Karen's School

Baby-Sitters Little Sister #41

by Ann M. Martin

After opening "Miss Karen's School" for all the kids in the neighborhood, would-be teacher Karen begins hearing rumors that the kids find her too strict

Genres: Childrens, Middle Grade, Juvenile, Fiction

99 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1993

About the author

Ann Matthews Martin was born on August 12, 1955. She grew up in Princeton, New Jersey, with her parents and her younger sister, Jane. After graduating from Smith College, Ann became a teacher and then an editor of children's books. She's now a full-time writer.

Ann gets the ideas for her books from many different places. Some are based on personal experiences, while others are based on childhood memories and feelings. Many are written about contemporary problems or events. All of Ann's characters, even the members of the Baby-sitters Club, are made up. But many of her characters are based on real people. Sometimes Ann names her characters after people she knows, and other times she simply chooses names that she likes.

Ann has always enjoyed writing. Even before she was old enough to write, she would dictate stories to her mother to write down for her. Some of her favorite authors at that time were Lewis Carroll, P. L. Travers, Hugh Lofting, Astrid Lindgren, and Roald Dahl. They inspired her to become a writer herself.

Since ending the BSC series in 2000, Ann’s writing has concentrated on single novels, many of which are set in the 1960s.

After living in New York City for many years, Ann moved to the Hudson Valley in upstate New York where she now lives with her dog, Sadie, and her cats, Gussie, Willy and Woody. Her hobbies are reading, sewing, and needlework. Her favorite thing to do is to make clothes for children.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/annmma...

Reviews

[Samantha Glasser · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always used to try to copy the things I read in these books, and maybe that's why I was so bossy and selfish as a kid. Still, I found them fun to emulate and I definitely did so with this one, starting my own classroom and reading to my sister who hated to be read to. Sorry Sabrina!

[Luna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Karen starts her own school! Oh, shit! Karen immediately judges her student teacher! Fuck you, Karen! As a former student teacher, I hated kids like you.

And stop bossing around your friends.

Douchebag.

[Elise · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was terrible, definitely the book where Karen is starting to act like a Karen

She opens a school at the big house for Andrew, Emily and the other kids younger than her in the neighbourhood. She acts bossy and doesn’t let the kids talk while studying, even when hannie tells her she’s overdoing it, go hannie!

Also on a side plot, there is a student teacher in ms Colman’s class and she doesn’t treat him well, even though they did a unit on one of Karen’s favourite books, Charlie and the chocolate factory and had a chocolate themed party at the end. During this time, Karen went on strike in class, and shortly after, Andrew and the kids in her class did the same cause of Karen being a Karen

I would skip this book

[Jaclyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun story. And Mr Howard's (student teacher) chocolate day sounds like fun!

Poor Mr Howard though, got a bit of baptism of fire in having to deal with Karen. Whoever heard of a kid going on strike?! And Ms Colman had to step in to solve the problem, which I'm sure couldn't have been easy for Mr Howard.

I do like though + find it telling that in their entire class, Karen was the only one who didn't like him. So he was objectively a good teacher!

[Em's Adventures · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well. Karen's back to being annoying and bratty again!

[Annora · Rating 1 out of 5]

Karen is a brat and a bully in this one!

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't know how much I trust Karen's taste, since she is married to Ricky and all, but Nancy, girl. Mr Howard, really?

[Jennifer Bauer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh Karen, you are still the cutest thing ever and my BFF!

[Leah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I do not like Karen in this story.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

Karen is insufferable in this book.

[Sayo -bibliotequeish- · Rating 3 out of 5]

When you were too old for childrens books, but too young for The Baby Sitters Club.
Ann M. Martin really is a genius to piggy back on the success of The Baby Sitters Club.

After reading the little sisters series I remember feeling like a real adult opening up that first BSC book.

[Katy Lovejoy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Is a student as young as Nancy falling in love with a teacher actually a thing that happens