The Baby-sitters Club Netflix TV Series: Kristy and the Snobs

 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. Due to being cast in Dr. Strange and the Multiverse of Madness, Dawn's original actress Xochitl Gomez didn't return for the second season. She's replaced by Kyndra Sanchez, who returns from California feeling "like a new person" (subtle!).

Unlike the original book, the only snobs are Amanda Delaney and her mom. The Kilbourne family isn't in it, and Louie dies offscreen. That was such a HUGE part of the plot in the book that I'm shocked it's glossed over--I count this as a bad change. Here are some other things I noticed:

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

Kristy meets the Delany family when Amanda delivers an invitation for tea, which a thinly-veiled excuse for Amanda and her mother to scope out the new neighbors, and to judge them. Mrs. Delaney flat-out states with palpable disdain, "I'm not sure how you met Watson."

The Delany family is limited to Amanda and her mom, who are both very socially awkward and shallow, and connect far better with animals than people. They host pet adoption events every few months, and in the series, this is how David Michael gets Shannon the dog--named her after Mrs. Shannon Delany. Shannon Kilbourne isn't in here.

What I was happy stayed the same:

Mallory is appropriately awkward.

Other interesting touches:

Mary Anne keeps the club schedule on an electronic tablet.

Dawn does a tarot reading for Mary Anne in an attempt to discern whether her relationship with Logan will be moving forward. Mary Anne's dad hilariously deadpans that they should finish their homework before they summon the devil.

Logan's mom, offscreen, as Logan obliviously answers the questions Dawn asks when calling from a blocked number and posing as a US Census Bureau worker: "Logan! Are you giving out personal information again?!"

Season 2 Cast

Kristy Thomas: Sophie Grace
Claudia Kishi: Momona Tamada
Stacey McGill: Shay Rudolph
Mary Anne Spier: Malia Baker
Dawn Schafer: Kyndra Sanchez 
Mallory Pike: Vivian Watson
Jessi Ramsey: Anais Lee
Logan Bruno: Rian McCririck

Elizabeth Thomas-Brewer: Alicia Silverstone
Charlie Thomas: Ethan Farrell
Sam Thomas: Dylan Kingwell
David Michael Thomas: Benjamin Goas
Watson Brewer: Mark Feuerstein
Karen Brewer: Sophia Reid-Gantzert
Andrew Bremer: Troy Ames (new actor)

Mimi Yamamoto: Takayo Fischer
Kimiko Kishi: Diana Bang
John Kishi: Kevan Ohtshi
Janine Kishi: Aya Furukawa

Edward McGill: Peter Benson
Maureen McGill: Shauna Johanssen

Richard Spier: Marc Evan Jackson

Sharon Porter: Jessica Elaina Eason

Byron Pike: Brock Brown
Vanessa Pike: Daphne Hoskins
Claire Pike: Sara Halliburton

Janice Ramsey: Brandee Steger
John Ramsey: Doron Bell
Becca Ramsey: Isabel Birch

Kim Newton: Christina Sicoli
Mrs. Papadakis: Flora Karas
Linny Papadakis: Bear Blu Silverstone
Hannie Papadakis: Alethia Berry
Jacob: Romy Sanchez (played "Camper #2" in first season)
Derek Masters: Luke Roessler
Chaz Masters: Noah Bean
Mrs. Delaney: Jaycie Dotin
Amanda Delaney: Lia Frankland
Oliver: Kaiel Barreiro
Miranda Rose: Helen Mihlar
Small child #1: Naomi Rose MacFadden
Small child #2: Reyhan Jobanputra

Ashley Wyeth: Kelcey Mawema

Mme. Noelle: Desiree Zurowski

Hailee: Charlotte Clayton
Clementine: Inca Scott
Dancer: Ava Burgham
Dancer: Ariel Price
Fellow Dancer: Ema Mlinar
Ms. Katimiski: Kimmi Gatewood

Dr. Arevalo: Laara Sadiq
Hostess: Faith Wright
Restaurant waiter: Michael Sousa
Loud Kid: Eric Halliburton
JDRF President: Natalie Skye
Dreamy Boy: Alexander Dutkiewicz

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!

