#55: Jessi's Gold Medal

 

Thoughts before reading:

I've never read this before (this is another long streak of new books). Honestly not expecting much from this, but we'll see. 

The basics:

Jessi's thinking about the hot summer ahead, and asks her parents if they can get a pool. They tell her it's way too expensive, but suggest she check out the Stoneybrook Community pool complex. Her dad even agrees to buy a family membership. Jessi finds herself getting excited about the idea of taking lessons over the summer. She already knows how to swim, but wants to try something new.

Coincidentally, Mal and Jessi's gym class is also starting a swim unit. During the first session, everyone takes a swim test so the teacher can assess what level they're at. After doing really well on hers, Jessi's invited to join a synchronized swimming team at the pool. She'll even get to do it instead of her gym class. Eagerly, she agrees to try it, and ends up loving it. (Also doesn't hurt that she's a natural.) SMS is having a sports festival soon, and their class will be a part of it. Everyone will do a group routine, then an individual routine with one partner.

Jessi's partnered with a girl named Elise, who's also a good swimmer, but the girls have different strengths and struggle with their routine. They end up practicing constantly, but Jessi's still sick with worry by the time the sports festival rolls around. She thinks their routine is terrible, and they don't have it down well enough. Her mom reminds her that the effort is what matters, not the results. 

Despite all her worries, Jessi and Elise end up getting the gold medal in synchro. She still ends up deciding it's more work than fun though, and quits the team.

In the land of side plots, the summer Olympic trials are on tv, and Becca's crushed that the Olympics will never be held in Stoneybrook. This gives Jessi the idea to have a mini-olympics for the BSC charges, which the other members also get excited about. The event is a success, and they make sure every kid gets a prize. 

Timeline:

Late spring, almost summer. There's also a heat wave going on, hence all the interest in swimming.

Misc. thoughts:

*Ghostwritten by Peter Lerangis

*Jessi's been taking ballet for 7 years by this point. 

*It was so nice to have a Jessi book that's not about ballet, and to see her have a different interest! About time.

*Jessi learned to swim at the Jersey Shore, when she was 8.

*There's a nice scene in here where the girls are goofing off, acting silly and cracking up before the BSC meeting starts (plus Kristy and Stacey "swim" on Claud's bedroom floor). It was nice to see everyone not be so serious and all business for once, and act like a group of friends instead.

*Mary Anne hates gym class, which is definitely no surprise. 

*This book made me really nostalgic, because I also LOVED the Olympics when I was a kid. I used to watch every second of them I could, and I was also really interested in the athletes. 

*Squirt's starting to talk.

*This book says Alan Gray has a crush on Kristy? Is this new information? I guess it does make sense, but as far as I know nothing comes of it.

*Stacey does the breast stroke in the sports festival. Claudia enters the backwards race. Dawn does the javelin throw. Kristy does the obstacle course, and the 100 yard dash, in which she gets a silver medal. She competes with Alan Gray in the obstacle course event and beats him. As per a bet they made, he ends up having to be her servant for a week.

*Mallory starts acting quiet and distant once she hears about the sports festival, and then during a babysitting job she does a potato sack race and sprains her ankle on purpose, just to get out of competing. Never mind that participation was voluntary, LOL...

*Why were Jessi's parents fine with her joining a swim team, when they said she didn't have enough time to take riding lessons? Seems like this took up even more time.

Books mentioned:

None

My rating:

3 stars. A strong start, although the descriptions of all the events got really tedious, especially with the BSC Olympics and SMS sports day all back-to-back. Still, I was overall pleasantly surprised. 

Mystery #4: Kristy and the Missing Child

 

Thoughts before reading:

I don't think I read this as a kid. It doesn't look familiar, but it's one of the few books I really have no memory of either way. So far I haven't been impressed by the mysteries, so hopefully this one will be a little better.

The basics:

Kristy's sitting for the Kuhn kids, who have been going through a hard time lately. Their parents are getting a divorce, and Jake is upset because his dad wanted to take him on a trip, but his mom said no. He's recently moved to Dallas, so the kids haven't seen him much, and it's been really hard on them. Patsy does mention that she saw their dad's car recently though, which everyone deems impossible. Jake's birthday is also coming up soon, and his mom is planning a big party to cheer him up.

