some papers and saw that the daughter was going to have to be held back in school, and mentioned it to her. But her parents hadn't told her yet, and were going to wait until summer was ending so she wouldn't worry. They never call the BSC again, but in the summer rush, no one notices and Dawn has never told anyone until now.
Dawn ends on that note. She gets an A- for content and a B for presentation. The note her teacher writes doesn't mention that she did anything wrong, so her grade's a little confusing to me, but Dawn's happy with it.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: none mentioned
Jill Henderson reminds Dawn of Mary Anne. Dawn soon outgrows Jill, and also somewhat outgrows Mary Anne.
Dawn was born 8 days after her due date. I'd cite this as evidence of her being mean, but I was 15 days late myself (sorry, Mom).
Their Families:
Dawn and Carol have close enough shoe sizes that they can share rollerblades. I think that was mentioned before, even.
There's a picture of Dawn with her parents and newborn Jeff. NO WAY her mom would look that thin right after having a baby. Even if you only gain the baby weight, you come home from the hospital looking seven months pregnant because you just had a human being inside you. Takes a bit for your body to get back to how it was (if it ever does. Sorry again, Mom?).
The Club (and clients): nothing new.
SMS:
There's some continuity weirdness here. Stacey and Claudia wrote their autobiographies "last" school year, and Dawn says that at her going-away party, the BSC was saying she decided to move to avoid the assignment. Dawn moved at the end of summer vacation, and her California school started one week before SMS. She was assigned the autobiography on the first day of school. I guess SMS let it be known about the assignment before school started back up?
PSA Time:
As a child, I was always told to not let callers know that there are no adults home. For example, if I were home alone with my younger brother and someone called asking for my mom or dad, I was supposed to say, "She's not available right. Can I take a message?" rather than, "She's not home right now." That way random callers don't know that the oldest person home is only 12.
Misc:
Interesting how few of the girls' most vivid memories from Super Special #11 make it in their autobiographies.
To this day, I can't figure out how to do Morse code with wooden blocks. What's the difference between a dot and a dash when banging blocks together?
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 7
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 175; 111 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 112
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
Ghostwriter? Yes, Jeanne Betancourt
Synopsis:
Although Dawn has moved back to California, she still gets assigned an autobiography. Her strongest memories include:
West Coast Beginnings: Dawn is born, gets a baby brother when she's three, and attends nursery school, where she builds block towers with her friend Ruthie. But soon her family moves to Palo City.
The New Girl on the Block: Dawn has fun playing with Jill and Maggie at school but has no friends in her neighborhood. Until a hippie family moves in, that is (and gets Dawn started with environmentalism). At first Dawn finds them incredibly bizarre and a little judgemental, but she gets to know them better, and they calm down a bit too. Dawn and Sunny end up best friends.
The Golden Anniversary: Dawn's parents fly her grandparents to San Francisco so all six can celebrate Granny and Pop-pop's fiftieth wedding anniversary (I'd find it odd that my kid was planning my anniversary, but whatever). Because her grandparents don't seem to enjoy the same things or want to spend as much time together as her own parents, Dawn surmises that they don't love each other. But as the trip continues, she sees that they are truly in love.
Fire!: In the midst of her parents' marriage troubles, Dawn deals with a bit of a fire phobia. She gets pretty obsessed thinking about fires and the damage they can cause. She worries that if a fire happens, she won't know what to do, and so plan and plans and plans. Then one day at a sitting job, there is a fire--for real. Dawn is able to stay level-headed and gets her charges (Clover and Daffodil) safely out, and call 911. The fire is confined to the kitchen, fortunately. Dawn receives a medal from the mayor, and, having seen how things turned out, stops panicking about fire. But there's another reason fire no longer weighs so heavily on her mind: her parents divorce soon after.
A New Life on the East Coast: Dawn relates some backstory about moving to Connecticut and joing the BSC. Then she talks about a client for whom she sat twice, and screwed up big time. She was sifting through some papers and saw that the daughter was going to have to be held back in school, and mentioned it to her. But her parents hadn't told her yet, and were going to wait until summer was ending so she wouldn't worry. They never call the BSC again, but in the summer rush, no one notices and Dawn has never told anyone until now.
