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The Baby-Sitters Club #15
Little Miss Stoneybrook... and Dawn
Dawn's a little jealous when there's a formal ceremony to welcome Jessi and Mallory into the Baby-sitters Club. Don't people know that Dawn's a special baby-sitter, too?
Then it's Dawn's turn to shine. Mrs. Pike wants her to help prepare Margo and Claire for the Little Miss Stoneybrook contest. So what if Margo's only talent is peeling a banana with her feet? Dawn's going to help her charges win that contest any way she can. The only trouble is... Kristy, Mary Anne, and Claudia are helping Karen, Myriah, and Charlotte enter the contest, too. And nobody's sure where the competition is fiercer: at the pageant - or in the Baby-sitters Club!
Then it's Dawn's turn to shine. Mrs. Pike wants her to help prepare Margo and Claire for the Little Miss Stoneybrook contest. So what if Margo's only talent is peeling a banana with her feet? Dawn's going to help her charges win that contest any way she can. The only trouble is... Kristy, Mary Anne, and Claudia are helping Karen, Myriah, and Charlotte enter the contest, too. And nobody's sure where the competition is fiercer: at the pageant - or in the Baby-sitters Club!
144 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 1988
161 people are currently reading
1140 people want to read
About the author
Ann M. Martin
1,102 books3,046 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...
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June 1, 2020
Charisma, Uniqueness, Nerve, and...(?)
Do you remember when it was still the 80s and we didn't know how awful pageants were because we were 7 and just liked looking at all the pretty dresses and not understanding that our attraction to the glamour of the occasion signaled -- along with Olympic women's gymnastics and figure skating -- not necessarily a gender dysphoria but that there was definitely Something Up? The Baby-sitters Club remembers.
Do you remember when it was the mid-90s and even though we had recognized that pageants were sorta problematic, we still kinda dug them, at least until the JonBenét Ramsey incident taught us that child pageants also existed and were SUPER GROSS but didn't fully connect that the insidiousness of those affairs was indelibly connected to the institution of adult pageantry and come on, the dresses were still pretty and Miss America remained a strangely aspirational touchstone even though we were 14 and a boy (but were going to come out in 5 days, simultaneously to ourselves and our close friends, at which point a lot of pieces would finally fall into place)? The Baby-sitters Club remembers (sorta).
Do you remember when it was 2018 and the Miss America Organization announced that it was no longer judging contestants on looks and instead emphasizing social activism, interview, and talent (50% of the grade) but 2 years later all of the contestants are still conventionally attractive and only need to squeak out a passably pitchy "Nessun Dorma" to astound the judges, signaling the antiquated organization's misguided good intentions? The Baby-sitters Club doesn't remember this. They're dead.
Can we talk about last year's winner for a second? She's really the perfect contestant to symbolize the MAO's branding change (Miss America 2.0, as if "2.0" hasn't been out of style since Web 2.0 [remember Web 2.0?]): She's got two bachelor's degrees in the sciences and working on a Pharm.D, which is pretty awesome. She's gorgeous and white, and her pearl-clutching cryface is executed perfectly in her crowning shots. But let's talk about talent.
Talent is 50% of the whole pie now. So how is it that we gave the crown to a "Chemistry Demonstration" that is no more than a dorky 8th-grade teacher parlor trick to impress jaded preteens? She poured potassium iodide into hydrogen peroxide to make foam happen. This requires no more knowledge of chemistry than I need of food science to make brownies out of a mix. If chemistry is your talent, do something that shows you're astoundingly good at chemistry. And she is! So where was that?!
The problem comes when you consider the bulk of the talent demonstrations that receive attention in these things. Since they're performing for a panel of non-experts, all they ever have to be is "kinda good" at something. There's no real critical eye to talent, so what's going to win? Flash, gimmicks, and fanfare. Miss Virginia made big colorful foam explosions, but what did she actually do? Poured one liquid into another. The real talent was in the stagehands who had to clean that shit up.
I forget where I was going with this or how it ties into this Baby-sitters Club book. Basically, at the end of the Little Miss Stoneybrook pageant -- for which each babysitter had one or two of the recurring children they were coaching -- the crown went to some prissly little upstart pageant-head who had a stage mom and was used to playing the game. For all of MAO's gestures towards substance, they present a pageant as superficial as the one depicted in this (poorly-conceived) BSC novel. (Yeah, this wasn't a good one.) For all the babysitters' protestations that pageants were sexist, outmoded, and frivolous, they certainly became insufferable little idiots while they were coaching the girls. So much for principles.
