Thoughts before reading:
Another one that I've never read before. Apparently my local library growing up never had any of these big milestone books, because it seems like I missed them all. It's fun now though to go back and actually read about all these big events that were just givens in the series.
This project is also making me realize that for all my BSC obsession, there were tons of books I never read. I definitely tended to read more books later in the series, because those were easier to find in libraries and bookstores in the 90s. Even so, I might have read less than half.
The cover of this book is hilarious. Mary Anne looks like Wednesday Addams. Dawn and Sharon look like they're on a poster for an old, cheesy horror movie. The expression Dawn is making in particular looks just like someone trying to pretend to be terrified. I do love how Jeff is just sitting there watching and smiling though.
The basics:
Dawn and Mary Anne have been eating dinner alone together most nights, because their parents are now going out all the time. They're both still excited about their parents getting serious, and enjoying spending so much extra time together.
Mrs. Arnold, mother of Marilyn and Carolyn (see #21), calls the BSC needing another steady sitter. This time Mary Anne takes the job. Since the twins have been allowed to dress differently, they've been doing really well. When Mary Anne arrives for her first job though, she's stunned to discover they are having big problems again. Carolyn is out with friends, and Marilyn is at home feeling left out and angry. She pretends to have a best friend named Gozzie Kunka, which Mary Anne completely believes. From there, things just get worse every time she sits. The girls have constant nasty fights over parents, friends, and their shared bedroom. Mary Anne is shocked and doesn't know what to do.
During this time Richard, Mary Anne's dad, also wants her and Dawn to help plan a birthday surprise for Dawn's mom, Sharon. They end up planning out a surprise birthday dinner for her. It goes off without a hitch, and Richard proposes by looping a ring around one of the candles on her birthday cake. They had apparently already decided to get married, the girls just didn't know. The news thrills them though, as does the prospect of being step-sisters. They wait until the next BSC meeting to announce the news to all their friends at once.
It turns that Richard and Sharon don't want an actual wedding or a reception, since they've both been through it all before. For some reason though, they let their daughters talk them into a small wedding. The excitement over this is sort lived however, because Dawn lets it slip to Mary Anne that she will be moving into their house. Mary Anne blows up at her, then her dad. She's furious because she has to give up her house but Dawn doesn't. Richard tries to calm her down by explaining it's merely a practical decision, since their house is much bigger.
The next day at school, Mary Anne won't even talk to Dawn. She does get a little cheered up when she solves the problem between the twins though, by suggesting they get separate rooms. Naturally their mom goes along with it right away, even though she never came up with the simple idea herself. The twins resume getting along really well again immediately.
Mary Anne finally calms down some and starts talking to Dawn again, but she hasn't forgiven her for "assuming I'd be delighted about moving into her house". Dawn apologizes several times, and still wants to share a room with her, eventually selling her on the idea.
The wedding itself goes well. Jeff flies in from California to attend the small ceremony, and the whole BSC attends also. Afterwards they have a big dinner instead of a formal reception. During the dinner Mary Anne gets angry again because she overhears Dawn and Jeff complaining that there aren't enough vegetarian options on the menu. Then she hears Sharon mention something about a litter box cleaning, and assumes she's complaining about Tigger.
Shortly after, Sharon tosses the bouquet. Mary Anne and Dawn both leap for it at the same time...and we get our first To Be Continued....
Timeline:
They mention setting a date for the wedding, but never tell us what that date is. There's also no indication of what time of year this is, or the weather even. The story does span at least several weeks though.
My thoughts:
I understand that Mary Anne is just scared of change, and that her entire life it's been just her and her father, living alone together in the same house, but she is an unbelievable brat in this book! She never once even tries to think things through, or deal with any of the changes, or look for the good. Keep in mind, this was a situation she's wanted to happen since book #4. Of course the reality is going to be different, but that shouldn't be enough for her to completely flip out and change her mind about everything. This isn't a negative situation where there's very little good to be found, like a divorce. She's gaining at least as much as she's losing, but she doesn't even want to see that aspect. A few books ago, when Stacey was facing bigger, worse changes, she handled herself a hundred times better...and she wasn't even gaining anything, since she didn't want to leave NYC. Her whole world fell apart. That isn't the case here. Mary Anne has had a pretty lonely, restricted life with her dad. Now she's gaining a mother figure, and one of her best friends as a sister. Who cares if she has to move? It isn't far, and Kristy doesn't even live next door anymore. Speaking of which, even she handled her move better, and it was much further.