Dawn ends on that note. She gets an A- for content and a B for presentation. The note her teacher writes doesn't mention that she did anything wrong, so her grade's a little confusing to me, but Dawn's happy with it.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: none mentioned
Jill Henderson reminds Dawn of Mary Anne. Dawn soon outgrows Jill, and also somewhat outgrows Mary Anne.
Dawn was born 8 days after her due date. I'd cite this as evidence of her being mean, but I was 15 days late myself (sorry, Mom).
Their Families:
Dawn and Carol have close enough shoe sizes that they can share rollerblades. I think that was mentioned before, even.
There's a picture of Dawn with her parents and newborn Jeff. NO WAY her mom would look that thin right after having a baby. Even if you only gain the baby weight, you come home from the hospital looking seven months pregnant because you just had a human being inside you. Takes a bit for your body to get back to how it was (if it ever does. Sorry again, Mom?).
The Club (and clients): nothing new.
SMS:
There's some continuity weirdness here. Stacey and Claudia wrote their autobiographies "last" school year, and Dawn says that at her going-away party, the BSC was saying she decided to move to avoid the assignment. Dawn moved at the end of summer vacation, and her California school started one week before SMS. She was assigned the autobiography on the first day of school. I guess SMS let it be known about the assignment before school started back up?
PSA Time:
As a child, I was always told to not let callers know that there are no adults home. For example, if I were home alone with my younger brother and someone called asking for my mom or dad, I was supposed to say, "She's not available right. Can I take a message?" rather than, "She's not home right now." That way random callers don't know that the oldest person home is only 12.
Misc:
Interesting how few of the girls' most vivid memories from Super Special #11 make it in their autobiographies.
To this day, I can't figure out how to do Morse code with wooden blocks. What's the difference between a dot and a dash when banging blocks together?
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 7
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 175; 111 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 112
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
4/19/12
Farewell, Dawn (RS#88)
Original Publication Date: 1995
Ghostwriter? Yes, Suzanne Weyn
Synopsis:
When Dawn learned that her best friend's mom had lung cancer, it got her thinking more about California. To the point that now, she's decided it's best to move back permanantly. She decides this pretty early on in the book, but before she thinks of a good way to tell Mary Anne without devastating her too much, the news gets leaked and Mary Anne is pissed. They have a big fight, but then Mary Anne just acts numb around Dawn. There's no huge resolution or explanation, but Mary Anne does start to act normal again before Dawn leaves and they're able to have a real goodbye.
Subplot, because we can't have a book without one: James Hobart breaks his leg and has to be stuck in a cast for the end of summer, so the BSC helps his friends do a Christmas in the summer for him. Of course, he gets confused because in the Southern Hemisphere Christmas is in the summer. Those wacky Australians!
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Cheez Doodles
With all the moral crusades Dawn goes on, I'm surprised she has yet to jump on Shannon's family for breeding their dog. Presumably they're responsible in doing so, but I could see Dawn going off about pet overpopulation.
Back in Baby-sitters' Summer Vacation, Mallory was described as someone who would eventually grow into her looks and become pretty (or something like that); here Dawn tells us that "if you really study Mallory you can tell she'll look just fine as she gets older."
Jessi cautions the kids against buying a little gun toy for James Hobart becase DAWN doesn't like toy guns (it just sparks, not even a cap gun). Guys! She's not even going to be in this time zone in two weeks! Let the kid with a broken leg have a fun toy if he wants it.
Dawns gets a really sweet letter from Jessi, who once described herself as a terrible letter writer but also resolved to change that. Looks like she's succeeded.
Their Families:
Karen and Andrew now live at the Brewers' house every other month, a development which happens in the Little Series (which I am NOT subjecting myself to).
Dawn refers to Carol as her dad's new wife, rather than step-mother (and she really hasn't lived with Carol in the house, so understandable).
The Club (and clients):
Dawn sits for Sara and Norman Hill in the first chapter. Sara's still friends with Elizabeth, who had relentlessly tormented Norman for being overweight.
Stacey nixes the idea of inviting kids to Dawn's going away party, because it will feel like work if they have to keep an eye on them. And they let her back in the BSC?! (being facetious there)
Shannon agrees to take over as alternate officer, but once school starts up she probably won't be able to come to many meetings.