Karen's School Picture (LSGN#5)

 Publication date: 2022

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

Illustrators: Katy Farina, with color by Braden Lamb

Synopsis:

Karen's been having headaches, especially when reading. Time for a trip to the eye doctor. Karen (like my same-age daughter who just got glasses) is very upset to learn she'll need glasses, but quickly recovers when she realizes how much better she can see and how her headaches and eye strain disappear. Her friends and family are complimentary, with Nancy telling her perhaps the best thing: that the glasses look great AND that Karen hardly looks different with them on. Nancy is an excellent friend throughout this book, reassuring Karen at every turn and standing up for her.

But at school, Rickey Torres, AKA Ricky the Pest, zeroes in on the glasses and mocks Karen relentlessly. Then a few days later, Ricky gets glasses! Karen is at first happy to see him getting teased with the same names he called her, but quickly decides to take the high road and not make life harder for him. She even steps in when he's being teased, but Ricky's so upset and embarrassed that he takes out his frustration on Karen, calling her more names and telling her to leave him alone.

Not to mention, as the title suggests, school pictures are coming up. Karen can't decide what to do: leave her glasses on and feel like she stands out as too different, or leave them off and feel like a coward for giving in to teasing? Fortunately, Kristy helps Karen feel confident with her glasses, taking her to the library to show her pictures of famous people wearing glasses and pointing out the people in her family who wear them (an idea I used when my daughter was upset about her glasses; now she's fine with them--though she did choose to take them off for her school picture, which was fine).

After a lot of pondering and seeing how her teacher and another classmate leave their glasses on but Ricky takes his off, Karen decides to leave hers one. A moment later when the class gathers for a group picture, Karen and Ricky make up from their fight. Karen tells Ricky about the famous people who wear glasses, and he leaves his on for the group picture.

Continuity related to BSC books:

Emily Michelle and Nannie now live in the Big House:

Misc:

Dedicated to Ashley Vinsel and "my friends, my unyielding pillars of love and support."

Doesn't Karen have two pairs of glasses in the original books, one for distance and one for reading; one pink and one blue? She wore one pair on her face and another on a chain around her neck for the picture, right? Here she just gets pink ones that, from the descriptions of what she can see, are bifocals.

According to my uncle and cousin who are optometrists, kids should start having eye exams at kindergarten age (five), unless they're showing signs of eye problems before that. Regular exams are how we found out that my youngest needs reading glasses, and how I learned in third grade that I needed glasses for distance vision--I didn't know you could make out street signs from the back seat of a car; I figured no one else could read them from back there either!

When I got glasses in third grade, my teacher also rearranged the classroom so that I sat in the front, like Ms. Coleman does. That never made sense to me--before I got glasses, I hadn't been able to read the board from my seat in the back (I am VERY near-sighted), but now the problem was fixed. I should have been in the front BEFORE getting glasses, not after.

One boy teases Ricky for having "boring" brown glasses that match his "boring" brown eyes. First, having brown eyes myself, I've always disliked the idea that an eye color can be superior--maybe it can be striking, like my middle kids' piercing blue eyes, but not inherently better. Second, the boy teasing him also has brown eyes. 

Karen narrates that she and Andrew are "visiting" her dad's house--does she not think of it as her house since she spends less time there? Could be a factor of why in later books she and Andrew spend a full month at each house then a full month at the other.

Karen's handwriting (and spelling) is noticeably better. A combination of learning more in school and getting glasses?

Karen's classroom:

The titular picture:

Girl of the Year 2022: Corinne to the Rescue

 Published: 2022. Author: Wendy Wan-Long Shang. Illustrator: Peijin Yang.

Summary

As Corinne, Gwynn, and their dad are enjoying the last day of skiing before the snow melts, Flurry attracts the attention of a rescue dog trainer/mentor. She and Corinne talk for a bit, and come to an agreement that (pending parent permission) if Flurry can learn certain techniques the mentor, Kim, will work with Corinne to train Flurry further. And the training will be perfect for being part of Corinne and Gwynn's tradition of doing Five New Things each summer.

Their mom has her announcement about a New Thing: Corinne and Gwynn are getting a baby brother. Corinne can't help having mixed feelings: will Arne love the baby more because of the biological relation? Why did Corinne's grandparents emphasize the baby being a boy? Will Corinne and Gwynn be able to have their own rooms eventually now that their brother needs a nursery? Will their mom be okay with pregnancy and labor, or might she get sick?

At least their mom is still on board with the annual camping trip. Arne's nervous about whether it's safe for the baby, but the women of the house reassure him that while, yes, there is morning sickness, it's nothing unusual or dangerous that necessitates canceling camping.