After a Krushers game a few days later, Jake tells Kristy he's allowed to walk home alone, because his mom had to take his sisters to the dentist. She agrees, and walks home herself with David Michael. Later that day, Mrs. Kuhn calls to tell her Jake hasn't made it home, and she's worried his father has taken him. This is further confirmed for her when she learns that Patsy saw his car recently. The BSC calls an emergency meeting to discuss what to do, and Kristy's talked to by the police. 

Kristy feels really guilty that she let Jake walk home, and decides she must help find him. She thinks he might have gotten lost or hurt on the way home, so she can help by organizing a search party. The next day after school, the BSC starts organizing kids to go out searching in groups. They have a huge turn out, but no luck finding anything. Leads as to Mr. Kuhn's whereabouts are also going nowhere. 

The kids go out searching again the next day, by which point Jake has been missing for 48 hours. Matt Braddock wants to search a local construction site, because some of the other boys have been curious about it. No one has searched there yet because it's in the opposite direction of Jake's route home, but Kristy figures it can't hurt and agrees. Almost immediately, the kids find a piece of Jake's shirt, then hear his voice nearby. Turns out, he fell into the basement of a house that's being built. Kristy locates him, and Bart runs to call the police. 

Once rescued, Jake explains that he and Matt were planning to start building a treehouse that weekend, so he went by the site to look for nails. When it started to rain, he ducked into the partial house, then fell through the floor and got trapped. 

The 8th graders at SMS have an award night, and Kristy wins an award for finding Jake.

In other news, Mary Anne is failing home ec because she's terrible at sewing. By the end of the book, she wins an award for "most improved home ec student". 

Timeline:

The rainy weather plus the Krushers practice imply that it's spring, but we never hear for sure.

Misc thoughts:

*We're told right away that the Kuhns are divorcing, and so Mrs. Kuhn has started working and hiring sitters much more often. The mystery books always have the solution basically handed to the reader in chapter one, so I was pleasantly surprised by this one having a red herring.

*WHY is Claudia always the one in charge of making signs? She can't even spell find, spelling it "finde" in here. You'd think the other girls would be embarrassed and do it themselves. 

*Kristy and Bart almost have their first kiss, but then Karen interrupts.

*Apparently Mary Anne can't even make jello properly, but this makes no sense. In early books she was always helping her dad cook dinner. The sewing thing also came out of nowhere. I swear she can sew later on just fine...

*This teaches kids about safety and stranger danger, when Karen, Andrew, and David Michael all become scared of being kidnapped. Honestly I think this book would have freaked me out a bit as a kid, so now I definitely don't think I ever read it. 

*This book was a bit dark and sad for a BSC book. This storyline was a big leap from the missing kittens and hamsters we've had before.

*Kristy makes a comment in the narration about Bart being the perfect boy for her, "if I have to have a boyfriend". Uh, what now? Has she just convinced herself that she likes Bart because all of her friends like boys and she felt left out? Or they made her feel like it was just time to start liking them? Plus Bart has a lot in common with her, is cute, and easy to talk to (from what we've been told). He also doesn't care how she dresses. Seems like a clear choice...this remark could definitely be a clue for the Kristy is gay theory. 

*Mary Anne thinks she invented jello jigglers, LOL

*Ghostwritten by Ellen Miles

*The About the Author section says if you stacked up all the BSC books in print, it would be 21,245 miles high! This is only by the early 90s too, damn...

Books mentioned:

*The Indian in the Cupboard, by Lynn Reid Banks

*Charlotte's Web, by E. B. White

My rating:

3.5 stars, this was much better than the other mysteries so far, and it actually broke the formula! A good, if serious, read. 

#54: Mallory and the Dream Horse

 

Thoughts before reading:

This is one of the few Mallory books that I've never read. I liked My Little Ponies when I was a kid, and I was really obsessed with them for awhile, but I've always had zero interest in real horses. I never had even a little of the "horse phase" that so many girls do. My best friend growing up was obsessed (and still is), and even had her own pony when we were little, but I still didn't get it. I've always loved animals, but horses to me were just a lot of work, didn't do much, and didn't have much personality. Dogs and even cats just seemed so much more affectionate and loving. So obviously, I never read any Pony Pals, Saddle Club, etc, and this book held no interest for me. 