The best character in this was Myriah, one of the babysitters' charges who competed. She was legitimately talented, came in second, and was over the moon because second prize was a gift certificate to a toy store. (Remember gift certificates?) To Myriah, new toys were better than some dumb ol' crown. She's the only one who gets it.
*************************************
Homework: Consider what your talent would be in a pageant. Go online. If there is a 10-minute YouTube video explaining how to do your talent, you have failed this assignment.
<< Super Special #1: Baby-sitters on Board!
#16: Jessi's Secret Language >>
Do you remember when it was still the 80s and we didn't know how awful pageants were because we were 7 and just liked looking at all the pretty dresses and not understanding that our attraction to the glamour of the occasion signaled -- along with Olympic women's gymnastics and figure skating -- not necessarily a gender dysphoria but that there was definitely Something Up? The Baby-sitters Club remembers.
Do you remember when it was the mid-90s and even though we had recognized that pageants were sorta problematic, we still kinda dug them, at least until the JonBenét Ramsey incident taught us that child pageants also existed and were SUPER GROSS but didn't fully connect that the insidiousness of those affairs was indelibly connected to the institution of adult pageantry and come on, the dresses were still pretty and Miss America remained a strangely aspirational touchstone even though we were 14 and a boy (but were going to come out in 5 days, simultaneously to ourselves and our close friends, at which point a lot of pieces would finally fall into place)? The Baby-sitters Club remembers (sorta).
Do you remember when it was 2018 and the Miss America Organization announced that it was no longer judging contestants on looks and instead emphasizing social activism, interview, and talent (50% of the grade) but 2 years later all of the contestants are still conventionally attractive and only need to squeak out a passably pitchy "Nessun Dorma" to astound the judges, signaling the antiquated organization's misguided good intentions? The Baby-sitters Club doesn't remember this. They're dead.
Can we talk about last year's winner for a second? She's really the perfect contestant to symbolize the MAO's branding change (Miss America 2.0, as if "2.0" hasn't been out of style since Web 2.0 [remember Web 2.0?]): She's got two bachelor's degrees in the sciences and working on a Pharm.D, which is pretty awesome. She's gorgeous and white, and her pearl-clutching cryface is executed perfectly in her crowning shots. But let's talk about talent.
Talent is 50% of the whole pie now. So how is it that we gave the crown to a "Chemistry Demonstration" that is no more than a dorky 8th-grade teacher parlor trick to impress jaded preteens? She poured potassium iodide into hydrogen peroxide to make foam happen. This requires no more knowledge of chemistry than I need of food science to make brownies out of a mix. If chemistry is your talent, do something that shows you're astoundingly good at chemistry. And she is! So where was that?!
The problem comes when you consider the bulk of the talent demonstrations that receive attention in these things. Since they're performing for a panel of non-experts, all they ever have to be is "kinda good" at something. There's no real critical eye to talent, so what's going to win? Flash, gimmicks, and fanfare. Miss Virginia made big colorful foam explosions, but what did she actually do? Poured one liquid into another. The real talent was in the stagehands who had to clean that shit up.
I forget where I was going with this or how it ties into this Baby-sitters Club book. Basically, at the end of the Little Miss Stoneybrook pageant -- for which each babysitter had one or two of the recurring children they were coaching -- the crown went to some prissly little upstart pageant-head who had a stage mom and was used to playing the game. For all of MAO's gestures towards substance, they present a pageant as superficial as the one depicted in this (poorly-conceived) BSC novel. (Yeah, this wasn't a good one.) For all the babysitters' protestations that pageants were sexist, outmoded, and frivolous, they certainly became insufferable little idiots while they were coaching the girls. So much for principles.
The best character in this was Myriah, one of the babysitters' charges who competed. She was legitimately talented, came in second, and was over the moon because second prize was a gift certificate to a toy store. (Remember gift certificates?) To Myriah, new toys were better than some dumb ol' crown. She's the only one who gets it.
*************************************
Homework: Consider what your talent would be in a pageant. Go online. If there is a 10-minute YouTube video explaining how to do your talent, you have failed this assignment.