And the camping trip is a lot of fun. Cassidy's able to come, and Arne's able to enjoy getting back to nature. But during a canoe trip, their canoes capsize and they end up stranded on a beach. Arne's leg is broken and badly cut, and Corinne's mom is feeling ill (the baby seems to be fine; she was able to protect her abdomen). Cassidy has an idea to boil river water in a cup she folds of aluminum from a survival kit she and Corinne made, so at least they won't dehydrate. But it'll be hours before anyone realizes the group is missing. Arne has a topographical map of the area, and Corinne and Cassidy realize they're very close to a trail they hiked yesterday--they can get to camp in an hour and send help quickly. Leaving Gwynn "in charge" (both to distract her with a job and to maximize how fast they can travel), Corinne and Cassidy head out with Flurry.

It's a difficult trek: the girls have to contend with a recent rockslide impeding the way, and a mountain lion. They also have a tough conversation about Corinne's worries about the baby. But they finally make it, reaching a familiar-looking meadow where Flurry alerts to a scrunchie Cassidy lost the day before. They're back, and soon the others are rescued. And with the skills Flurry learned and showed, it's time to really start the search and rescue training!

Three months later, the day arrives: Corinne's mom goes into labor. It's not long before she and Gwynn meet their baby brother, Blix Yong. His Swedish name means joy and happiness; his Chinese name means brave. Corinne can hardly wait to show him the world.

Misc

Dedicated to "LJF, who keeps me laughing." Thanks is given again to Greta Gessele, Dr. Jennifer Ho, Angela Liu, Lori Spence, and Dr. William Wei for their contributions and advice.

Cassidy says her mom told the average person eats six pounds of dirt over a lifetime, just from accidental ingestion. When I was four, my brother told me it was a spoonful. A brief search says six pounds is closer--I'm glad that's not what my then-seven-year-old brother told me, because I thought the spoonful of dirt was a requirement and wanted to get it over with right away, so I grabbed a spoon from the kitchen, went out in the yard, and ate a spoonful.

The appendices are about a pair of friends who adventure around Washington, hiking Mt. Si in North Bend and biking seventeen miles between their houses, including over the I-90 bridge on Lake Washington (the second-longest floating bridge in the world); how to make a survival kit; and directions for banana boat treats.

Girl of the Year 2022: Corinne

Published: 2022. Author: Wendy Wan-Long Shang. Illustrator: Peijin Yang.

Summary

Ten-year-old Corinne Tan lives in Aspen, Colorado with her mom and sister, Gwynn. And soon they'll her new stepdad, Arne, once he and her mom marry. Corinne and Gwynn like Arne, but there will be a lot to adjust to: his Swedish culture mixing with their Chinese culture, his relatively austere sense of style to their more colorful ones (e.g.; Corinne and Gwynn want to paint one of their walls in the their rooms purple but Arne thinks that's weird), moving into a new house, not sharing a room anymore, nerves over how their dad will react to their mom's remarriage (he knows about it, and the divorce is fairly amicable, but it's stressful for a kid). Corinne is worried that Arne is trying too hard to connect with his soon-to-be step-daughters: he arranges for private ice-skating lessons for Gwynn, and is ready to do the same for Corinne's skiing passion but when she declines she worries he won't be able to bond with her if she doesn't have a passionate hobby. Ugh--and Corinne has to deal with people blaming anyone of Asian descent for, as they call it, "kung flu."

Fortunately that last one is a rare thing (and I'm glad American Girl addresses it; while I don't have Chinese family members, I do have many whose parents or grandparents immigrated from Vietnam, South Korea, and the Philippines; and my youngest's very good friend is first-generation Japanese-American--plus racism is just gross). More at the forefront is how Corinne's best friend Cassidy might react to finding out that Arne is very well-off financially. Cassidy is very in-tune with the price and value of things, and actively distances herself from those she perceives to be rich snobs. Corinne doesn't want Cassidy to think she's become a rich snob, so she feels like she can't tell Cassidy about things like Gwynn's private skating lessons.

Corinne feels like she can't talk about how she wants to decorate her space in her new home to her mom and Arne, like she can't talk about the adjustments of moving in to a fancy house with Cassidy, like she can't talk about her mom remarrying to her dad--she feels like she has to keep it all to herself. 