SMS:
I question the rigor of Stoneybrook's schools if kids make it to eighth grade without knowing that the seasons are reversed in the Southern Hemisphere. Also, in Dawn's Wicked Stepsister, Dawn thinks that scientists invented time zones very recently, instead of the idea sort of occuring naturally because of Earth's revolving around the sun.
PSA Time:
Mary Anne tells Dawn she's being selfish for not thinking of how everyone in Stoneybrook feels. Here's the thing, though: while Dawn is thinking primarily of herself, sometimes you have to put yourself first.
Misc:
This book has a few examples of "I can't believe how dumb all the rest of America is--oh, I'm enlightened though!" which bug me. Like Dawn complaining about the diet of OTHER Americans or Mallory proclaiming that American football is stupid in name and practice. Girls, it's fine to not like something, but don't be holier-than-thou about it.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 7
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 175; 111 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 112
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
Ghostwriter? Yes, Suzanne Weyn
Synopsis:
When Dawn learned that her best friend's mom had lung cancer, it got her thinking more about California. To the point that now, she's decided it's best to move back permanantly. She decides this pretty early on in the book, but before she thinks of a good way to tell Mary Anne without devastating her too much, the news gets leaked and Mary Anne is pissed. They have a big fight, but then Mary Anne just acts numb around Dawn. There's no huge resolution or explanation, but Mary Anne does start to act normal again before Dawn leaves and they're able to have a real goodbye.
Subplot, because we can't have a book without one: James Hobart breaks his leg and has to be stuck in a cast for the end of summer, so the BSC helps his friends do a Christmas in the summer for him. Of course, he gets confused because in the Southern Hemisphere Christmas is in the summer. Those wacky Australians!
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Cheez Doodles
With all the moral crusades Dawn goes on, I'm surprised she has yet to jump on Shannon's family for breeding their dog. Presumably they're responsible in doing so, but I could see Dawn going off about pet overpopulation.
Back in Baby-sitters' Summer Vacation, Mallory was described as someone who would eventually grow into her looks and become pretty (or something like that); here Dawn tells us that "if you really study Mallory you can tell she'll look just fine as she gets older."
Jessi cautions the kids against buying a little gun toy for James Hobart becase DAWN doesn't like toy guns (it just sparks, not even a cap gun). Guys! She's not even going to be in this time zone in two weeks! Let the kid with a broken leg have a fun toy if he wants it.
Dawns gets a really sweet letter from Jessi, who once described herself as a terrible letter writer but also resolved to change that. Looks like she's succeeded.
Their Families:
Karen and Andrew now live at the Brewers' house every other month, a development which happens in the Little Series (which I am NOT subjecting myself to).
Dawn refers to Carol as her dad's new wife, rather than step-mother (and she really hasn't lived with Carol in the house, so understandable).
The Club (and clients):
Dawn sits for Sara and Norman Hill in the first chapter. Sara's still friends with Elizabeth, who had relentlessly tormented Norman for being overweight.
Stacey nixes the idea of inviting kids to Dawn's going away party, because it will feel like work if they have to keep an eye on them. And they let her back in the BSC?! (being facetious there)
Shannon agrees to take over as alternate officer, but once school starts up she probably won't be able to come to many meetings.
SMS:
I question the rigor of Stoneybrook's schools if kids make it to eighth grade without knowing that the seasons are reversed in the Southern Hemisphere. Also, in Dawn's Wicked Stepsister, Dawn thinks that scientists invented time zones very recently, instead of the idea sort of occuring naturally because of Earth's revolving around the sun.
PSA Time:
Mary Anne tells Dawn she's being selfish for not thinking of how everyone in Stoneybrook feels. Here's the thing, though: while Dawn is thinking primarily of herself, sometimes you have to put yourself first.
Misc:
This book has a few examples of "I can't believe how dumb all the rest of America is--oh, I'm enlightened though!" which bug me. Like Dawn complaining about the diet of OTHER Americans or Mallory proclaiming that American football is stupid in name and practice. Girls, it's fine to not like something, but don't be holier-than-thou about it.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 7
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 175; 111 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 112
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
4/9/12
BSC Movie Novelization
Original Publication Date: 1995
Written by A. L. Singer
Synopsis:
In August of 1995, The Baby-sitters Club was released in theatres. Its plot isn't exactly canon in my mind, but does have similarities to a few books, including Kristy's portrait collection. I won't be counting anything in this book toward my totals, but I'll note things that stand out.
