What do you think?
Rate this book
The Baby-Sitters Club #86
Mary Anne and Camp BSC
Running a day camp with her fellow club members, Mary Anne finds her ideal summer complicated by her father's two-week business trip, rivalries among the young campers, and a sprained ankle.
143 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
39 people are currently reading
865 people want to read
About the author
Ann M. Martin
1,101 books3,045 followersAnn 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...
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...
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
June 7, 2017
in this explanation of why I hate mary anne by ghostwriter Nola Thacker, the bsc decides to host a day camp for a couple weeks shortly after school ends. most of the kids have a good time, but four-year-old alicia gianelli has attachment disorder and can't deal with her mom not being there. mary anne is just so sensitive that she coddles alicia completely and thinks all the other baby sitters are cruel for saying that alicia will get over it. meanwhile her dad goes out of town for two weeks on business, and sensitive mary anne misses her daddy and can't deal with dawn and sharon having a good time together. one day while biking she breaks her leg, and then she feels so sorry for herself that her head explodes. no, wait, that was just what I was wishing would happen. eventually alicia gets over it and mary anne has a, "is creepy daryl more emotionally adjusted than I am?" moment. she decides to get over herself for a second and talk to sharon about her problems, and things get better. for her, not the reader. the reader is still angry about having to read yet another mary anne book.
highlights:
-claire plays a game where she "freezes" the triplets, and adam says, "you iced jordan...but you won't ice me!" do you think he knows about the colloquial term, to ice, meaning to kill?
-the stoneybrook academy (private school) kids at the camp and the stoneybrook elementary (public school) kids don't really get along because the SA kids have been to circus camp and think the bsc camp is dorky since it's not REAL circus camp. also because the stoneybrook academy kids can't deal with kids who aren't dressed every morning by their handmaids and driven to camp in a towncar. no but really I love this plotline. karen leads the campaign of snooty rich kids hating on the circus camp, and all the baby sitters let her get away with it because they let her get away with everything by saying she's just precocious. and it's so REAL. these kids WOULD have gone to some camp that cost thousands of dollars where they learned real circus tricks and such, and the other kids would just be happy to have the baby sitters plan something fun for them to do.
-for mary anne+dawn+sharon's dumb movies night, mary anne rents buffy the vampire slayer. YES! do you think they love watching vampire paul reubens/pee wee herman as much as I do?
-they include matt braddock (who is deaf and communicates using ASL) in a game of telephone (though they call it gossip). it's pretty cool -- his sister signs to him, then he signs to jessi, and then jessi passes it on.
lowlights:
-honestly since mary anne stays with alicia through all the fun outings and such
-mary anne's coddling alicia gianelli, who is clearly just a spoiled brat. at one point mal says that she doesn't seem to miss her mom that much and that crying about separation is just habit, and mary anne wonders how she could be so unfeeling. SO UNFEELING? you're impossible, MA!
-there's an entry in the bsc notebook that seems like it's written by kristy (in terms of chapter narration) but it's in jessi's handwriting
-they get turkey dogs for the camp cookout because dawn won't eat beef or pork. IS SHE VEGETARIAN? sometimes she eats fish, so okay, is she pescatarian? bc she legit calls herself a vegetarian sometimes. also are you aware that veggie dogs exist?
alicia gianelli outfit:
-"Her white sneakers were spotless and so were her white socks with lavender trim that matched the lavender stripes on the side of her navy blue shorts. She was wearing a navy and lavender and white striped T-shirt and carrying a safety-orange backpack."
vanessa pike ringleader outfit:
-"She wore white jeans tucked into black rain boots, an old red jacket of her mother's with the sleeves rolled up and a white shirt she'd made with Claudia's help that said Ringmaster in sequined script across the chest. She also wore a "top hat" fashioned from painted black cardboard."
jackie disaster:
-gestures, sending baked beans off his plate
snacks in claudia's room:
-sour cream potato chips in the back of her closet
-jujubes (n.s.)
-popcorn (n.s.)
highlights:
-claire plays a game where she "freezes" the triplets, and adam says, "you iced jordan...but you won't ice me!" do you think he knows about the colloquial term, to ice, meaning to kill?