The basics:

Mallory discovers a flier in the mail for Kendallwood Farm, a riding school right outside Stoneybrook. She's thrilled by the idea of possibly taking lessons, something she's dreamed about for a long time. She asks her parents about taking a beginners riding class that meets on Saturday mornings, and promises to pay for half, both of which they agree to. Jessi also really wants to take the class, but her parents say no, because she's already doing a lot of activities. 

At her first lesson, Mal's embarrassed because everyone else in her class besides her is wearing full English riding habits (tan riding pants, collared shirts, high black boots). She just wears jeans, since the gear is really pricey. She does see her dream horse at the stables though, a beautiful white Arabian. His name is Pax, and she even gets to ride him during her second lesson. She also tries to make friends with the other kids in her class, but a lot of them are snobby and barely talk to her in return. In addition to being increasingly uncomfortable with her classmates, Jessi gets jealous that she's taking the lessons, and begins acting distant and cold. By the time a few classes have passed, Jessi and Mal aren't talking to each other at all.

During her third class, Mal rides a horse named Gremlin and has a bad fall. She's shaken and embarrassed afterwards. Her mom picks her up early and takes her to the ER. The doctor declares she's fine, but the incident ruins her confidence. Afterwards she's left afraid to try riding again on any horse, and starts to dread her lessons. 

Mal does get invited to a birthday part for one of the girls in her riding class. Since no one called her back when she had tried to make friends, she considers it progress and decides to go. She ends up feeling really awkward the whole time though, and doesn't have any fun or befriend anyone. When it's finally over she tries to tell Jessi about it, but she couldn't care less.

The Sunday following the last class, there's a little horse show designed to showcase what everyone has learned. Mal's dreading it, especially since her friends and family are coming. The fun has gone out of riding since her fall, and she figures she'll just humiliate herself. She ends up telling the BSC how worried she is, and when Jessi hears how miserable she's been they finally make up. Everyone attends, as promised, and Mal places 6th out of the 12 students in her beginner's group. Her parents are proud, since this isn't bad for a first show. They offer to pay for the next 8 weeks of lessons in full. Mal finally admits to them that she didn't really enjoy riding, and wants to quit.

While this is going on, the BSC is dealing with Nina Marshall having some problems due to being teased about her blankie. It ends up falling apart in the wash. Dawn comforts her by showing her how she can keep little blankies with her all the time in secret now. 

Also, the four youngest Pike kids put on a neighborhood talent show. 

Timeline:

No indication, other than it's not winter.

Misc. thoughts:

*If Mal is so horse obsessed, why did she never take any lessons or get involved until now? Or is it a recent obsession, and we just don't know, since she never ages?

*Ghostwritten by Jahnna Beecham and Malcolm Hillgartner

*I LOVED the Little Princess movie growing up. I had no idea there was an older version with Shirley Temple.

*Mal says her and Jessi sit around talking about horses and that it's their favorite rainy day activity? Sounds like a real thrill...

*Jessi's behavior in here sounds pretty standard for her age group, but she's really a little bitch all the same. It's not Mal's fault that Jessi's parents said no to the class, plus Jessi does dance and has dance friends of her own. Surely she talks to Mal about these things. How would she like it if Mal was jealous and took it out on her?

Books mentioned:

None!

My rating:

3 stars, this one wasn't bad. The horse riding lessons were something different, and could have some value for kids who may have similar feelings: be true to yourself. REALLY boring subplots though. 

#53: Kristy for President

 

Thoughts before reading:

I've never read this one before either, but I've been enjoying the school based plots like this the most, so we'll see. It's a lot more interesting, even as an adult, to read about something relevant to actually being a teenager. 

I like the updated cover better than the one pictured, it's actually really cute. This is the one I have though, and it's the original. 

The basics:

It's another lunchtime at SMS, and Kristy's making fun of the school lunch, just like always, when Stacey mentions that school elections are coming up soon. Kristy thinks it over and decides to run for class president. Claudia agrees to be her campaign manager. Additionally, Mallory is running for secretary of her class, and Jessi's her manager. Also up for 8th grade president are Alan Gray, Grace Blume, and Pete Black. 

