#88: Farewell, Dawn

 

Thoughts before reading:

I hated this book when I was a kid, because I really didn't want Dawn to leave. Back then it just made no sense to me that she'd leave the BSC and all her best friends. Plus she was one of my favorite characters, so I was heartbroken at this twist in the series. This time around, I totally understand her choice, and I think she's really better off going. 

I really like the cover on this one, too. Everyone looks exactly the way I picture them, right down to Claudia's outfit. 

The basics:

Dawn can't stop thinking about her friend Sunny, back in California, who just recently found out her mom has lung cancer. After calling to check in on her friend, she realizes she wants to move to California permanently. (There's only been a million hints about this in every book lately...) She wastes no time talking to Jeff, her dad, and Carol on the phone, mentioning her desire to move back only to Carol. Dawn realizes she has to tell her mom how she's feeling, the sooner the better. Her and Sharon sit down together and Dawn carefully explains how Palo City still feels like home, and all the things she misses there. Sharon's crushed, but agrees it's Dawn's decision. 

After her mom, Dawn's most nervous to tell Mary Anne, so she puts it off. She even tells Kristy before her, so she can work on a club member replacement. Unfortunately (but predictably), Kristy tells Claudia, (who then tells Stacey, who tells Robert, who tells Logan, who tells Mary Anne: BSC telephone game style). Once Mary Anne hears the news from someone else, she's furious that Dawn didn't care enough to tell her the news herself, and upset that she's leaving, calling it selfish. Dawn gets heated too and fires back that she has a right to be happy, and that Mary Anne doesn't understand because she never takes action herself. It turns into a pretty nasty fight, and Dawn worries that things between them will never be the same. Mary Anne isn't even acting angry afterwards, just indifferent and cold. 

The rest of the BSC starts planning a going away party for Dawn, and a "Christmas in Summer" celebration to cheer up James Hobart. While Dawn was dealing with her decision to move, he broke his leg playing football while Mallory and Ben were sitting for him. (How the BSC stays in business, I will never understand.) 

Dawn works hard trying to get Mary Anne to thaw out towards her, even planning a fancy dinner for the two of them. Mary Anne talks to her at the dinner, but won't actually discuss anything, continuing to pretend like nothing's wrong. She'll only say that she needs to say goodbye in her own way, leading Dawn to get her hopes up that she's planning to do something special at the going away party. 

Kristy invites Shannon to be the alternate officer to fill in for Dawn again. She agrees to try, but admits she'll be really busy when school starts. 

At Dawn's farewell party, Stacey, Claudia, Mallory, and Jessi make Dawn a tape of pictures of past BSC events (a really neat idea, actually). Everyone has prepared healthy food for her, and brought nice gifts. Mary Anne, by contrast, didn't help with any of the preparations, and she misses most of the party because she leaves for a walk with Logan. Dawn tries to shrug off both, realizing she can't stay in Stoneybrook just to make Mary Anne happy, so there's not a lot she can do. 

On the last night before Dawn leaves, Mary Anne finally breaks down crying and tells Dawn how much she'll miss her. The girls hug and cry together. 

The next day, Watson brings the whole BSC to the airport so they can say a final goodbye. Dawn says teary farewells to all her friends and family, and is the last person to board her flight. 

The book ends with letters to Dawn from her friends, and her reply to Mary Anne, who finally apologized to her in a letter. Dawn writes back that she knows they'll be friends forever. (I'm not so sure about that...)

Timeline:

It's August, still summer vacation.

Misc. thoughts:

*Ghostwritten by Suzanne Weyn

*Norman Hill's been losing weight lately.

*Claudia's now working on a pastel of Stacey (and I'm noticing she does a lot of artwork based on her best friend, hmm...)

*Stacey's down on herself in this book, which isn't like her. It's probably the BSC members still making her feel guilty that's causing it.

*The scene where Dawn told her mom that she wanted to move, and why, was actually a really emotional, sad one, even now.

*Despite how nasty Dawn and Mary Anne's fight was on both sides, I really couldn't fault either of them for it. This is an ugly situation, one ultimately created by adults, and too complicated for 13 year old's to handle well. I can imagine how hurt and sad both girls must feel. I can't even dis Mary Anne, a character I can't stand, because she must have felt terrible hearing about this from someone else. At her age, this news has to be really hard not to take personally. On Dawn's side, she does have a right to be happy, and sometimes that means being selfish. She shouldn't have to feel guilty for being true to herself.

*The kids prepping for the Christmas party was SO dull, and it really bogged down the story and action in this book.

*This was another BSC book that made me hungry. Dawn's eggplant roll-ups with salad and garlic bread sounded delicious, as did the cheese enchiladas. 

*I understand that Mary Anne was just trying to protect herself from emotional pain, but her distant/cold act got really annoying by the end. She's really going to regret wasting those last two weeks with Dawn. They'll probably never live in the same place again.

*I wonder if Stacey was secretly glad about Dawn leaving... after #83, I wouldn't blame her in the slightest. 

*Dawn hates wasting things, a trait we share.

*Mary Anne is officially one of the most passive aggressive fictional characters of all time after this book, yikes.

*Yet another reason why Stacey's awesome: despite the way Dawn has treated her, she tells Dawn she understands what she's dealing with, because "when you're ready for a change and the people around you aren't, it's hard to make them understand" (pg 108). This was a compassion and empathy that Dawn wasn't able to give her when their roles were reversed. I hope Dawn realized as much and felt badly for how she behaved when Stacey was the one struggling. 

*Additionally, Stacey freely admits that she did some dumb things, but she had to follow her own instincts about what she should've been doing, or else she'd never have known what could have been (pg 109). This is good advice, too. In my opinion, this shows a lot of maturity. The hardest part of relationships, at any age, is growing and changing while letting the other person do the same thing. I was much older than 13 when I learned this, and I know plenty of adults who can't deal with it.

*When Mary Anne buys Dawn a book (Bone Chilling Ghost Stories), to read on the plane, she literally thinks "it wasn't the grand surprise gesture I'd hoped Mary Anne would come up with, but it was something, anyway" (pgs 120-121). Yikes, Dawn! I don't think her moving is selfish, but expecting more fanfare about it is. She has to know that these people are hurting. 

*Note to Dawn: while delicious, cheese enchiladas aren't health food.

*The airport farewell scene was one of the tiny handful of BSC scenes that has made me tear up. Even Kristy got choked up!

Books mentioned:

*Bone Chilling Ghost Stories (I think this is meant to be fictional. I can't find one that would have been published before this book was.)

My rating:

3 stars. I was looking forward to this as a milestone book, but it could have been so much better. The actual scenes about Dawn leaving were emotional and well done, but the story was really bogged down by the side plot and all the bickering.