Thoughts before reading:
Finally! I've been so looking forward to this one, because I loved it as a kid, and because I'm so very curious about it now. Back in the day, I was firmly on Stacey's side, and completely understood why she was tired of meetings and babysitting. I'm very curious to see if I'll still agree with my 8 year old self's view. It's hard to remember many of my specific childhood opinions, so this will be fun. I've also heard more recently that the BSC is pretty crazy and acts like a cult in here.
Another great cover too, and as an added bonus, you can actually tell Dawn and Stacey apart!
The basics:
Stacey's 7 minutes late to a BSC meeting because she's riding bikes with Robert beforehand, and ends up getting a flat tire and spraining her ankle. This is a pretty solid excuse, but she still feels guilty, because Kristy's mad. (Unsurprisingly, right off the bat this is WAY different from Stacey's POV.) As the meeting goes on, Kristy does ease up, but keeps teasing her about Robert while Mal and Jessi giggle over every little thing.
That Friday night, Stacey has a sitting job scheduled with the Pikes, but she's invited out by Robert and some of her new friends instead. She asks Mary Anne to cover, because she really wants to go. It ends up being a great night out, too, mostly just talking to her new friends, learning about them, and getting to be affectionate with Robert without anyone giggling. She does sense someone watching her though, and catches Dawn wearing a hooded jacket and hiding behind the jukebox to spy on her. Dawn accuses her of lying to Mary Anne once she's caught, and says she didn't honor her responsibility to the BSC. Both comments are made rather loudly, and everyone in the restaurant stares. Stacey's friends comment that they take themselves a little too seriously. (No kidding.)
The following Monday, Stacey's late to a meeting because her and Robert are helping her mom at home. She runs the whole way there, while picturing iron shackles and lectures waiting for her (not too far off!). Once there and out of breath, she apologizes and tries to explain, but Kristy cuts her off with a lecture on lateness, the no subbing rule, and on how she tricked Mary Anne. Stacey apologizes to Mary Anne, and makes plans with her to make it up to her. Claudia alone tries to defend Stacey. Privately, Stacey vows to be a better club member, but also can't help thinking that all this seems immature.
Unfortunately, Stacey forgets she has a sitting job the same afternoon as the plans she made with Mary Anne, until Mary Anne reminds her. The job is with Charlotte, who has been learning the piano recently and has a recital coming up that she's nervous about. Stacey promises to come, which cheers her up. Mary Anne has also recently had the idea to have their charges do a talent show, and Stacey convinces Charlotte to be in it to help her build confidence for the recital.
One day at school, Stacey decides to sit with some of her new friends at lunch, and Kristy and Dawn glare at her the whole time.
Friday of that same week, Stacey's out with her new group of friends again. One of the guys, Alex, has just opened up about his parents split, when Kristy, Dawn, and Mary Anne come up to their table. Kristy asks what the big secret is, then tells Stacey she has a sitting job that night. Stacey panics, until Mary Anne scolds Kristy, who then laughs and says she's just kidding. The three girls leave and get their own table, but keep staring over at Stacey's. Her friends end up looking at them a lot too, because Kristy puts straws up her nose, they giggle loudly when a hot guy walks by, and Kristy shoves a whole pat of butter in her mouth.
Robert decides he wants to have a party, and Sheila asks Stacey if she would invite her BSC friends. She's torn, but decides not to, because the two groups wouldn't mix well. However, she does invite Claudia. She tells Stacey she'll come, but that she feels really weird about it since no one else was even invited.
One evening while Stacey's sitting for the Newtons, Robert calls and she talks to him instead of paying attention to Jamie. He keeps asking for her and she keeps brushing him off... then it turns out he was sick and had just thrown up everywhere. Feeling guilty, she gets off the phone and gets everything cleaned up.
At the next BSC meeting, Stacey's three minutes late, and then Mrs. Newton calls and tells Kristy that Stacey did a good job cleaning up, but she doesn't want her babysitters on the phone unless it's an emergency.
Meanwhile, Robert ends up not being able to host the party, and asks Stacey if they can have it at her house instead. Her mom agrees, and she's excited until she realizes it's way different to not have invited all her friends if it's at her house... but she still doesn't want to.