-the stoneybrook academy (private school) kids at the camp and the stoneybrook elementary (public school) kids don't really get along because the SA kids have been to circus camp and think the bsc camp is dorky since it's not REAL circus camp. also because the stoneybrook academy kids can't deal with kids who aren't dressed every morning by their handmaids and driven to camp in a towncar. no but really I love this plotline. karen leads the campaign of snooty rich kids hating on the circus camp, and all the baby sitters let her get away with it because they let her get away with everything by saying she's just precocious. and it's so REAL. these kids WOULD have gone to some camp that cost thousands of dollars where they learned real circus tricks and such, and the other kids would just be happy to have the baby sitters plan something fun for them to do.
-for mary anne+dawn+sharon's dumb movies night, mary anne rents buffy the vampire slayer. YES! do you think they love watching vampire paul reubens/pee wee herman as much as I do?
-they include matt braddock (who is deaf and communicates using ASL) in a game of telephone (though they call it gossip). it's pretty cool -- his sister signs to him, then he signs to jessi, and then jessi passes it on.
lowlights:
-honestly since mary anne stays with alicia through all the fun outings and such
-mary anne's coddling alicia gianelli, who is clearly just a spoiled brat. at one point mal says that she doesn't seem to miss her mom that much and that crying about separation is just habit, and mary anne wonders how she could be so unfeeling. SO UNFEELING? you're impossible, MA!
-there's an entry in the bsc notebook that seems like it's written by kristy (in terms of chapter narration) but it's in jessi's handwriting
-they get turkey dogs for the camp cookout because dawn won't eat beef or pork. IS SHE VEGETARIAN? sometimes she eats fish, so okay, is she pescatarian? bc she legit calls herself a vegetarian sometimes. also are you aware that veggie dogs exist?
alicia gianelli outfit:
-"Her white sneakers were spotless and so were her white socks with lavender trim that matched the lavender stripes on the side of her navy blue shorts. She was wearing a navy and lavender and white striped T-shirt and carrying a safety-orange backpack."
vanessa pike ringleader outfit:
-"She wore white jeans tucked into black rain boots, an old red jacket of her mother's with the sleeves rolled up and a white shirt she'd made with Claudia's help that said Ringmaster in sequined script across the chest. She also wore a "top hat" fashioned from painted black cardboard."
jackie disaster:
-gestures, sending baked beans off his plate
snacks in claudia's room:
-sour cream potato chips in the back of her closet
-jujubes (n.s.)
-popcorn (n.s.)
September 9, 2021
UGGGGHHHHHHHHHH Mary Anne why are you such a wet blanket?!?! This would have been a solid BSC book if it were a different narrator and I didn't have to read the B-story of Mary Anne hating bachelorette life while her daddy is on a work trip and moping while Sharon and Dawn have fun.
July 18, 2023
this book was so so good! Super super addicting and every single word I read it was interesting in that book. I totally recommend this book around ages 8-13 such a good book!
March 5, 2023
When I was 10 I joined a readers club/group where we got a new book every week. I chose The babysitters club.
The books are fantastic! So enjoyable. I loved getting the book every week. They are super quick reads and I was able to read it in one day.
Highly recommend for young teenagers to read or even younger if they are able too read well.
The books are fantastic! So enjoyable. I loved getting the book every week. They are super quick reads and I was able to read it in one day.
Highly recommend for young teenagers to read or even younger if they are able too read well.
March 28, 2021
Way too heavy on babysitting plots. I'd really like to punch Karen in the teeth. MA missing her dad was a sweet plot, but kind of out of character for her.
August 19, 2023
This was fine. Mary Anne's dad goes on a work trip and while Sharon and Dawn are loving the bachelorette lifestyle, Mary Anne misses her dad and hates how messy the house is becoming. And like, I get it. Why wouldn't Sharon and Dawn wash the dishes / throw away takeout containers for two whole weeks?! Eww!
The Camp BSC plot features four-year-old Alicia Gianelli missing her mom and not wanting to go on off-site activities in case her mom comes back and doesn't find her. Mary Anne is super supportive and stays back with her, but then ends up actually coddling her to the point that Alicia herself decides one day that she's ready to go off-site and join the fun. I think this plotline had a nice parallel to Mary Anne's loneliness at her father being away, and I like seeing the strategies the other BSC members used to try to get Alicia to relax about being away from her mom. I do think Mary Anne's big takeaway is incomplete -- she realizes that like Alicia, she's letting her unhappiness keep her from joining in the fun, which is true and good insight, but like, two weeks of unwashed dishes and takeaway containers piling up in the trash and popcorn being tossed at the living room TV without being cleaned up afterward is still ewwww. Like Sharon and Dawn do bear some responsibility for Mary Anne's unhappiness and need to grow up a little bit. Eww.