The basic plot is that the BSC decides to run a summer camp (like in Mary Anne and Camp BSC). They have some issues with a neighbor, but she ends up helping them later on after talking to Dawn: the BSC restores an old greenhouse and the neighbor helps convinces the historical society to give it the BSC so they can use it as a clubhouse. But they decide to continue in Claudia's room as it's always been, and give the greenhouse to the neighbor. It's odd.
There's also some stuff that happens when Kristy's father (I'm not calling him her "dad" as he hasn't acted like a dad) shows up and he doesn't want her to reveal that he's in town. He stands her up on her birthday, but the BSC saves the day.
Subplots include Stacey having a crush on Rosie Wilder's seventeen-year-old Swiss cousin, Alan Gray having one on Dawn, Cokie Mason trying to steal Logan from Mary Anne again, and Claudia needing to pass summer school in order to remain in the BSC.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Hershey's kisses in her dresser and licorce in her nightstand. Also, Dawn brings some health-food chips
Mary Anne must have shrunk, because she and Kristy are the same height again and Kristy's still five feet tall.
Their Families:
Hunter Bruno is now allergic to wheat as well. Poor kid.
Patrick Thomas was married for a while after abandoning Kristy and her family.
The Club (and clients):
Dawn sits for a kid named Margie Klinger; Mallory sits for twins Terri and Tammy Barkan. The twins try to switch on Mallory but she's able to tell who is who because of having triplet brothers...funny, that didn't work with the Arnold twins.
No, Kristy's missed more than one meeting. She skipped a few during their fight in Mary Anne Saves the Day.
Oh, and Mallory? "We never fight"? Did you hit your head or something?
SMS: summer break.
PSA Time:
I hope it doesn't need to be said, but if the secret you're keeping could hurt someone it's a bad secret to keep.
Misc:
Despite being about 20 pages shorter than a regular BSC book, this has 22 chapters plus an epilogue like a Super Special. And it's written in third person.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 7
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 175; 111 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 112
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
Written by A. L. Singer
Synopsis:
In August of 1995, The Baby-sitters Club was released in theatres. Its plot isn't exactly canon in my mind, but does have similarities to a few books, including Kristy's portrait collection. I won't be counting anything in this book toward my totals, but I'll note things that stand out.
The basic plot is that the BSC decides to run a summer camp (like in Mary Anne and Camp BSC). They have some issues with a neighbor, but she ends up helping them later on after talking to Dawn: the BSC restores an old greenhouse and the neighbor helps convinces the historical society to give it the BSC so they can use it as a clubhouse. But they decide to continue in Claudia's room as it's always been, and give the greenhouse to the neighbor. It's odd.
There's also some stuff that happens when Kristy's father (I'm not calling him her "dad" as he hasn't acted like a dad) shows up and he doesn't want her to reveal that he's in town. He stands her up on her birthday, but the BSC saves the day.
Subplots include Stacey having a crush on Rosie Wilder's seventeen-year-old Swiss cousin, Alan Gray having one on Dawn, Cokie Mason trying to steal Logan from Mary Anne again, and Claudia needing to pass summer school in order to remain in the BSC.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Hershey's kisses in her dresser and licorce in her nightstand. Also, Dawn brings some health-food chips
Mary Anne must have shrunk, because she and Kristy are the same height again and Kristy's still five feet tall.
Their Families:
Hunter Bruno is now allergic to wheat as well. Poor kid.
Patrick Thomas was married for a while after abandoning Kristy and her family.
The Club (and clients):
Dawn sits for a kid named Margie Klinger; Mallory sits for twins Terri and Tammy Barkan. The twins try to switch on Mallory but she's able to tell who is who because of having triplet brothers...funny, that didn't work with the Arnold twins.
No, Kristy's missed more than one meeting. She skipped a few during their fight in Mary Anne Saves the Day.
Oh, and Mallory? "We never fight"? Did you hit your head or something?
SMS: summer break.
PSA Time:
I hope it doesn't need to be said, but if the secret you're keeping could hurt someone it's a bad secret to keep.