After learning more about what the campaign and presidency will entail, Kristy starts to worry about how she'll manage her time. She'll have to do a speech and a debate just to run. Between her campaigning, homework, school, babysitting, family, and BSC meetings, she quickly becomes overwhelmed. She falls behind on her homework, and has to cancel a Krushers practice. Then she fails a science test. The teacher lets her re-take it, since she's usually such a good student, but between another Krushers practice and working on her speech, she doesn't have time to study. Her speech goes well, but her makeup test gets an even lower score than the original. 

Kristy FINALLY realizes she doesn't have time to be president because she has too many other responsibilities (something that was glaringly obvious from the very beginning of the book). She decides to drop out of the race, and the BSC is very supportive. Mallory ends up winning class secretary, and Pete Black wins president. 

While all this is going on, there's a side plot about Jamie Newton getting his first bicycle. He's scared to ride it, even with training wheels. Kristy starts trying to help him learn, and some of the other BSC members do too. He doesn't make any progress though, until some neighborhood boys see him and decide to help. 


Timeline:

No indication of what time of year this is, but aren't class elections usually in the fall?

My thoughts:

This book was hard to summarize because literally NOTHING happens. There's so much time spent on the bicycle sub-plot, which consists only of various BSC members holding Jamie's bike while he tries to ride up and down the street. I think this might be the worst side plot of the series so far. It's just not interesting to read about, and I don't see it appealing to the actual BSC reader age group either. Also, like so many things, I just have to wonder why the hell his parents aren't helping him. These Stoneybrook parents miss all the milestones and memories that go with raising kids...

Then there's Kristy's storyline, which is just her stressing out about not having enough time and struggling with all her commitments. I'm pretty sure even an 8 year old could tell she simply doesn't have time to be president. Then again, maybe kids would enjoy reading about another kid juggling activities and being overwhelmed by homework? I probably would have, back then. The only good thing I can say is, this is relatable and could actually happen.

Misc:

*Why doesn't Stacey say anything when everyone complains about Mary Poppins being the school play? That's supposed to be her favorite movie.

*Ghostwritten by Nola Thacker

*The symbol they come up with for Kristy's campaign is K+? That's just awful.

*It's funny how we never hear about Krushers practices until they are a convenient plot device...

*Kristy's late to BSC meetings in this book! I wonder if anyone will use it against her later when she's glaring at them for being a minute or two late.

*It was obvious the whole book that Pete Black was going to win, since the other two candidates were pretty ridiculous. 

Books mentioned:

*Bunnicula, by Deborah and James Howe

*Bicycle Rider, by Mary Scioscia

*Bedtime for Frances, by Russell Hoban

*The Runaway Bunny, by Margaret Wise Brown

My rating:

2 stars. Boring, repetitive, and predictable. 

#52: Mary Anne + 2 Many Babies

 

Thoughts before reading:

I've never read this one before, but I'm interested in the egg baby plot because I also had to do that in 8th grade. (Do kids still have to do that, I wonder?) Mary Anne and Logan will probably be REALLY annoying, but this idea is still potentially entertaining. At least it's something new. 

The babies on this cover look really creepy, but I think this is one of Mary Anne's better covers. I love her outfit, it's perfect for the early 90s, and she looks just like how I picture her. She could look a little younger though. 


The basics:

The 8th graders at SMS are taking a new Modern Living class. The teacher has them pair up and get "married", so Mary Anne of course pairs with Logan. Right off the bat, they are shocked by how much things cost, and realize they can't afford to be financially independent. They decide instead to "live" in Mary Anne's bedroom. The class couples are then all given egg babies to take care of for a month. Mary Anne and Logan name theirs Samantha. For the assignment, they have to pretend it's a real baby, keeping it with them at all times.

Mary Anne takes her project very seriously, leading to all sorts of problems. She gets upset with Logan for hogging her. She takes Samantha on her babysitting jobs, and becomes overwhelmed by having the extra "baby" to care for. Logan and Mary Anne take her with them to the movies, and have a terrible time trying to juggle her with their food (even though they could have easily just set her on the floor for a second). Then she briefly loses the egg because she rolls under her theater seat. After that they start fighting for real, because Logan doesn't trust her with Samantha anymore. 