And Karen is absolutely insufferable. I detest her snobbiness about "me and my rich private school friends all went to real circus camp. We would never do it this way in real circus camp." And of course all the Stoneybrook Academy kids followed her lead and refused to participate in the BSC Camp activities. So when came the time for the kids to put on a circus performance for the parents, none of the Stoneybrook Academy kids were prepared and Kristy was in low-key panic mode that they may need to cancel the whole performance. And like, why? Bench the Stoneybrook Academy snobs and let the Stoneybrook Elementary kids perform. Ugh. I hate snobs. And I honestly think Kristy should've had Watson take Karen aside and tell her to shape up coz not everyone can afford "real" circus camp, you stupid brat. Ugh. Ugh. Ughhhh.
The Camp BSC plot features four-year-old Alicia Gianelli missing her mom and not wanting to go on off-site activities in case her mom comes back and doesn't find her. Mary Anne is super supportive and stays back with her, but then ends up actually coddling her to the point that Alicia herself decides one day that she's ready to go off-site and join the fun. I think this plotline had a nice parallel to Mary Anne's loneliness at her father being away, and I like seeing the strategies the other BSC members used to try to get Alicia to relax about being away from her mom. I do think Mary Anne's big takeaway is incomplete -- she realizes that like Alicia, she's letting her unhappiness keep her from joining in the fun, which is true and good insight, but like, two weeks of unwashed dishes and takeaway containers piling up in the trash and popcorn being tossed at the living room TV without being cleaned up afterward is still ewwww. Like Sharon and Dawn do bear some responsibility for Mary Anne's unhappiness and need to grow up a little bit. Eww.
And Karen is absolutely insufferable. I detest her snobbiness about "me and my rich private school friends all went to real circus camp. We would never do it this way in real circus camp." And of course all the Stoneybrook Academy kids followed her lead and refused to participate in the BSC Camp activities. So when came the time for the kids to put on a circus performance for the parents, none of the Stoneybrook Academy kids were prepared and Kristy was in low-key panic mode that they may need to cancel the whole performance. And like, why? Bench the Stoneybrook Academy snobs and let the Stoneybrook Elementary kids perform. Ugh. I hate snobs. And I honestly think Kristy should've had Watson take Karen aside and tell her to shape up coz not everyone can afford "real" circus camp, you stupid brat. Ugh. Ugh. Ughhhh.
May 22, 2019
This is yet another book, where the girls watch a large group of kids. This storyline got stale, several dozen books ago. This time, they're doing a circus-themed summer camp. Karen Brewer doesn't think it's as good as another camp she went to last year, so she is a brat and complains the entire time.
A four-year-old named Alicia is scared of being separated from her mother, for the first time. She cries and throws tantrums. Mary Anne does the exact same thing, when her dad goes away on a business trip. It's a little annoying to see Mary Anne act like a four-year-old.
Dawn and Sharon are too busy having fun, to notice Mary Anne is upset. They leave huge messes for her to clean up, and they ignore her. I liked this storyline, and I was totally on Mary Anne's side, until the point where Mary Anne sprains her ankle. After that, Mary Anne changes from being the victim, to being the aggressor. She starts acting like a jerk. She refuses to hang out with Dawn, then she cries endlessly, because she's not spending time with Dawn. I know this is typical Mary Anne behavior, but I hate seeing her throw huge pity parties for herself, because she has easily-resolved problems of her own making.
A four-year-old named Alicia is scared of being separated from her mother, for the first time. She cries and throws tantrums. Mary Anne does the exact same thing, when her dad goes away on a business trip. It's a little annoying to see Mary Anne act like a four-year-old.
Dawn and Sharon are too busy having fun, to notice Mary Anne is upset. They leave huge messes for her to clean up, and they ignore her. I liked this storyline, and I was totally on Mary Anne's side, until the point where Mary Anne sprains her ankle. After that, Mary Anne changes from being the victim, to being the aggressor. She starts acting like a jerk. She refuses to hang out with Dawn, then she cries endlessly, because she's not spending time with Dawn. I know this is typical Mary Anne behavior, but I hate seeing her throw huge pity parties for herself, because she has easily-resolved problems of her own making.
February 3, 2024
Part of my re-reading the BSC series as I encounter books at the thrift store... Also, Buffy the Vampire Slayer (the original movie) gets a shout-out in this book!