Misc:
Despite being about 20 pages shorter than a regular BSC book, this has 22 chapters plus an epilogue like a Super Special. And it's written in third person.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 7
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 175; 111 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 112
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
3/25/12
Claudia and the Recipe for Disaster (M#21)
Original Publication Date: 1995
Ghostwriter? Yes, Ellen Miles
Synopsis:
A baking company is holding a contest, and Claudia and Mary Anne decide to enter with Shea Rodowsky. Logan's also on a team with his sister and a classmate (Cokie and her cronies make up another team). Other members of the BSC are going to watch contestants' kids in a daycare.
Of course, it's not long before things go awry. A seven-year-old girl in the daycare keeps breaking things or making messes and hiding them. Turns out it's her brother and she just readily accepts the blame, which is so painfully obvious to everyone but the BSC. It's actually pretty creepy the way the boy sets her up and plays innocent and how the girl so easily gives up any thought of defending herself. The BSC does try to help once they FINALLY figure out what's going on, but still...creepy.
The baking contest holds the main mystery: a saboteur is on the loose. People are having their ingredients switched, their ovens tampered with, and so on. The BSC narrows down a list of suspects and sets up a trap, revealing the culprit to the judges. Then the contest can resume fairly, and Claudia's team wins using an old recipe that Mary Anne's mom used to make. Her dad brings in the recipe at the last minute and mentions how long it's been since he's had it...it's pretty touching.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Snickers, M&Ms, and Fritos in her sock drawer, fruit leather under her bed, Smartfood in her nighttable, Twizzlers under her pillow
Dawn's feeling homesick for California, especially after the news about Sunny's mom.
Their Families:
I find it odd that there's no formal custody arrangement with Stacey and her parents. She just visits her dad when she feels like. Come to think of it, it seems that way with Dawn and Jeff too.
The Club (and clients):
Reading the beginning of the first chapter when Claudia's interacting with Jamie...she really is written as a fantastic sitter. Claudia, exist in real life and baby-sit my daughter!
SMS:
Claudia gets to know Grace Blume a little, since Cokie's out sick. Turns out she likes Nancy Drew, too.
PSA Time:
I know someone who doesn't consider following a recipe "real" baking, because "real" chefs don't follow recipes. Really? Then how do they reproduce a dish from one day to the next? Claudia tries to experiment with recipes but realizes that there's a reason some things are popular: they work (this applies to more than just recipes).
Misc:
I think this book illustrates why you should tase your dough or batter as you bake. Delicious, and defends against sabotage.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 7
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 175; 111 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 112
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
Ghostwriter? Yes, Ellen Miles
Synopsis:
A baking company is holding a contest, and Claudia and Mary Anne decide to enter with Shea Rodowsky. Logan's also on a team with his sister and a classmate (Cokie and her cronies make up another team). Other members of the BSC are going to watch contestants' kids in a daycare.
Of course, it's not long before things go awry. A seven-year-old girl in the daycare keeps breaking things or making messes and hiding them. Turns out it's her brother and she just readily accepts the blame, which is so painfully obvious to everyone but the BSC. It's actually pretty creepy the way the boy sets her up and plays innocent and how the girl so easily gives up any thought of defending herself. The BSC does try to help once they FINALLY figure out what's going on, but still...creepy.
The baking contest holds the main mystery: a saboteur is on the loose. People are having their ingredients switched, their ovens tampered with, and so on. The BSC narrows down a list of suspects and sets up a trap, revealing the culprit to the judges. Then the contest can resume fairly, and Claudia's team wins using an old recipe that Mary Anne's mom used to make. Her dad brings in the recipe at the last minute and mentions how long it's been since he's had it...it's pretty touching.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Snickers, M&Ms, and Fritos in her sock drawer, fruit leather under her bed, Smartfood in her nighttable, Twizzlers under her pillow
Dawn's feeling homesick for California, especially after the news about Sunny's mom.
Their Families:
I find it odd that there's no formal custody arrangement with Stacey and her parents. She just visits her dad when she feels like. Come to think of it, it seems that way with Dawn and Jeff too.
The Club (and clients):
Reading the beginning of the first chapter when Claudia's interacting with Jamie...she really is written as a fantastic sitter. Claudia, exist in real life and baby-sit my daughter!