One things Corinne is able to talk about, at least in part, is her desire to train a search-and-rescue dog. She meets one while skiing and falls in love with the concept. Arne is reticent to add a dog to the about-to-be-blended family, but agrees to go to a shelter with the others to look and get ideas. Of course, they fall head over heels for a six-month-puppy named Flurry and get her right then. Arne says it's a wedding present; the big day is later in the week (a small ceremony at a courthouse: Cassidy approves of the budget-saving plan). Corinne is thrilled but her excitement is tempered by wondering if Arne will change his mind if Flurry misbehaves. Oh, no...and what she or Gwynn annoy Arne?

Though Arne seems happy to have Corinne and Gwynn in his life. After the wedding, the sisters spend some time with their dad and return Arne's home--now theirs as well--to see that he's hired an interior decorator to not only paint a purple wall in the room they decided to share, but to paint a mural of a snowy mountains, with plenty of purples in the shadows. The whole room looks like a ski lodge! It's great, except there's nowhere to hang the autographed poster of a ski champion Corinne got from her dad. Like her other worries, she keeps it inside.

Besides, there's too much going on to worry about that now: Flurry really does seem to be an excellent candidate for search and rescue, and Corinne's mom is about to open a new restaurant, serving the traditional Chinese food she learned to make from her mother. Although that comes with its own problems: some passersby see Corinne with Flurry outside the restaurant and one "jokes" about the dog being part of the menu, making Gwynn cry. When Corinne's mom confronts the man, he yells that he wouldn't want to eat there anyway because he'd probably get COVID-19. Corinne is proud of how her mom handled the bully, but nervous that more people like him will cause problems. She's also concerned by how Arne seems to just brush off the incident like it didn't happen.

It all comes to a head during Gwynn's skating competition: Corinne sees a boy who bullied her about "kung flu" and confronts but Arne seems to brush it off again, and Cassidy shows up meaning that Corinne can't hide her stepdad's financial status anymore. Confused and hurting, Corinne runs off a ski run where she and Gwynn bonded, aiming to find the sister shrine they built together. But she gets lost as night falls. It's not until four hours later that Flurry finds her, with the search and rescue team hot on her trail. Corinne is welcomed at the lodge by her entire family: Mom, Dad, Gwynn, and Arne. In seeing her father and stepfather interact, Corinne finally feels like she can love them both without hurting the other. She and Cassidy also make up: Cassidy clarifies that she's not upset about finances but that Corinne kept so much from her...and maybe Cassidy is too quick to judge herself. She even helps Corinne find the perfect place to hang her autographed poster.

Misc

Dedicated to "the girls who keep their faces to the sun." Thanks is given to Greta Gessele, Dr. Jennifer Ho, Angela Liu, Lori Spence, and Dr. William Wei for their contributions and advice.

Corinne and Gwynn love the shade of purple they see on the native columbine flowers. Having been a teenager in 1999, Columbine and Colorado have a particular connection in my mind--I didn't know about the flower until well after the school shooting.

The text mentions a dumpster, not capitalized. This is how I learned that the patent for that particular type of waste container expired in 2014, and therefor doesn't need to be capitalized.

Corinne's parents divorced when the stress of the COVID19 pandemic put the final strains on their marriage.

There's an appendix about a pair of sisters who love skiing, and help train rescue dogs.

Kristy and the Snobs (GN#10)

Publication Date: 2021

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

Illustrator: Chan Chau

Synopsis:

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


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy: just a bag of chips in this picture that serves as Chapter Two

Shannon joins the club:

Their Families: 

Louie's last day and night:

The Club (and clients): 

Papadakis kids:

The Delany kids before Stacey "tames" them:

Mary Anne and Logan sitting for Jamie Newton and Gabby and Myriah Perkins:

SMS:

Lunch room:

PSA Time: 

There's a safe, effective vaccine for chicken pox now. The herpes zoster virus causes chicken pox and stays in the body forever, potentially resurfacing as shingles later in life. Some places (England, for example) don't vaccinate against chicken pox because people who had it in the past are more likely to develop shingles if not exposed to herpes zoster regularly, as one would be if around kids with chicken pox...but there are vaccines for shingles too... While the chicken pox rarely comes with serious risk, those risks are possible--and preventable. I would gladly risk shingles, even after seeing my dad get post-herpetic neuralgia, if it means my kids and further generations won't have to worry about it. Since the chicken pox vaccine has been standard in the US for close to three decades now, I'm surprised the Pikes' plague wasn't updated to a different disease.