<< Super Special #1: Baby-sitters on Board!
#16: Jessi's Secret Language >>
May 14, 2020
This is a middle grade book that is the 15 book in the The baby Sitters Club series. This is the next book I need to read in the Baby Sitters Club, and I am currently rereading them. I loved them when I was in middle school and high school. I listen to the audiobook of this book. I have to say this one is not my favorite BSC book.
February 1, 2010
tragically, this book is nowhere near as awesome as pretty much any given episode of "toddlers & tiaras". i don't know if children's beauty pageants weren't as freaky in 1988, or if this is just another thing that ann m. martin doesn't really know much about. or maybe this is how regular pageants are, while "toddlers & tiaras" focuses more on totally bizarre glitz pageants. then again, the little girl who wins the little miss stoneybrook title is pretty glitzed out. hmmm...
our A-plot features dawn, who is hired by mrs. pike to prepare the two youngest pikes, claire & margo, for the little miss stoneybrook pageant. claire & margo don't really have any "talents" to speak of. claire insists on singing the popeye the sailor man song in which popeye snacks on worms (she can carry a tune, but won't consider a different song), while margo recites "this is the house that jack built" while peeling a banana with her feet.
for some reason, all of the other 13-year-old sitters convince other little girls in stoneybrook to enter the pageant as well, with the sitters as coaches, thinking that whoever coaches the little girl that wins will prove how awesome she is with children. this makes no sense to me, but it gives us our plot, so i guess we just have to go with it. mallory & jessi don't coach anyone because they think pageants are sexist. kristy coaches the demon child, karen. karen's talent is an endless version of "the wheels on the bus". claudia coaches charlotte johanssen, who prepares a reading from charlie & the chocolate factory. mary anne scores big & coaches myriah perkins, who tap dances & sings "on the good ship lollipop". she's the only one who actually seems to have a pageant-worthy talent.
the B-plot involves dawn's brother, jeff, who has been acting up & getting into a lot of trouble in school. his teacher wants him to see a psychologist. jeff says that he knows his anger & frustration will go away if he is allowed to move back to california to live with his dad. sharon isn't psyched about this idea, but she's willing to give it a try. dawn is pissed. she feels that it's bad enough that her parents have gotten divorced & she's had to move to connecticut & leave her dad behind; if jeff moves back to california, her family will be ripped in half. but there's obviously not much she can do about. jeff is walking on air because he gets to move in with his dad, & dawn & sharon are really sad, but...they do what they think is best for jeff. kind of a bummer for the reader, because i like the dawn/jeff sibling relationship. i think i actually prefer jeff to dawn. but whatever. there is a part where jeff punches a boy at school & gives him a black eye, & dawn says she's suprised the kid isn't blind yet because jeff has given him so many black eyes. hilarious!
anyway, jeff leaves the night before the pageant. you can tell how old the book is because sharon & dawn accompany him to his gate & hang around until the flight attendant accompanies jeff on to the airplane. plus, dawn & jeff take photobooth pictures together. i bet there's not an airport in the united sttes that still has a photobooth on premises. that's sad.
while everyone is milling around backstage before the pageant, margo is informed that she will take the stage following sabrina bouvier, a girl she doesn't know. she looks around & ses a little girl with a whole face full of make-up & decides that must be sabrina bouvier. "who else would have a name like sabrina bouvier?" she asks, which is hilarious, because the name is recycled later as a classmate of the babysitters at stoneybrook middle school (the little girl in the pageant is only seven years old). who indeed? the sitters recognize that sabrina is really polished & must be a professional "pageant head". they're holding out for her to be talentless, & she is--she sings "moon river" & has a terrible voice. but she still wins the entire pageant. myriah perkins wins first runner-up & gets a toy store shopping spree. charlotte panics & runs off stage during her talent. karen, claire, & margo just kind of suck in various ways--because their talents are kind of weird, or the fuck up the interview portion, or whatever. the sitters realize that they were making too big a deal of the pageant & what it meant for their sitting skills, & they all bond together to cheer for their charges. at the end of the book, claire calls dawn to ask if dawn will coach her for a "beautiful child" contest at the local department store. nothing more ever comes of that.