SMS:
Claudia gets to know Grace Blume a little, since Cokie's out sick. Turns out she likes Nancy Drew, too.
PSA Time:
I know someone who doesn't consider following a recipe "real" baking, because "real" chefs don't follow recipes. Really? Then how do they reproduce a dish from one day to the next? Claudia tries to experiment with recipes but realizes that there's a reason some things are popular: they work (this applies to more than just recipes).
Misc:
I think this book illustrates why you should tase your dough or batter as you bake. Delicious, and defends against sabotage.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 7
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 175; 111 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 112
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
3/22/12
Stacey and the Bad Girls (RS#87)
Original Publication Date: 1995
Ghostwriter? Yes, Peter Lerangis
Synopsis:
With school out for the summer and no BSC, Stacey has a lot of free time. She mostly spends it hanging out with her friends until her mom suggests Stacey get a job. She's soon employed at a mall childcare center. Stacey still has time for her friends though. They often meet her at the mall, sometimes using her employee discount. But then they return the (expensive) items for full price...And when the group goes to a rock concert, Stacey's new friends sneak in alcohol. It's supposed to be an alcohol-free venue, so they all get kicked out.
We also get a subplot with Dawn's young second cousin visiting for a few weeks and having a tough time adjusting to not seeing her parents. Also, Dawn gets a call from her California best friend Sunny that Sunny's mother has been diagnosed with lung cancer.
Dawn's cousin ends up sneaking away to where Stacey works, trying to find a way back to her parents. Seeing Mary Anne and Dawn gets Stacey thinking about what makes a good friend. She calls Claudia, who talks to the rest of the BSC, and within a few days Stacey's back in (on a probationary basis).
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Chunkies, Oreos, Ring-Dings, Twinkies, chips, pretzels
Kristy's "not necessarily school-brilliant." I thought she got decent grades?
Dawn's still hinting about missing the west coast.
Their Families:
We know Claudia's parents are strict about books (although I like the theory that they're really not, but use the temptation of forbidden fruit to get Claudia to read Nancy Drews). Specifically, the approved list is limited to computer manuals, school books, and great literature.
The Club (and clients):
At the beginning of the book, Shannon's still the alternate officer, with Dawn as treasurer.
SMS:
8th grade students: Heather Epstein, Jacqui Grant, Mia Pappas.
PSA Time: nothing stood out.
Misc:
When Stacey sees the small bottles/flasks of alcohol her new friends have, she thinks for just a moment that it's cough syrup. My younger brother used to think that in Back to the Future Part II, Biff was taking a drink from a bottle of vanilla extract.
Pigs can't sweat. That's why they wallow in mud; it cools them down. Acts as sunscreen, too.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 7
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 175; 111 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 112
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
Ghostwriter? Yes, Peter Lerangis
Synopsis:
With school out for the summer and no BSC, Stacey has a lot of free time. She mostly spends it hanging out with her friends until her mom suggests Stacey get a job. She's soon employed at a mall childcare center. Stacey still has time for her friends though. They often meet her at the mall, sometimes using her employee discount. But then they return the (expensive) items for full price...And when the group goes to a rock concert, Stacey's new friends sneak in alcohol. It's supposed to be an alcohol-free venue, so they all get kicked out.
We also get a subplot with Dawn's young second cousin visiting for a few weeks and having a tough time adjusting to not seeing her parents. Also, Dawn gets a call from her California best friend Sunny that Sunny's mother has been diagnosed with lung cancer.
Dawn's cousin ends up sneaking away to where Stacey works, trying to find a way back to her parents. Seeing Mary Anne and Dawn gets Stacey thinking about what makes a good friend. She calls Claudia, who talks to the rest of the BSC, and within a few days Stacey's back in (on a probationary basis).
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Chunkies, Oreos, Ring-Dings, Twinkies, chips, pretzels
Kristy's "not necessarily school-brilliant." I thought she got decent grades?
Dawn's still hinting about missing the west coast.
Their Families:
We know Claudia's parents are strict about books (although I like the theory that they're really not, but use the temptation of forbidden fruit to get Claudia to read Nancy Drews). Specifically, the approved list is limited to computer manuals, school books, and great literature.
The Club (and clients):
At the beginning of the book, Shannon's still the alternate officer, with Dawn as treasurer.
