"New York, New York" by Ann M. Martin

Glad to know I'm not the only one crazy enough to attempt this challenge.  Head over to Sarah Millar's blog and see what she and other bloggers have to say about the good ole BSC.  



I would say I have a slight obsession with New York and it is all Ann M. Martin’s fault.
Now, I am not nearly as bad as Mary Anne, but there is a part of my heart that is fully in love with The Big Apple. I read this book excessively as a kid.

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When I was in the fifth grade, I did a report on New York state because of this book (which kinda stunk since I then realized that I had to study the state as a whole, not just NYC).
During the summer between sixth and seventh grade I got the opportunity to go on a school trip to Boston and New York. During the bus ride from Boston to New York, I re-read New York, New York to get myself all revved up for the cool places I was about to visit.
My visit to NYC wasn’t really anything like the BSC’s. I was approximately their age and there is no way I would have felt comfortable running all over the city by myself (not that there was any chance of that happening of course). But that didn’t really matter to me. I still had a blast.
So in New York, New York, the girls are off to Stacey’s hometown during a school vacation (seriously, I wish I had gone to SMS, they never had to go to school).
How cool are Stacey’s dad and Laine’s parents? They gladly put up six girls that they barely know for the entirety of their vacation. Claudia and Mallory spend most of their time in art classes (the basis for the trip), Kristy finds a stray dog and Jessi helps her keep it a secret (and finds her first “boyfriend” — she’s 11, I can’t say that word seriously), Stacey and Mary Anne play baby-sitter/travel guide to two children and Dawn will barely leave the McGill apartment.
The book follows a similar plot to the rest of the Super Specials. Each chapter is narrated by a different girl and has multiple storylines since the girls are usually off doing separate activities. It ties up with them spending a night on the town together before they head back to Connecticut. A simple and fun read (and still one of my favorites!).
Also really cool about this book- the illustrations are done by Ann’s father. I really liked that element, especially because of Claud and Mal’s art class. It made it seem like they were creating the art instead of getting “photos” that often leave me wondering who was holding the camera?

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Happy Reading!
-Melly

BSC Bloggin’: Mary Anne and the Secret in the Attic

The depressing thing about this book is how often it’s plot line gets brought up in books after it.

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Mary Anne finds out that after her mother’s death, her father didn’t quite know how to handle his grief and raising a baby so he sent her to live with her grandparents.

When he once again found some stability in his life he was ready to return to his parental responsibilities. However, Mary Anne’s grandparents were grieving the lost of their daughter and didn’t really want to give up custody of their granddaughter.

Needless to say, Mary Anne ended up back with her father and never knew that there was a period in her life where she had lived with someone else. Now that she has begun to make discoveries about her past it opens up even more questions and worries.

Really this is one of the better BSC books. Because Mary Anne’s mother died so young, we don’t know much about her life or her role as Mary Anne’s mom.

It’s obvious that Richard doesn’t speak of that time in their lives very often so of course Mary Anne’s discovery was a shock.

This book really goes in depth about Mary Anne’s character as she struggles with the fact that at one time her father gave her up.

My one complaint isn’t even about this book but how it’s plot is so often summarized in later books. Since I didn’t get to read this book prior to finding out the basic plot, the first read through was kind of a let-down. However, it is still a good read and overall a strong book in the series.

Melanie has been reading obsessively since she was a young child. She doesn’t know what it’s like to not be in the middle of at least one book.  You can keep up with her reading at Beauty and the Armageddon.

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Happy Reading!
-Melly

"Mallory and the Mystery Diary" by Ann M. Martin

This may or may not have been the first Baby-Sitters Club book I read.  I had pretty much made my way through the entirety of the library's Little Sister collection and was home sick.  At lunch, my mom brought me three books (there was major benefit to having a mom who worked at the library- Claudia didn't know what she was missing!); Kristy and Mr. Mom, Mary Anne + 2 Many Babies, and Mallory and the Mystery Diary.  I can't remember which order I read them in.  I only remember that I struggled with parts of this book.  I was learning cursive in school but I wasn't quite ready for Sophie's somewhat sloppy and poorly spelled cursive.  However, by the time I had finished these three books, I was completely hooked on this series.  

This novel opens right after Stacey and Mrs. McGill's move back to Stoneybrook (side note, I just helped my mom move...how on earth did they unpack so fast??) and when they discover an old trunk amongst the items left in their attic, Mallory bribes the triplets to move it into her bedroom.  She and Vanessa find a lot of old clothes and, more importantly, an old diary.  This diary brings in Old Hickory and Jared Mullray (come on BSC fans, keep up) and a mystery about the fate of a painting of Sophie's mother.  This book is set pre-mystery series and frankly I like most of these better.  Mysteries like this one seem much more realistic than some of those in the later spin-off.  Granted, I sometimes have a hard time suspending disbelief with these books- afterall, these are the girls that celebrate summer vacation about 57 times during one school year...but that doesn't make me like these books any less.

Something that especially appeals to me about this book is how the mystery is solved by BSC clients (more or less anyways).  Charlotte points out that everything isn't always what it seems and Buddy reads through the diary looking for clues even though reading isn't his best subject.  Since I was roughly the same age as these kids, it's cool that they were able to help the older kids and be important to the plot.  I don't think I realized that then, but looking back I'm sure it had at least some sort of impact.  Also nice about this book, Mal has a strong plot that doesn't involve her as sick, with an unemployed parent, or being totally overworked.  There aren't enough of these in the series.