man. can't wait until i'm done with these early books & i finally get a break from the pike family. they're more tolerable than the perkins family, or the newtons (i have an irrational hatred of the newtons), but they are getting seriously tired.
our A-plot features dawn, who is hired by mrs. pike to prepare the two youngest pikes, claire & margo, for the little miss stoneybrook pageant. claire & margo don't really have any "talents" to speak of. claire insists on singing the popeye the sailor man song in which popeye snacks on worms (she can carry a tune, but won't consider a different song), while margo recites "this is the house that jack built" while peeling a banana with her feet.
for some reason, all of the other 13-year-old sitters convince other little girls in stoneybrook to enter the pageant as well, with the sitters as coaches, thinking that whoever coaches the little girl that wins will prove how awesome she is with children. this makes no sense to me, but it gives us our plot, so i guess we just have to go with it. mallory & jessi don't coach anyone because they think pageants are sexist. kristy coaches the demon child, karen. karen's talent is an endless version of "the wheels on the bus". claudia coaches charlotte johanssen, who prepares a reading from charlie & the chocolate factory. mary anne scores big & coaches myriah perkins, who tap dances & sings "on the good ship lollipop". she's the only one who actually seems to have a pageant-worthy talent.
the B-plot involves dawn's brother, jeff, who has been acting up & getting into a lot of trouble in school. his teacher wants him to see a psychologist. jeff says that he knows his anger & frustration will go away if he is allowed to move back to california to live with his dad. sharon isn't psyched about this idea, but she's willing to give it a try. dawn is pissed. she feels that it's bad enough that her parents have gotten divorced & she's had to move to connecticut & leave her dad behind; if jeff moves back to california, her family will be ripped in half. but there's obviously not much she can do about. jeff is walking on air because he gets to move in with his dad, & dawn & sharon are really sad, but...they do what they think is best for jeff. kind of a bummer for the reader, because i like the dawn/jeff sibling relationship. i think i actually prefer jeff to dawn. but whatever. there is a part where jeff punches a boy at school & gives him a black eye, & dawn says she's suprised the kid isn't blind yet because jeff has given him so many black eyes. hilarious!
anyway, jeff leaves the night before the pageant. you can tell how old the book is because sharon & dawn accompany him to his gate & hang around until the flight attendant accompanies jeff on to the airplane. plus, dawn & jeff take photobooth pictures together. i bet there's not an airport in the united sttes that still has a photobooth on premises. that's sad.
while everyone is milling around backstage before the pageant, margo is informed that she will take the stage following sabrina bouvier, a girl she doesn't know. she looks around & ses a little girl with a whole face full of make-up & decides that must be sabrina bouvier. "who else would have a name like sabrina bouvier?" she asks, which is hilarious, because the name is recycled later as a classmate of the babysitters at stoneybrook middle school (the little girl in the pageant is only seven years old). who indeed? the sitters recognize that sabrina is really polished & must be a professional "pageant head". they're holding out for her to be talentless, & she is--she sings "moon river" & has a terrible voice. but she still wins the entire pageant. myriah perkins wins first runner-up & gets a toy store shopping spree. charlotte panics & runs off stage during her talent. karen, claire, & margo just kind of suck in various ways--because their talents are kind of weird, or the fuck up the interview portion, or whatever. the sitters realize that they were making too big a deal of the pageant & what it meant for their sitting skills, & they all bond together to cheer for their charges. at the end of the book, claire calls dawn to ask if dawn will coach her for a "beautiful child" contest at the local department store. nothing more ever comes of that.
man. can't wait until i'm done with these early books & i finally get a break from the pike family. they're more tolerable than the perkins family, or the newtons (i have an irrational hatred of the newtons), but they are getting seriously tired.
July 7, 2020
While I actually started reading around age 3 (thank you, my Granny's Dick and Jane books!), this series is what I remember most about loving to read during my childhood. My sister and I drank these books up like they were oxygen. I truly think we owned just about every single one from every one of the series. We even got the privilege of meeting Ann M. Martin at a book signing, but of course little starstruck me froze and could not speak a word to my biggest hero at that time. Once in awhile if I come across these at a yard sale, I will pick them up for a couple hour trip down memory lane, and I declare nearly nothing centers and relaxes me more!