SMS:
8th grade students: Heather Epstein, Jacqui Grant, Mia Pappas.
PSA Time: nothing stood out.
Misc:
When Stacey sees the small bottles/flasks of alcohol her new friends have, she thinks for just a moment that it's cough syrup. My younger brother used to think that in Back to the Future Part II, Biff was taking a drink from a bottle of vanilla extract.
Pigs can't sweat. That's why they wallow in mud; it cools them down. Acts as sunscreen, too.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 7
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 175; 111 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 112
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
3/15/12
Baby-sitters' Haunted House (SM#1)
Original Publication Date: 1995
Ghostwriter? Yes, Jeanne Betancourt
Synopsis:
It's summer (again) and Claudia, Kristy, Mary Anne, and Dawn are off to Maine for a bit to watch Karen and Andrew Brewer and four kids of another family (friends on the Brewers' mom's side). The latter family, the Menders, have inherited a very nice house up there and are deciding whether to move. Jessi, Mallory, Logan, and Shannon agree to cover their sitting jobs. Oh, one more thing: the house seems to be haunted. (Of course, it's just the "caretakers" trying to scare the Menders away because they're actually cousins who are in the will too, and a couple times the Menders' oldest child.)
Claudia spends a lot of time with one Georgio Trono, the college-age gardener. He's briefly crush material, but she thinks he's behind the fake hauntings, plus he's six or more years older. She also helps the Menders kids put together a float for the town parade (like she does in about every third Super Special).
Kristy reigns in Karen's over-helpfulness, as the latter tries to push one of the young charges into making friends instead of letting her go at her own pace. She also helps Jason Menders (elementary-aged) make friends with members of the local baseball team.
Mary Anne bores everyone with tidbits of information about New England. I love history and trivia, but even I think she goes too far.
Dawn gets a mini-me in the form of Jill Menders, one of the sitting charges.
Jessi and Mallory take turns being president of the BSC and goes okay. They think Shannon doesn't respect their authority (she talks down a bit, but it's more that she's busy) and that Logan is brushing them off (he has a job--somehow--at a restaurant). Really, what happens is that they're in over their head and they panic. Things get busy, and Janine even takes a job! The two think they've destroyed the BSC, but of course it works out fine.
Logan (no chapter for Shannon!) puts up with the insanity of frazzled Mallory and Jessi.
Karen gets a chapter too and ticks me off by refusing to use contractions. That doesn't make you look smart. It makes it look like you don't understand grammar conventions.
Stacey doesn't get a chapter or subplot because she's a HOAR who thinks she's too good for the BSC.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Chuckle Rings and rice cakes under her bed, Tootsie Rolls under her mattress, blue corn chips, and Twinkies
Dawn's getting wistful for California.
Their Families:
Kristy counts herself as related to Karen and Andrew, despite there being no blood ties. I like that; I have a lot of steps and halves and adopteds and even more tenuous relations than that in my extended family.
The Club (and clients):
Shannon's still the alternate officer, with Dawn as treasurer.
At one point Mallory and Jessi decide to stop taking turns being president because there are only the two of them. Way back in Hello, Mallory, during the short-lived sitting club (Kids, Inc) Mallory and Jessi found, they come to the same conclusion.
SMS:
Mrs. Hall, Claudia's English teacher, does sound like an awesome teacher. Claudia describes how the teacher has gone out of her way to help Claudia pass, even letting her do a summer writing project rather than summer school. You can tell that Claudia appreciates the extra help and works harder as a result.
PSA Time:
To clean a glass/crystal/etc chandelier or candlelabra, put a bath towel underneath where it hangs from the ceiling and spray it down liberally with rubbing alcohol (provided you know it won't damage the material it's made of). Because rubbing alcohol evaporates at a low temperature, you won't need to dry all the nooks and crannies; just let it drip onto the towel.
Probably a terrible idea to advertise on your home answering machine that you'll be gone for six weeks. "Hi! You've reached the [residence]. If you want to break in before the end of next month, we won't notice until we get back. Have fun!"