The party's a big hit, and everyone is having a blast. Stacey's feeling pretty good about things, until Dawn and Mary Anne show up a few hours in. Dawn's smirking and Mary Anne is crying, and they see that Claudia is there. After Dawn makes a few snide comments, they leave. Claudia ends up getting mad at Stacey for dragging her into this situation, tells her a true friend wouldn't have, and that she wishes she'd never met Robert.
As luck would have it, the talent show is the next day. Stacey decides not to go, because she can't face Claudia, Dawn, or Mary Anne. Charlotte's crushed and runs off the stage crying, without singing her song (which she had dedicated to Stacey). Claudia later calls Stacey to tell her what happened with Charlotte, scold her for being petty, then hang up on her. Stacey calls Charlotte to explain, and they quickly make up.
By Monday, Stacey's sick of feeling guilty, and unsure of how else to feel at this point. She goes to the BSC meeting, on time, but dreading it. Claudia asks her to explain herself, then Dawn calls her callous when she responds with a laugh. The girls then tell her she wasn't "like this" before she met Robert. Her reply is fantastic: "Like what? Like a person who wants to have a life outside the BSC? Like someone who goes out with other friends from time to time? You're all like that, somewhere inside. Maybe you need to grow up and find out-" (pg 123). The other girls respond by telling Stacey that she's the immature one for bailing on Charlotte, and not handling the party situation well. Stacey finally snaps and says (some of the best lines in the series!): "This is not a discussion! This is a firing squad. I can't believe I'm sitting here and taking this. You don't want to be my friends. You want to control my life." (pgs 126-127) Then she quits, right before Kristy tells her she's fired, and leaves.
Stacey misses her friends and the kids, but not fitting her life around the BSC. The book ends with her going to Charlotte's recital.
Timeline:
It's March.
Stacey vs. the BSC:
So, was Stacey in the right here, or was the rest of the BSC? Or was this just a bad situation where no one was really at fault? Let's see...
Incident 1: Stacey is late to the BSC meeting because of the accident on her bike.
So far, Team Stacey. The BSC is a business, yes, but it is also a club/hobby. It should be fun. If there's no breaks or flexibility, it becomes a burden and an obligation. Nobody wants that from their friends or hobbies, especially at this age. They're only kids! Stacey doesn't have to be working now. It's just a little part of a full life. They need freedom to grow, change, try new things, and meet new people. There's going to be all of adulthood to be tied down to a job and responsibilities.
Plus, who wants to have to explain themselves to their friends? Or be made to feel guilty? She has her mom for the former, and the latter will just create resentment.
Stacey- 1 BSC- 0
Incident 2: Stacey gets Mary Anne to cover her job at the Pikes so she can hang out with Robert and their friends.
I still firmly side with Stacey. Of course she's tempted to go out and have fun with a guy she loves and some friends instead of working. She's 13! That would tempt me away from work now! For the BSC to thrive, particularly if some of the girls want to continue it in high school, there has to be flexibility like this. Things come up in life, and other friends are not going to understand having to schedule a simple hang out way ahead of time. Unless no one wants to fill in, I don't see a problem, and I'm not sure why they even have a no subbing rule. Even if no one wanted to cover, getting more members so everyone has more free time would also be a good option.
Stacey- 2 BSC- 0
Incident 3: Dawn follows Stacey out to spy on her, because she thinks she was unfair to Mary Anne.
Well, I must say that I have a much easier time missing work now than Stacey does in here, at 13. More importantly though, this isn't how you treat your friends. If Dawn had a problem with what Stacey did, she could have come to her house and confronted her the next day, instead of this ridiculous behavior. This is a club, not a prison. If all the girls had friends outside the club, which they should, they would all face these situations, and therefore understand.
After this incident, Stacey's wondering if best friends should treat you like this, embarrass you, or act like you're a traitor. No Stace, they don't. If they truly love you, they try to understand.
Also, Dawn, WTF? Get a life. This is really just sad, and strange. I wish we could have Dawn's POV on this just to figure out why she's being so desperate. Her following Stacey and spying on her is, above all else, really pathetic. Plus she just left the club for 6 months, so I'd expect a little understanding from her.