October 21, 2021
What is going on with the BSC? Everyone must be on a downswing of pubescent hormones because, yet again, each and every babysitter acts like a complete monster in this. The babysitters who have resilient, outgoing pageant contestants turn into complete stage moms and ruin any chance at fun the kids might have. The babysitters who have shy contestants decide it's better to just traumatize them than miss out on one-upping another club member. And Jessi and Mallory are a weird little Greek chorus of feminism.
And specifically what was up with Dawn in this book? Nothing in the previous Dawn books would suggest she would give a shit about having a formal induction into the BSC. We literally got a mean-girl "Kristy's just jealous of me" sneer! I'm never one to defend Kristy Thomas, but uh, maybe it's time for you to get over this rivalry, Dawn. Kristy seems more content to be a gross weirdo than bully you.
And specifically what was up with Dawn in this book? Nothing in the previous Dawn books would suggest she would give a shit about having a formal induction into the BSC. We literally got a mean-girl "Kristy's just jealous of me" sneer! I'm never one to defend Kristy Thomas, but uh, maybe it's time for you to get over this rivalry, Dawn. Kristy seems more content to be a gross weirdo than bully you.
June 20, 2020
this book is truly WILD. a subplot about Jeff, Dawn’s brother, finally returning home to their dad is California is like pretty serious and well done but most of it is about all the main babysitters basically bullying little girls they babysit into entering a beauty pageant. the two junior sitters, Jessi and Mallory, are the only ones who are like “isn’t it kinda gross and misogynistic to have 5 year olds compete against each other based on looks?” and everyone else is like “lol yeah probably, but oh well”
then the babysitters spend the last 20% of the book calling the only real competition at the beauty pageant (a 5 year old named Sabrina Bouvier who seems nothing but nice and helpful) things like ugly and fake and dumb. it is TRULY WILD that this book has our protagonists, a bunch of like 13 year olds, talking bad about a literal baby lmaoooo
then the babysitters spend the last 20% of the book calling the only real competition at the beauty pageant (a 5 year old named Sabrina Bouvier who seems nothing but nice and helpful) things like ugly and fake and dumb. it is TRULY WILD that this book has our protagonists, a bunch of like 13 year olds, talking bad about a literal baby lmaoooo
November 29, 2020
you know how i know that 13 is too young to babysit? because these girls all got roped into helping a child enter the pageant and when another child showed up who had clearly been in other pageants and knew what she was doing, dawn wasted no time in pointing out that she wasn’t even that pretty! and she didn’t even say it to ease the tension with the other children, she just said it to the other bsc members. dunking on a seven year old? dawn are you jealous?!?? many other things happened but this is the only that matters. dawn sucks. claudia is still wonderful.
January 27, 2016
this is the first time I've read this book!
dawn is jealous of mallory and jessi because they get an induction ceremony (thrown together last-minute by kristy), and she's jealous of claudia because charlotte johanssen asks for her to baby-sit specifically. when mrs. pike asks dawn if she would be interested in being the pageant coach to claire and margo for the little miss stonybrook pageant, she agrees, figuring if one of them wins she will look like the best baby-sitter. kristy, mary anne, and claudia get jealous and pageant mom other bsc charges by pressuring them to compete. meanwhile jeff schafer moves to california.
highlights:
-claudia says to dawn that she read this story in the newspaper: "on birch street a woman said she was being attacked by giant butterflies demanding twinkies." dawn believes her. it's pretty funny.
-margo's swimsuit's description: "on the front was a gigantic alligator, its mouth open in a grin full of big triangular felt teeth." I want that swimsuit.
-jeff moves back to california. this is a sad plotline, but it's handled really well. he had been having trouble in the previous handful of books, getting into fights at school and just generally wanting to be with his dad in california. finally he gets to leave, and dawn takes it personally and thinks he doesn't want to be around her. finally after she speaks to jeff once he's in california and hears how much better he's doing she realizes that it's actually better in the long run for him to be there.
-some of the pageant description was fun. see below.
-dawn and the other baby-sitters don't get that sabrina bouvier's performance is a breakfast at tiffany's reference (she wears a long black evening gown and long gloves and sings "moon river")
-mallory and jessi are cool in this book. they are the only baby-sitters who stick with the belief that the little miss stonybrook pageant is sexist and dumb.
lowlights:
-dawn's mom gets clingy as though she thinks dawn is going to california to. dawn narrates: "well, I wouldn't. that was the one thing she'd never have to worry about." at least not until Dawn's Big Move, when she goes back to california for six months, and until Farewell, Dawn when she goes for good.