Misc:

Martin dedicates this book to memory of "Neena and Grandpa."

Chau dedicates it to "Erik Munson, Danya Adair, Alice Woods, Bleb, and Maddi Gonzales for being there when I needed someone the most. And to my incredible friends and family."

Aww... the drawing of David Michael accepting Shannon the dog from Shannon the human is very sweet. Overall, the graphic novel is as emotionally moving as the original.

Claudia and the New Girl (GN#9)

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. With as art-driven as this story is, it was really nice to have it in a visual medium.


Established or continued in this book:

The Girls (and Logan):

Claudia candy:

chips and cookies on the floor

 

Their Families: nothing new

The Club (and clients): 

The notebook isn't meant to be used like this!

The club is introduced this way instead of the Chapter Two info-dump:

 
SMS:

Mrs. Hall, English teacher:

New student Ashley Wyeth:

SMS lunchroom:

PSA Time:

Something I noticed more reading this after having kids, is how thoughtful it was of Claudia, only 12 in the book, to ask permission of both Jackie and his mom before sculpting him--especially when the sculpture is intended to be on public display. I rarely post pictures of my kids online, and usually try to have their faces obscured when I do.

Helmets are a good idea when biking!

Misc:

Martin dedicates this book to "the loyal readers of the Baby-sitters Club."

Epstein dedicates it to "my mom, who breathed life into our house with her pottery and paintings, and my dad, who showed me the political power of comics. Thank you to DK and Shep, whose classes and advice made me fall in love with learning again and changed my life for the better. And to both my grandmothers, Barbie and Sonia, for being my biggest cheerleaders."

The illustrations really help this story, in my opinion. It's easier to understand Ashley's body language, and how she doesn't view Claudia as an equal. That's not to say the BSC isn't acting jealous and petty when Claudia makes a new friend, but Ashley isn't looking for a friend and isn't really one to Claudia. Part of seeing that is my being older and having viewed my children and my husband have "friends" who view the relationship as transactional, but seeing the characters is a big part, too.

Twenty-first century alert! Instead of looking for a payphone to let the BSC know she'll be late to the meeting, Claudia borrows Ashley's cell phone--which is a smart phone!

One of the notes the BSC leaves Claudia:

Ashley's award-winning fire hydrant:

Karen's Kittycat Club (LSGN#4)

Publication date: 2021

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

Illustrators: Katy Farina, with color by Braden Lamb

Synopsis:

Karen really looks up to Kristy. She's excited for when she's old enough to join the Baby-sitters Club. When Hannie announces that she just got a kitten, Karen has an idea: she, Hannie, and Amanda can form a Kittycat Club! Sure, Hannie and Amanda don't get along, but maybe if they focus on what they have in common they'll be okay (not a terrible idea, honestly). After consulting with Kristy on clubs, she invites her two friends over to discuss the idea. They'll make up fliers advertising their services as cat sitters, just like the BSC passes out fliers. It doesn't go as smoothly as starting the BSC did (for example, they draw names for officers and Karen is disappointed that she's not president), and they don't have any jobs flooding in...but surely they will soon...right? Karen's Little House best friend, Nancy Dawes, is also very hurt to find out that Karen not only started a club without telling but that she's not allowed in it, since she doesn't have a cat. And when a job finally does come in, it gets cancelled before it can start because Karen, Hannie, and Amanda are too young for the cat owner to feel comfortable with.

Karen ends up talking to Kristy about different kinds of clubs and what's reasonable to expect. Karen and her friends decide to disband the Kittycat Club. Karen also calls Nancy to apologize leaving her out, and Nancy suggests they create a club that's more focused on fun rather than trying to be a business. They tell their friends at school, and a few days later, the Fun Club is a big success.

Continuity related to BSC books:

Karen asks Kristy to tell her how the BSC started, and the story is the same.

There's a picture of the BSC in a meeting.

Misc:

Dedicated to "Jennifer Esty, a big sister" (AMM) and "my cats, Poe, and Guinness, and to every animal that warms our hearts" (KF).

See the cats on the shelf above Karen's bed? Nice touch!

Fliers for the Kittycat Club. Guess which one is Boo-Boo.

Priscilla, Pat, and Boo-Boo get along about as well as their owners:

The Fun Club (Nancy is in the witch hat with the broom):

Another angry Boo-Boo drawing!