Stacey- 3 BSC- 0
Incident 4: Stacey forgets about her sitting job with Charlotte, and double books herself by mistake.
Her heart's definitely not in the club anymore by this point, which is pretty understandable. Still, this is a big oops, especially since the job was with Charlotte.
Stacey- 3 BSC- 1
Incident 5: Stacey eats lunch with people outside the BSC (gasp!)
Well, there's no official BSC rule against this, haha, but apparently now it's very frowned upon, even though a lot of the girls used to do it. Now, this is just not healthy. These girls need some other friends, and some perspective. I'm definitely seeing why people joke about the BSC being like a cult.
Stacey- 4 BSC- 1
Incident 6: While Stacey's out with Robert and some friends, Kristy, Dawn, and Mary Anne come over and give her a hard time.
By this point, everyone is taking the club insanely seriously, and acting like everything Stacey has done is just terrible. Stacey is starting to act really snobby about how her BSC friends act, so she's not blameless. Like I said though, guilt leads to resentment.
I'd love to know Kristy and Dawn's POV's on this scene, because their behavior here is just baffling. Why the mean teasing? Why the lunch table drama? Why is Kristy putting straws up her nose, something I think she's been horrified to see Alan Gray doing in the past? Do they honestly think Stacey owes them an explanation for what she's doing with her free time? I have so many questions!
Stacey- 5 BSC- 1
Incident 7: Stacey talks on the phone during her sitting job, so she doesn't notice Jamie is sick and needs her.
This scene was really sad. If she's not into babysitting anymore, then she should say she needs a break and leave the club now, so it doesn't effect the kids.
Stacey- 5 BSC- 2
Incident 8: Stacey doesn't invite anyone from the BSC to the party besides Claudia, even after it's moved to her house.
Well, with how they have been treating her and acting, I don't blame her. However, she still should have asked them. There was no way for this to go well, especially with Claudia there. If she was really torn, she could have just said no to having the party at her house, even though she really wanted to, or talked solutions through with Claudia or her mom.
Stacey- 5 BSC- 3
Incident 9: Stacey doesn't go to the talent show.
Honestly, I wouldn't have gone either if I were Stacey, so no point for either side on this one. It's sad for the kids and Charlotte, so she could have just sucked it up and gone, but we all know the rest of the girls would have iced her out and made snide comments to her the whole time.
Also, who is Claudia to tell Stacey she's being petty? How many times has Claudia been the petty one? Too many to count.
Stacey- 5 BSC-3
Incident 10: Stacey quits the BSC.
I couldn't have said anything better than she did here.
Stacey- 6 BSC- 3
To no one's surprise, Stacey wins! I was surprised by how much I related to her in this book, and how annoyed it made me when everyone else, her "friends", cast her as a villain just because her priorities have changed.
Misc. thoughts:
*Stacey's mom is apparently a terrible driver? I don't think this has ever been mentioned before though.
*Ghostwritten by Peter Lerangis.
*Claudia's painting an abstract portrait of Stacey that she's calling Anastasia Fantasia, LOL.
*Stacey still gets nervous when she's going to see Robert, which is cute. Even though I've never been a big fan of them as a couple, their flirting and banter in this book is adorable.
*At the party, Maureen wears a baseball cap with the brim facing backwards, and she dances! She's quite a hit, too, haha.
*Despite Kristy's highly questionable behavior in here, I still don't really think she's immature. I think she just does what she wants and doesn't worry about looking cool. Caring about boys and clothes doesn't make you more mature at all. The kids that do just seem older, but superficially. It's really behavior, character, and responsibility that matter, but you don't understand this until at least your 20s. Kristy, like Stacey, had to grow up fast, so she's one of the more mature girls in the areas that count. (Although Stacey is definitely more emotionally mature than her, in my opinion.)
*Dawn was like a second Kristy in here, and seemed really out of character to me.
*Stacey's whole quitting speech is fantastic, and I definitely recommend reading it. I didn't type it all out because this post is already insanely long, but it's awesome.
Books mentioned:
*In the Night Kitchen, by Maurice Sendak
My rating:
5 stars. This was the best and more realistic book yet. Not only was I on Stacey's side still, but I like her even more now. I wish that after this insanity she didn't end up returning to the club at all.
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