-in general I didn't like this book. the baby-sitters are all selfish jerks who manipulate their charges so they can feel like they're better baby-sitters than each other. they get so mean and competitive and I hate it.
-nitpick: sabrina bouvier is the name of a different character who is in the 8th great at stonybrook middle school in subsequent books. come up with new names!
no outfits (aside from short descriptions of pageant outfits, but they're not detailed).
the pageant
bsc girls talents:
-myriah perkins tap dances and sings on the good ship lollipop
-claire pike sings popeye the sailor man and does a sailor's hornpipe-inspired dance
-karen brewer sings a many-versed improvised the wheels on the bus
-margo pike peels a banana with her feet then eats it while reciting this is the house that jack built
-charlotte johanssen is supposed to recite the scene where violet beauregarde turns into a blueberry in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory but she gets stagefright so she cries and leaves the competition.
bsc girl answers to big questions:
-myriah: if she could change one thing about this world, she would stop wars. "I would say to the people who were making wars, 'now you stop that. you settle this problem yourselves like grown-ups.'" (ADORABLE)
-claire: what she hopes most of all is that santa claus is real.
-karen: what she would rescue if her house was on fire is moosie her stuffed cat, tickly her blanket, and as many toys as she could carry. "oh, could I rescue a fourth thing? if I could, it would be my brother andrew. or maybe my pen that writes in three colors." (SO KAREN)
-margo: when asked what she would like to change in the year 2010, she freezes and doesn't answer.
dawn is jealous of mallory and jessi because they get an induction ceremony (thrown together last-minute by kristy), and she's jealous of claudia because charlotte johanssen asks for her to baby-sit specifically. when mrs. pike asks dawn if she would be interested in being the pageant coach to claire and margo for the little miss stonybrook pageant, she agrees, figuring if one of them wins she will look like the best baby-sitter. kristy, mary anne, and claudia get jealous and pageant mom other bsc charges by pressuring them to compete. meanwhile jeff schafer moves to california.
highlights:
-claudia says to dawn that she read this story in the newspaper: "on birch street a woman said she was being attacked by giant butterflies demanding twinkies." dawn believes her. it's pretty funny.
-margo's swimsuit's description: "on the front was a gigantic alligator, its mouth open in a grin full of big triangular felt teeth." I want that swimsuit.
-jeff moves back to california. this is a sad plotline, but it's handled really well. he had been having trouble in the previous handful of books, getting into fights at school and just generally wanting to be with his dad in california. finally he gets to leave, and dawn takes it personally and thinks he doesn't want to be around her. finally after she speaks to jeff once he's in california and hears how much better he's doing she realizes that it's actually better in the long run for him to be there.
-some of the pageant description was fun. see below.
-dawn and the other baby-sitters don't get that sabrina bouvier's performance is a breakfast at tiffany's reference (she wears a long black evening gown and long gloves and sings "moon river")
-mallory and jessi are cool in this book. they are the only baby-sitters who stick with the belief that the little miss stonybrook pageant is sexist and dumb.
lowlights:
-dawn's mom gets clingy as though she thinks dawn is going to california to. dawn narrates: "well, I wouldn't. that was the one thing she'd never have to worry about." at least not until Dawn's Big Move, when she goes back to california for six months, and until Farewell, Dawn when she goes for good.
-in general I didn't like this book. the baby-sitters are all selfish jerks who manipulate their charges so they can feel like they're better baby-sitters than each other. they get so mean and competitive and I hate it.
-nitpick: sabrina bouvier is the name of a different character who is in the 8th great at stonybrook middle school in subsequent books. come up with new names!
no outfits (aside from short descriptions of pageant outfits, but they're not detailed).
the pageant
bsc girls talents:
-myriah perkins tap dances and sings on the good ship lollipop
-claire pike sings popeye the sailor man and does a sailor's hornpipe-inspired dance
-karen brewer sings a many-versed improvised the wheels on the bus
-margo pike peels a banana with her feet then eats it while reciting this is the house that jack built
-charlotte johanssen is supposed to recite the scene where violet beauregarde turns into a blueberry in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory but she gets stagefright so she cries and leaves the competition.
bsc girl answers to big questions:
-myriah: if she could change one thing about this world, she would stop wars. "I would say to the people who were making wars, 'now you stop that. you settle this problem yourselves like grown-ups.'" (ADORABLE)
-claire: what she hopes most of all is that santa claus is real.