I'd forgotten just how much I'd identified with Mary Anne--we have similar personalities in a lot of ways, and I felt for her in this book. She and the BSC are working full days with a day camp of kids because other camps and the community centre didn't bother to coordinate with the school calendar and the kids have three weeks of nothing with their parents trying to figure out childcare (yes, it's up to the middle-schoolers to solve the problem again). All this while Mary Anne's dad's on a work trip for a couple weeks. She enjoys spending time with Sharon and Dawn, but gets overwhelmed by their goofing off, especially when combined with camp. It all works out with a minimum of fuss once there's some better communication. Other than a group of eight middle-schoolers supervising 22 kids all day for three weeks straight, the conflicts feel very genuine and realistic.
I'd forgotten just how much I'd identified with Mary Anne--we have similar personalities in a lot of ways, and I felt for her in this book. She and the BSC are working full days with a day camp of kids because other camps and the community centre didn't bother to coordinate with the school calendar and the kids have three weeks of nothing with their parents trying to figure out childcare (yes, it's up to the middle-schoolers to solve the problem again). All this while Mary Anne's dad's on a work trip for a couple weeks. She enjoys spending time with Sharon and Dawn, but gets overwhelmed by their goofing off, especially when combined with camp. It all works out with a minimum of fuss once there's some better communication. Other than a group of eight middle-schoolers supervising 22 kids all day for three weeks straight, the conflicts feel very genuine and realistic.
December 24, 2020
(LL)
This was a fun book and had great ideas for some baby-sitters to use some of the activities from Camp BSC. The idea of Camp BSC is the great idea in itself. However, the lessons in here are kind of repetitive of other books so there isn’t really anything special about this book.
As an aside: this book makes Sharon out to be this super slob who doesn’t have any interest in keeping even a remotely clean house while Richard is gone. Like you really didn’t do the dishes for two weeks? Gross, man.
This was a fun book and had great ideas for some baby-sitters to use some of the activities from Camp BSC. The idea of Camp BSC is the great idea in itself. However, the lessons in here are kind of repetitive of other books so there isn’t really anything special about this book.
As an aside: this book makes Sharon out to be this super slob who doesn’t have any interest in keeping even a remotely clean house while Richard is gone. Like you really didn’t do the dishes for two weeks? Gross, man.
Read
July 29, 2020As a kid my best friends sister had the whole BSC series on a book shelf in her room. I thought she was so grown up. And I envied this bookshelf. And would often poke my head into that room just to look at it.
And when I read BSC, I felt like such a grown up.
And while I might have still been a little too young to understand some of the issues dealt with in these books, I do appreciated that Ann M. Martin tackled age appropriate issues, some being deeper than others, but still important.
January 1, 2022
I hadn't read a BSC book in a while so maybe it's because I forgot how annoying Dawn is, temporarily, but...is Mary Anne worse than Dawn? Alicia is four so it's easy to see why she'd be nervous about not having her mom around but Mary Anne is thirteen and has had her dad go away a million different times. This all felt a little *too* juvenile for me even for a BSC book (also no mention of Mary Anne spraining her ankle, or any of the events of this book, in the first Super Mystery book.)
April 14, 2022
As summertime approaches, the sitters know they will be flooded with babysitting requests. They decide to host Camp BSC. One camper, Alicia, is scared to leave her mother; so Mary Anne takes her under her wing. But Mary Anne is having her own problems: her father is out of town for two weeks on a work trip, she feels left out at home, and she sprains her ankle. But as Alicia adjusts to Camp BSC, Mary Anne also realizes she's been acting childish and apologizes for her mistakes.
August 15, 2023
A very uninspiring return to reading BSC. Maybe it’s because I’ve been away from the gworlz, but the flanderizing of the characters and the club were glaring in this one.
Also this is one of those BSC’s that will break your brain if you think too much about it. What was the childcare plan for half these parents if they didn’t randomly come up with this camp?? This entire town’s economy is dependent on 13-year-olds.
Also this is one of those BSC’s that will break your brain if you think too much about it. What was the childcare plan for half these parents if they didn’t randomly come up with this camp?? This entire town’s economy is dependent on 13-year-olds.
June 15, 2025
A lot of the emotional stuff in this book was really realistic, but it was hard not to get annoyed sometimes. Especially with the group of kids who were acting snobby about circus camp. But also, why did Kristy not see that coming? I also don't love it when Little Sister ghostwriters try to make BSC books too much of a crossover with Little Sister. Still, there were a lot of funny moments in this, and the developmental stuff was pretty good.