Happy Reading!

-Melly

Glad to know I'm not the only one crazy enough to attempt this challenge.  Head over to Sarah Millar's blog and see what she and other bloggers have to say about the good ole BSC.   

"Baby-Sitters' Summer Vacation" by Ann M. Martin

I have never been to summer camp.  I read quite a few books that centered on this summer tradition and for awhile I really wanted to go to Summer Camp.  But now I realize that I probably wouldn't have enjoyed the experience.  Sure, the arts and crafts cabin would have been a blast, but that might have been about it.  I don't overly enjoy sharing a room with other people (or sharing a bathroom for that matter), being outside for long periods of time isn't that much fun and I don't do well with things of the athletic nature.  Thank goodness I spent my childhood reading about such events instead of traumatizing myself by actually participating.  In Baby-Sitters' Summer Vacation, the six members of the Stoneybrook branch of the BSC are all kinds of excited about attending Camp Mohawk.  Their New York member?  Not so much.  But of course Stacey ends up hopping a bus and reuniting with the rest of the club.  And of course she just might have been better off staying in the Big Apple (I think my non-existent camp experience would have gone something like Stacey's).  The trip is not picnic for the rest of the club either- Mary Anne tries to prove to her co-CIT's that she's not a baby, Kristy gets made over by her co-CIT's, Dawn gets lost in woods and has to rely on one of her campers to save the day, Mal and Jessi get made fun of by their bunk mates...and Claudia falls in love (she does this pretty often).  Pretty much your typical Super Special.

I always loved the Super Specials, I read them constantly!  This wasn't super high on my list of favorites (that would be when the girls went to the more exotic places- New York, Hawaii, Europe...) but I still enjoyed this book.  I think it did have quite a bit of influence on me wanting to attend Summer Camp, but I never did voice this desire hence the lack of said experience.  I'm not sure at which moment I realized I did not want to spend my summer avoiding icky lake water occurred, but I am pretty glad that I am still camp free. I'll stick to reading about it!

Happy Reading!

-Melly

Glad to know I'm not the only one crazy enough to attempt this challenge.  Head over to Sarah Millar's blog and see what she and other bloggers have to say about the good ole BSC.   

"Claudia and the New Girl" by Ann M. Martin (BSC #12)

This was never one of my favorites when I first read the series (so from about ages 7-11 when I was obsessively reading and re-reading the books I only read it 3 or 4 times- and trust me, that's very few times compared to some of the other titles).  I think it was because I didn't care for Ashley and probably didn't find her very realistic (though I'm not sure I ever thought about my reasons for not caring for the book, so I may be totally wrong) and so this book was often left sitting on my shelf.  Reading this as an adult, however, was a bit of an eye opener.  I have met Ashley.  Not in a crazy-talented, almost art prodigy way, but in the you-can't-have-friends-other-than-me sort of way.  It's almost embarrassing to admit that middle school Claudia handled the situation much better than post-high school Melanie did, but I think Martin addressed making and keeping new friends, even when it is difficult, beautifully. 

Something that I really appreciate about this series (especially as an adult) is that the books make a point to show how the girls learn to balance their time.  Claudia is possibly the greatest example of this.  Since she isn't a good student, she has to learn to allow ample time to stay on top of her homework.  She fits baby-sitting and art around her school and not the other way around.  In Claudia and the New Girl she learns how to fit a new friend into her life as well.  She realizes that even though art is important to her, it isn't the only thing in her life that matters.  On her own she figures out how to get her life back on track when she realizes what a mess her studies and scheduling has become.  Knowing that she is only a middle school student, this is quite inspiring.  Sure, it's easy to question why the girls hardly ever involve their parents when they have problems, but in this case I think seeing Claudia learn from her mistakes and then going to her parents can be a great tool for young girls (and boys) to put into place in their own lives. 

I can't talk about this book without mentioning the snack raiding that happens when Claud misses yet another BSC meeting- and the not so nice notes the other club members leave hidden around her room.  You have to give Claudia credit for being mature enough to make up with her friends (and to continue to let them meet in her room, even when she wasn't there) after that fiasco.  Say it with me everyone:

"Traitor, traitor.

Claudia - we hate 'er!

Traitor, Traitor.

So long, see you later!

Good-bye, Claudia."

Happy Reading!

-Melly


Glad to know I'm not the only one crazy enough to attempt this challenge.  Head over to Sarah Millar's blog and see what she and other bloggers have to say about the good ole BSC.  

And so it Begins...

Alright, here we go!  I am on a mission to re-read the entirety of The Baby-Sitters Club series.  My personal goal is to finish (and by finish I mean everything from Kristy's Great Idea to Graduation Day and everything in between with the exception of the Little Sister books and those spin-offs and the California Diaries) by the end of June.  I am still giving myself the entire year to complete my goal if needed though.  A few years ago, I decided I wanted to re-read the whole series again.  I didn't have any time limit set for myself and only made it to #47, Mallory on Strike.  I am really hopeful that I will complete the task this time around.  I have also signed up to do some BSC Bloggin' over on Sarah Miller's blog.  I won't be blogging about all of the books I read on my blog, but will have some posts up on her site.  Check them out.  If you are interested in joining my craziness, I would love to have you!  You can sign up (and keep up with my progress) here.

Happy Reading and a Happy New Year!
-Melly