-karen: what she would rescue if her house was on fire is moosie her stuffed cat, tickly her blanket, and as many toys as she could carry. "oh, could I rescue a fourth thing? if I could, it would be my brother andrew. or maybe my pen that writes in three colors." (SO KAREN)
-margo: when asked what she would like to change in the year 2010, she freezes and doesn't answer.
September 12, 2020
I needed something quick and easy that didn't require much mental investment, so I decided to get back to my BSC rereads. I remembered not loving this one much when I first read it as a kid, and that's still true today. I'm definitely on the side of Mallory and Jessi in that I find the concept of beauty pageants--especially for little girls--to be basically bullshit. (Obviously, they don't use the word bullshit in the book, but they would in my world!) And while I appreciated that Martin put that opposing viewpoint in there, and actually had a number of the characters remark on the inherent sexism in pageants...she still had them all go ahead and do it.
Some of the talents were amusing, and I'm sure the whole atmosphere of it was on point. And while I was a little bothered by how some of the babysitters seemed to push the girls into doing it, I was gratified to see that they all later admitted to having done so and felt chagrined about it.
Honestly, I was more into the storyline around Dawn's brother Jeff wanting to move back to California to live with their dad. I have always appreciated these books for exploring issues relating to family dynamics and divorce and such, and I liked seeing Dawn and her mom work through their feelings about Jeff leaving.
But overall this is not one of the stronger ones in the series, and I wish there had been more focus on the downsides of pageants and also more time spent on the Schafer family storyline. But it wasn't terrible, and it kept my mind somewhat occupied for an hour, so there you go.
Some of the talents were amusing, and I'm sure the whole atmosphere of it was on point. And while I was a little bothered by how some of the babysitters seemed to push the girls into doing it, I was gratified to see that they all later admitted to having done so and felt chagrined about it.
Honestly, I was more into the storyline around Dawn's brother Jeff wanting to move back to California to live with their dad. I have always appreciated these books for exploring issues relating to family dynamics and divorce and such, and I liked seeing Dawn and her mom work through their feelings about Jeff leaving.
But overall this is not one of the stronger ones in the series, and I wish there had been more focus on the downsides of pageants and also more time spent on the Schafer family storyline. But it wasn't terrible, and it kept my mind somewhat occupied for an hour, so there you go.
March 28, 2023
As sweet as the Babysitters Club can be, this book put a sour taste in my mouth. The girls were competitive and were not as supportive as they usually are in the series. It may be the author's opinions on beauty pageants because it seemed like the girls were the mouthpieces reciting how Ann M. Martin felt. I personally don't have anything against beauty pageants, but I know they perpetuate warped body images and unhealthy perceptions of beauty. I only watched Toddlers and Tiaras for the utter carnage and sick reality show drama. I don't support child beauty pageants, but it seemed like the little ladies were protesting beauty pageants in general and were blindly hating without clearly defining the reason. I also didn't like they way they were gossiping behind a contestant's back despite how friendly and open she was being. Perhaps it's the gentle flower in me that wants people to support each other instead of tearing each other down. This was not my favorite issue and I like to see the BSC united rather than pitted against each other.
Read
July 12, 2021hot girl summer? try BSC summer hahahahhaa i’ll show myself out
March 21, 2021
Ik vond deze in een minibieb en zodra ik begon te lezen wist ik ook weer waarom ik deze vroeger niet al te leuk vond... het is compleet verNederlandst of Engelse namen zijn veranderd naar ander Engelse namen. Dawn, sorry, Betty, komt niet uit Suriname maar uit Californië. En dat iemand naar Amsterdam moet bellen kost echt niet al je spaargeld (terwijl het wel klopt als iemand van x in Amerika naar y in Amerika moet bellen). En zo gaat het door. Erg jammer hoor.
Maar ondanks dit, ik heb toch echt genoten van dit boek en ik vond het leuk dat er Missverkiezing was en te zien hoe de oppassers over de verkiezing dachten en wie er, met de kinderen, aan mee deden.