December 20, 2019
Mary Anne copes with loneliness and heartbreak. Alicia Gianelli learns about loneliness. Kristy has a great idea-camp BSC. The kids from Stoneybrook Academy have a fight with the kids from the regular elementary. Richard Spier goes on a business trip.
Mary Anne is kind of paranoid in this book, but I still liked it.
This is Written by my daughter
Mary Anne is kind of paranoid in this book, but I still liked it.
This is Written by my daughter
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 6, 2019
Review on www.Audible.com listen to this book
Read
November 14, 2020Read my recap at A Year with the BSC via Stoneybrook Forever: https://www.livethemovies.com/bsc-blo...
February 27, 2023
I always love the babysitters club books because of their experiences and they reminded me of me and my friends.
January 7, 2024
It is a great book! I would recommend this book to any age!😍
February 1, 2024
One thing I don’t like about Mary Ann is that she can change character sought of but a great book didn’t like how she was grumpy.
December 31, 2024
I totally enjoyed this book, it's engaging and I'll recommend to children ages 8-12,
February 3, 2022
Overly sensitive, but way too whiny!!!
March 17, 2011
i'm half-tempted to just not recap mary anne books anymore. they are all terrible. the cliff's notes version of this one: it's summertime AGAIN in stoneybrook & there are a few weeks between school letting out & the day camps facilitated by the community center starting up. the bridge the gap, the babysitters club organizes their own day camp, called camp BSC. they decide it will be circus-themed.
at the same time, there is some re-organization happening at the law firm for which richard works, & as a result, he has to travel a lot more. he's going on a four-day trip to cleveland, leaving sharon, mary anne, & dawn at home to fend for themselves. sharon decides they will live like "bachelor girls," which involves eating take-out every night, watching movies, & throwing popcorn at the TV. mary anne misses her dad & is frustrated by the slovenliness that takes over in his absence.
one of the youngest camp BSC campers is ailcia gianelli, who is only four years old & has never really been away from her mother before. she constantly freaks out & refuses to go to the park or the stones' farm or other day trips the babysitters club plans. she thinks her mom won't know where to find her when she comes to pick her up. so she stays behind with mary anne.
mary anne falls off her bike (actually, she rides into a pothole & then smashes into a tree--i wish i could see someone actually do that) & sprains her ankle. she calls richard in cleveland & hopes he will come home when he hears about her accident, but sharon convinces him that mary anne is fine. that just makes mary anne even grumpier. but she's on crutches, so hanging around the yard with alicia while everyone else is off having fun works out pretty well.
there's also a sub-plot in which half the campers at camp BSC have perviously attended a "real" circus camp, so they constantly make fun of the circus-themed activities the babysitters club plans & criticizes them for not being authentic enough. the BSC decides to arrange a camp circus for friends & family at the end of the camp session, but when dress rehearsal rolls around, it becomes apparent that the kids who had been to REAL circus camp didn't bother to practice their acts at all. karen actually tries to saw nancy dawes in half with a real saw because it's more authentic that way. too bad kristy stopped her before she killed someone & got sent away for life. anyway, the babysitters brainstorm changes to the show that will mask the fact that the snobby campers don't know what the fuck they're doing & it works out fine.
& one day at camp, alicia decides to tag along with all the other campers when they go to the park. mary anne realizes that she has been acting the same way about richard's business trip as alicia was acting about camp. she let her loneliness & fear stop her from having fun & trying new things. she decides to fall in line with sharon's take-out food/popcorn-throwing reign of terror, & appreciate her dad when he gets home from his trip.
oh my god. snorrrrrre. i mean, maybe this book wasn't that bad. i just really hate mary anne.
at the same time, there is some re-organization happening at the law firm for which richard works, & as a result, he has to travel a lot more. he's going on a four-day trip to cleveland, leaving sharon, mary anne, & dawn at home to fend for themselves. sharon decides they will live like "bachelor girls," which involves eating take-out every night, watching movies, & throwing popcorn at the TV. mary anne misses her dad & is frustrated by the slovenliness that takes over in his absence.
one of the youngest camp BSC campers is ailcia gianelli, who is only four years old & has never really been away from her mother before. she constantly freaks out & refuses to go to the park or the stones' farm or other day trips the babysitters club plans. she thinks her mom won't know where to find her when she comes to pick her up. so she stays behind with mary anne.