Even worse was the way Mary Anne treated Dawn, Sharon, and her dad in this book. She completely blows up at Dawn, just for telling her the news about the move. She's literally screaming at her about it while Dawn is sobbing. It's not like it was Dawn's decision! She has no more say over her life as a kid than MA does, and Dawn has been through a cross country move herself. That's a way bigger deal than a few blocks. She also couldn't care less that she upset Dawn, flat out saying, "I don't care, let her cry. At least she gets to keep her house" (pg 111). Then she's really rude to her dad and Sharon about the decision. Her dad isn't even angry about any of this, just comforting her instead. Guess he's not so strict anymore, now it seems like MA is running the show. In the following days, Dawn tries to make up with her, and MA keeps picking fights with her like a 5 year old.
So, what happened to the Mary Anne of the earlier books? She used to handle things pretty well. Whenever the BSC girls were having one of their pointless fights, I always thought she dealt with it better than everyone else. She had her moments obviously, but for the most part she was the one apologizing, trying to fix things, and acting the most maturely. Not to mention we've been told in every single book how shy she is, how she hates conflict, how she doesn't want to upset people, etc. Was all of that sensitive, caring about others' feelings more than her own aspect of her personality really just shyness? Now that she's out of her shell more, it all seems long gone. She only cares about her own petty feelings in here, never once giving a thought to how her own dad or best friend are feeling. The old Mary Anne would never make someone sob and then just stand there thinking they deserved it. She would have been sobbing herself just over the fact that she upset someone.
Another thing driving me crazy is the whole Dawn-is-a-vegetarian spiel we are told in every book. It wouldn't even matter if they didn't constantly say it, like it's such an important character trait, because it's NOT true. She eats meat in these books all the time. Then later, sometimes in the same book, we'll be told she doesn't eat meat. In her own narration she even said she wasn't a strict vegetarian, and she does eat meat! How hard is it to just pick one side or the other for the continuity? Even in here, where we have Mary Anne getting annoyed about her not eating meat, one of the dishes Richard considers serving Dawn's family is fish. Does the author think vegetarians eat fish? I just don't get it.
I find it interesting that all the other BSC girls, including Mary Anne, describe Kristy as immature when they give the chapter 2 backstory. I know she must come across that way to her peers because she doesn't care about clothes, boys, or makeup, which are just so important in junior high. However, she actually cares about things that are way more important: friends, being herself and independent, and even running a freaking business. Those are more things that someone older, not younger, would value. When the other girls get older themselves, they will also understand that these things are more valuable than being cool, and view this time very differently.
Misc:
*We get some more backstory on what happened way back when between Sharon and Richard: Apparently Sharon went to college in CA, which was how she and Richard broke up, and how she met Dawn's father. Her parents encouraged her to go to a school as far away as possible, just to keep her away from Richard. Pretty extreme, since all they had against him was that he was poor. These two are really reminding me of Allie's parents in the Notebook, haha.
*Mary Anne is excited to eat dinner in front of the TV, because her dad never let her. Jeez, that's a part of childhood...
*I really hope that instead of just going out on dates all the time, Richard and Sharon spent time together with all 4 of them as a family, and time at home just being together, by the this stage in their relationship. The books never say.
*Mary Anne calls herself a wimp at the beginning of this book, ironic after later events, when she's the one terrorizing everyone else.
*Claudia's leg might always hurt a lot when it rains? That's awful, that little psycho kid maimed her for life! I'm still stunned that she got away with it.
*The Arnold twins drama wasn't particularly interesting, but it was good for the continuity. Usually baby-sitting based plots aren't mentioned much or at all after their books.
*Dawn's mom is turning 43
*Mary Anne has invented a board game called "Mary Anne's Game of School". Yawn. I think we can rule out a career in a creative field.
*Kristy's hurt over the engagement, and Mary Anne slips her a note saying she'll always be her first best friend, no matter what changes. It was really sweet, and also the only time in this book MA considered anyone else's feelings.
*There was an obvious theme of sibling rivalry in here, including all the baby-sitting chapters. All the little kids were brats in this book, which was actually nice because usually they're too good.
*Watson and Elizabeth (Kristy's mom and step-dad) are visiting friends on the weekend they have Karen and Andrew? Ugh, no freaking wonder Karen is always desperate for attention!
*Speaking of which, Karen usually doesn't bother me, but she has an evil moment in here where she smashes cookies on the floor and blames Emily Michelle, who can't even talk to defend herself. Plus she does it purely to see EM get punished. That's effed up.
*Sharon won't let Dawn and MA shop in a certain store because it's "pure punk", LOL
*Richard's hurt because Sharon won't try his veal at the wedding dinner?? WTF, it's messed up that he's even eating that. Don't push that on someone else, especially after spending the whole book telling us she doesn't eat meat! He knows how she eats, and then gets all offended over something so silly. This must be where Mary Anne gets it from.
*This is the first book of the 90s!
*Charlie, Kristy's oldest brother, gets his car in this book: the infamous "junk bucket", I think they call it later on?
Books mentioned:
*The Mrs. Piggle Wiggle series
*Jessi and Mal like the author Lynn Hall
My rating:
3 stars, it was fairly entertaining, but frustrating...
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