Meanwhile, Mary Anne is babysitting for Ricky and Rose a lot (new clients from the baby care class). Being around them makes her and Dawn start to wish their parents would have a baby. Richard and Sharon tell the girls that they are happy with how things are, and they do not want a baby at all. Mary Anne's still obsessed, even doodling baby name ideas. After some disastrous sitting jobs with Ricky, Rose and Samantha, including one where she has to call Dawn for help, she changes her mind though. Ultimately her and Dawn decide their parents are too old to deal with a baby (LOL...). 

Timeline:

It's spring, because we're told the weather is warm and there are "new leaves in the air". 


My thoughts:

This book was entertaining, but it was also really damn annoying. These kids are SUCH goody goodies that it doesn't give real kids much to relate to. They take the egg project so seriously, stressing out about how to take care of the egg while doing other things, and having to take it all kinds of difficult places. What 13 year old would really get so obsessed with an egg baby, or a homework assignment for that matter? Who wouldn't just leave it at home if they weren't in school, around their teachers? That's what everyone really does, and of course the teachers must realize that. All the problems in here were pretend problems that just wouldn't happen. They should have had the class using the crying dolls instead, so these scenarios could be a little more relatable. All this being said, I did enjoy seeing the characters in a new situation, and some of the discussions that thinking about the future brought up. 

I did love that Stacey pointed out to Mary Anne how overboard she was acting about her egg project, especially since at one point, she's literally crying over not spending enough time with her "daughter". Stacey was still doing the project honestly and carrying her egg around everywhere, but she had the good sense to recall it's all PRETEND. 

Misc:

*This opens right into backstory, ick. Chapter 2 is bleeding into Chapter 1 more and more, as the explanations grow out of control...

*First mention of the Shillaber twins in forever, and apparently they now have a baby brother.

*Mary Anne and Dawn talk about how weird Modern Living class is, but how so? At my school we had a life skills class that sounds really similar. Isn't it actually one of the most practical, useful classes? Egg babies aside, of course.

*Mrs. Salem and her twins, Ricky and Rose, are from the infant care class. Good continuity! 

*The Modern Living teacher tells the class that they are biologically capable of becoming parents! Wow, I think this is the first mention of sex in the bsc-verse, even though it's still not direct. 

*Why does this book have Shawna Riverson making the dumbest possible comments, like not knowing what a condiment is? I thought she was a straight A student?

*A few of the boys have to pair up, and everyone wonders who will be the wife and who's the husband. Probably realistic for the time, but really painful reading here in 2021.

*Rent for 2 bedroom apartments in Connecticut in 1992 was $2,000?? That seems really steep, California apartments are around that much now, almost 30 years later...

*Mary Anne likes the names Tara, Bea, Charity, and Will. Yawn. 

*As far as I know, this stage of being baby obsessed is really common. I went through one at 13 also, and doing the egg/doll project actually made me more interested, not less. I had names picked out and everything.

*Kristy's married to Alan Gray, with an egg son named Izzy. She takes him to her babysitting job at the Papadakises' and he gets temporarily lost. 

*I definitely relate to Mary Anne's excitement over getting catalogues in the mail, although I was a lot younger when I found that thrilling, haha.

*Stacey's egg son is named Bobby, and she's married to Austin Bentley.

*New BSC clients mentioned in here, the Gianellis. 

*When Stacey was 5 she was terrified of pigeons. Is this a NYC thing?

*Taking care of her egg baby gives Stacey more empathy for her single mom, and she decides to wait until she's "really old" to have a baby.

*Dawn marries Aaron Albright, and they have an egg son named Skip. Dawn also likes the name Douglas.

*There's a lesson in this book about enjoying being a kid and waiting to have the responsibilities of kids, marriages, and money. This doesn't seem like it's going to be of much use to your average elementary school aged reader, though, haha. 

*Sex ed is also mentioned in here! 

*All the girls say they want kids, but not until they're at least 25. Mallory wants to have 8. Jessi wants a daughter named Mary Rose.

Books mentioned:

*The Telltale Heart, by Edgar Allan Poe (Mary Anne's English class is reading it)

My rating:

4 stars. I really like these school themed ones, and I did as a kid too. They are a bit more realistic, in the sense that they deal with some age appropriate aspects of growing up, and some things BSC readers will later face.