mary anne falls off her bike (actually, she rides into a pothole & then smashes into a tree--i wish i could see someone actually do that) & sprains her ankle. she calls richard in cleveland & hopes he will come home when he hears about her accident, but sharon convinces him that mary anne is fine. that just makes mary anne even grumpier. but she's on crutches, so hanging around the yard with alicia while everyone else is off having fun works out pretty well.
there's also a sub-plot in which half the campers at camp BSC have perviously attended a "real" circus camp, so they constantly make fun of the circus-themed activities the babysitters club plans & criticizes them for not being authentic enough. the BSC decides to arrange a camp circus for friends & family at the end of the camp session, but when dress rehearsal rolls around, it becomes apparent that the kids who had been to REAL circus camp didn't bother to practice their acts at all. karen actually tries to saw nancy dawes in half with a real saw because it's more authentic that way. too bad kristy stopped her before she killed someone & got sent away for life. anyway, the babysitters brainstorm changes to the show that will mask the fact that the snobby campers don't know what the fuck they're doing & it works out fine.
& one day at camp, alicia decides to tag along with all the other campers when they go to the park. mary anne realizes that she has been acting the same way about richard's business trip as alicia was acting about camp. she let her loneliness & fear stop her from having fun & trying new things. she decides to fall in line with sharon's take-out food/popcorn-throwing reign of terror, & appreciate her dad when he gets home from his trip.
oh my god. snorrrrrre. i mean, maybe this book wasn't that bad. i just really hate mary anne.
April 11, 2024
This book was kind of annoying. With the start of summer the kids that the BSC care for have a couple weeks gap before summer activities like camp start which seems odd but we needed a plot device so okay. The club forms their own day camp for the kids called camp BSC. The decide on a circus theme. The only issue is the spoiled rich kids from Stoneybrook Day have attended a real circus camp and are spoiled brats about it. Karen Brewer is the worst I truly wanted to slap her for being a more obnoxious brat than usual. There's another whiny brat Alicia who refuses to go out and have fun because her mom won't be able to find her and Mary Anne coddles her completely. I was attached to my mom as a kid but if I was left at a school or camp I stuck close to my brother or someome I knew and since Alicia's brother is in the camp it made me dislike her even more. The more I read of this series the more I realize that it probably shaped my decision to not have kids. Karen almost proves my belief she'll be a serial killer by using a real saw to try and cut Nancy in half. She's stopped but I wonder if it had continued if they would've dismissed it like they do all her other bad behaviour. The b plot involves Mary Anne's dad having to go out of town for work. The girls order takeout watch movies, ah going to movie rental places good times, and generally make a mess. Like seriously they run out of dishes it's gross. But I loved this storyline as my dad was the cook in the family and often went out of town which meant take out for supper. But we managed to keep the house clean. Mary Anne is whiny and grumpy and misses her dad and grows more insufferable when she sprains her ankle after a weird bike accident. She hits a deep pothole and then a tree, it's weird to picture and I almost want a visual of it. But both plots join up Alicia begins to join in the fun and Mary Anne feels like she's been acting like Alicia the whole time. Mary Anne is kind of annoying more so after she was hurt but Karen and Alicia were awful. Not a bad book but definitely not my favourite in the series.
May 1, 2013
Fantastic books for young girls getting into reading!! Great stories about friendship and life lessons. The characters deal with all sorts of situations and often find responsible solutions to problems.
I loved this series growing up and wanted to start my own babysitting business with friends. Great lessons in entrepreneurship for tweens.
The books may be dated with out references to modern technology but the story stands and lessons are still relevant.
Awesome books that girls will love! And the series grows with them! Terrific Author!
I loved this series growing up and wanted to start my own babysitting business with friends. Great lessons in entrepreneurship for tweens.
The books may be dated with out references to modern technology but the story stands and lessons are still relevant.
Awesome books that girls will love! And the series grows with them! Terrific Author!
June 12, 2020
I wasn't feeling well again, so grabbed this book at random off my BSC shelf. I don't know why I like this one, but for some reason I always enjoyed the Mopey Mary Anne books.
Also, does Alicia ever appear in another book?
Also, does Alicia ever appear in another book?
October 2, 2009
Richard leaves on a biz trip and Mary Anne whines a lot. Oh, and there's some crap about a circus camp.
January 26, 2011
It never ceases to amaze me that the BSC will voluntarily sign up to spend even more time babysitting - even during their vacation!
August 13, 2011
I honestly don't remember this book **at all**, so I'll give it a fair shake and move on my merry way because I support most of what Mary Anne does except for when she's being a wuss.
May 6, 2021
Loved these books as a child
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews