Thoughts before reading:
I definitely read this one before, but I don't remember specifically what I thought about it back then. I know I liked reading about sibling rivalry, because I had a lot of siblings and we caused plenty of drama too. Plus I just tended to seek out Claudia books. All I remember about this is the sad parts with Mimi, Claudia's grandmother.
Claudia's outfit on the cover is very awesome and very 80s. Just like how I would picture her, without being too absurd, like a lot of her outfits are described in the books. Not sure who the kid is supposed to be though. I also wonder if Janine really dresses like that, or if that's just how Claudia sees her.
The basics:
Since the daycare group from the week before Kristy's mom got married went so well, the BSC decides to organize a play group service for clients. The group will meet a few mornings a week at Stacey's house, since her mom is usually home. They advertise with fliers and take them door to door around the neighborhood.
This same weekend, Claudia's parents go out to dinner. Mimi is at home with Claudia and Janine, and she makes them a special breakfast for dinner as a treat. Afterwards, they play The Trivia Game at Janine's suggestion. It predictably doesn't go well, because Claudia gets every question wrong and Janine gets every question right. Claudia accuses Janine of cheating, and they start bickering. Mimi gets frustrated with the girls fighting and goes to bed early. Not long after, while still fighting, they hear a thump from Mimi's room. Rushing in, they find her on the floor and call 911. Turns out, she had a stroke.
The play group starts the next day, and goes well, with ten kids showing up the first day. The only problem is with Jenny Prezzioso being a brat and refusing to wear a smock. All the kids make cards for Mimi. There are also a few other small misadventures as the play group goes on, like Louie coming to play group and the kids trying to bathe him, and Karen scaring the other kids with a story about Andrew being a monster.
When Mimi wakes up, she can't move or talk yet. Claudia is scared to see her at first, but when she tries again she discovers they can communicate via Mimi blinking to answer. Claudia feels responsible for what happened because she upset Mimi, and she finally gets to apologize. After Mimi is released from the hospital, Claudia quits play group to stay home and help her readjust.
The BSC is also hired to help at Lucy Newton's christening. Her older brother, Jamie, is very jealous of his baby sister and all the attention she gets, especially now that she's getting a big party. Jamie's jealousy reminds Claudia of her and Janine, and finally gets her thinking more reasonably about her sister.
By the end of the book it's almost August, and play group is over. The BSC is having a meeting and they get a call from Mrs. Pike, looking to hire two mother's helpers to spend two weeks in Sea City with her family. Only Stacey and Mary Anne are free, setting us up for the next book.
Timeline:
The July after 7th grade
My thoughts:
Janine isn't mean to Claudia at all in this book, although since Claudia doesn't understand this, the title still makes sense. She's actually really trying to be nice and bond with Claudia, but doesn't know how to relate to her well enough for this to work. Both girls are really just jealous of each other and can't overcome it. Janine is jealous that Claudia has a well rounded life, lots of friends, and is popular. Claudia is jealous that Janine seems like their parents favorite and is so smart, doing college level work and earning constant praise from the family. The sisters are completely unable to communicate with each other, which just makes the problem much worse. Claudia pretty much just blows up anytime Janine tries to talk to her, because she has so much resentment built up. All of this is pretty typical sibling dynamics though, and Claudia is very much a bratty little sister in this book. Janine stays fairly calm when Claudia explodes at her, to her credit. One time she even yells at Janine in front of Jamie Newton while sitting for him. Hopefully he didn't mention it to his mom...not very professional, Claudia.
All the babysitting chapters in here were from the play group sessions, which was a nice change of pace. There was one from the morning that Mary Anne helped with Mimi too, which was a bit of a weird thing to include in the BSC notebook. Mimi gets frustrated with Mary Anne helping her do word flash cards and snaps at her, which is an uncomfortable scene to read. Honestly, what were Claudia's parents thinking? If no one from the family could stay home with her, this still wasn't a good solution. How was Mimi supposed to feel about being babysat by a 13 year old girl? She had to be so humiliated.
I also thought it was funny that Mrs. Newton hired the BSC to help at the christening. Doesn't she have any family or adult friends to give her a hand with small, family things like this? She uses a sitter so much for small errands, it definitely doesn't seem like she works either. This just struck me as a weird thing to get teenage babysitters to do for you. I wonder what Mr. Newton thinks about all this? I can't remember him even ever being mentioned thus far.
Misc.
*Kristy also officially moves into Watson's during this July, and the Perkins family moves into her old house. They turn out to immediately be new BSC clients, of course.
*If Mary Anne is the most mature member of the BSC, Claudia is definitely the least. Youngest child syndrome maybe?
*What sort of college program is Janine in that has her doing nothing but studying and taking classes all summer long? In my experience there are only a tiny offering of classes during the summer, and they only last a short while
Books mentioned:
*Claudia has The Clue of the Tapping Heels, The Message in the Hollow Oak, The Clue in the Crossword Cipher, and The Phantom of Pine Hill hidden in her room.
*During the trivia game Janine says Claudia owns and likes The Guinness Book of World Records.
My rating:
3.5 stars, enjoyable and quick to read
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