Misc:
This is clearly the same summer as the last book, but part of it takes place when the camp should be happening. FOUL.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 7
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 172; 108 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 112
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
Ghostwriter? Yes, Jeanne Betancourt
Synopsis:
It's summer (again) and Claudia, Kristy, Mary Anne, and Dawn are off to Maine for a bit to watch Karen and Andrew Brewer and four kids of another family (friends on the Brewers' mom's side). The latter family, the Menders, have inherited a very nice house up there and are deciding whether to move. Jessi, Mallory, Logan, and Shannon agree to cover their sitting jobs. Oh, one more thing: the house seems to be haunted. (Of course, it's just the "caretakers" trying to scare the Menders away because they're actually cousins who are in the will too, and a couple times the Menders' oldest child.)
Claudia spends a lot of time with one Georgio Trono, the college-age gardener. He's briefly crush material, but she thinks he's behind the fake hauntings, plus he's six or more years older. She also helps the Menders kids put together a float for the town parade (like she does in about every third Super Special).
Kristy reigns in Karen's over-helpfulness, as the latter tries to push one of the young charges into making friends instead of letting her go at her own pace. She also helps Jason Menders (elementary-aged) make friends with members of the local baseball team.
Mary Anne bores everyone with tidbits of information about New England. I love history and trivia, but even I think she goes too far.
Dawn gets a mini-me in the form of Jill Menders, one of the sitting charges.
Jessi and Mallory take turns being president of the BSC and goes okay. They think Shannon doesn't respect their authority (she talks down a bit, but it's more that she's busy) and that Logan is brushing them off (he has a job--somehow--at a restaurant). Really, what happens is that they're in over their head and they panic. Things get busy, and Janine even takes a job! The two think they've destroyed the BSC, but of course it works out fine.
Logan (no chapter for Shannon!) puts up with the insanity of frazzled Mallory and Jessi.
Karen gets a chapter too and ticks me off by refusing to use contractions. That doesn't make you look smart. It makes it look like you don't understand grammar conventions.
Stacey doesn't get a chapter or subplot because she's a HOAR who thinks she's too good for the BSC.
Established or continued in this book:
The Girls (and Logan):
Claudia candy: Chuckle Rings and rice cakes under her bed, Tootsie Rolls under her mattress, blue corn chips, and Twinkies
Dawn's getting wistful for California.
Their Families:
Kristy counts herself as related to Karen and Andrew, despite there being no blood ties. I like that; I have a lot of steps and halves and adopteds and even more tenuous relations than that in my extended family.
The Club (and clients):
Shannon's still the alternate officer, with Dawn as treasurer.
At one point Mallory and Jessi decide to stop taking turns being president because there are only the two of them. Way back in Hello, Mallory, during the short-lived sitting club (Kids, Inc) Mallory and Jessi found, they come to the same conclusion.
SMS:
Mrs. Hall, Claudia's English teacher, does sound like an awesome teacher. Claudia describes how the teacher has gone out of her way to help Claudia pass, even letting her do a summer writing project rather than summer school. You can tell that Claudia appreciates the extra help and works harder as a result.
PSA Time:
To clean a glass/crystal/etc chandelier or candlelabra, put a bath towel underneath where it hangs from the ceiling and spray it down liberally with rubbing alcohol (provided you know it won't damage the material it's made of). Because rubbing alcohol evaporates at a low temperature, you won't need to dry all the nooks and crannies; just let it drip onto the towel.
Probably a terrible idea to advertise on your home answering machine that you'll be gone for six weeks. "Hi! You've reached the [residence]. If you want to break in before the end of next month, we won't notice until we get back. Have fun!"
Misc:
This is clearly the same summer as the last book, but part of it takes place when the camp should be happening. FOUL.
The numbers:
Starting 8th grade: 7
Halloweens in 8th grade: 4 (plus one in seventh)
Thanksgivings in 8th grade: 1
Christmases in 8th grade: 1 (Hanukkah is also mentioned, but no one in the BSC celebrates it)
Valentine's Days in 8th grade: 2
Summers after 8th grade: 8
BSC Fights: 10
SMS Staff and Faculty: 48
Students (other than the BSC): 172; 108 8th graders, 6 7th graders, 42 6th graders, 15 unspecified. Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation tells us that SMS has about 380 students.
Clients: 33 families
Types of candy in Claudia’s room: 112
Crushes:
Stacey-11
Claudia-9
Dawn-5
Jessi-3
Mallory-2
Mary Anne-2
Kristy-1
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