Plus, het subplot dat Dawn (sorry, ik weiger haar Betty te noemen)'s broer naar zijn vader terug wilde gaan was ook goed gedaan. Ik vond het erg sneu voor de jongen en ik kon me voorstellen waarom hij voor deze beslissing koos al zorgde het voor veel verdriet.
Maar ondanks dit, ik heb toch echt genoten van dit boek en ik vond het leuk dat er Missverkiezing was en te zien hoe de oppassers over de verkiezing dachten en wie er, met de kinderen, aan mee deden.
Plus, het subplot dat Dawn (sorry, ik weiger haar Betty te noemen)'s broer naar zijn vader terug wilde gaan was ook goed gedaan. Ik vond het erg sneu voor de jongen en ik kon me voorstellen waarom hij voor deze beslissing koos al zorgde het voor veel verdriet.
September 8, 2022
Before I get to my actual review, a quick disclaimer: Ever since I learned that Netflix was reimagining one of my favorite childhood book series, I had decided that I would be embarking on a re-read of this series, reliving a series of books that helped to shape me into a voracious reader. I am so excited to embark on this travel back in time. I don't expect to be mentally stimulated -- I mean, I'm not exactly a pre-teen middle-schooler these days -- but I make no apology for choosing to enjoy this series from the perspective of adulthood. Don't expect me to have any sort of psychoanalyst or feminist sermonizing on the appropriateness of the situations or the effects on a young girl reading these books; there's plenty of that to go around already. I'm here for the nostalgia and the meander down memory lane.
**********
I don't know what my problem is, but wow does Dawn irritate me. I was already gritting my teeth knowing she was up next in the narration, but nevertheless onward in my quest to re-read the entire series.
What I liked about Little Miss Stoneybrook...and Dawn:
The group dynamic - Nothing tickles me more than when the girls get competitive with each other. They get catty in the way that 13-year-old girls excel. The vying for title of best sitter...when no one was actually keeping score on that "competition". The spying on one another's contestants. The keeping of talents as a closely guarded state secret. I giggled every time it came up.
What I didn't care for:
The 412 times we emphasized that beauty pageants are sexist and distasteful - Beat the reader over the head with, why don't you? If one more sitter muttered her disdain or parent sighed in concerned warning, I would have been tempted to hurl the book at the nearest wall. (Not really. I would never abuse a book, especially a library book, in such a disrespectful manner. I promise.)
Ever whiny and dramatic Dawn - Yes, she has some family turmoil, but her drama and histrionics over the situation are...not this Dawn's style. While I respect everyone's right to react in their individual manner, that doesn't mean I have to enjoy reading about a character who acts that way. See? This is why the Dawn books irritate me. She is hypocritically judgy and over the top dramatic, and this is just a turnoff for me.
Margo's talent - I cannot think of anything more repugnant to my personal sensibilities than peeling a banana with one's feet and then eating it. Over and over. Gag.
While there were a few moments of mildly redeeming entertainment value, overall this one remains one of my least favorite visits to Stoneybrook. My original rating sticks at two stars. Best news is that the next time Dawn takes the mic is another eight books away.
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I don't know what my problem is, but wow does Dawn irritate me. I was already gritting my teeth knowing she was up next in the narration, but nevertheless onward in my quest to re-read the entire series.
What I liked about Little Miss Stoneybrook...and Dawn:
The group dynamic - Nothing tickles me more than when the girls get competitive with each other. They get catty in the way that 13-year-old girls excel. The vying for title of best sitter...when no one was actually keeping score on that "competition". The spying on one another's contestants. The keeping of talents as a closely guarded state secret. I giggled every time it came up.
What I didn't care for:
The 412 times we emphasized that beauty pageants are sexist and distasteful - Beat the reader over the head with, why don't you? If one more sitter muttered her disdain or parent sighed in concerned warning, I would have been tempted to hurl the book at the nearest wall. (Not really. I would never abuse a book, especially a library book, in such a disrespectful manner. I promise.)
Ever whiny and dramatic Dawn - Yes, she has some family turmoil, but her drama and histrionics over the situation are...not this Dawn's style. While I respect everyone's right to react in their individual manner, that doesn't mean I have to enjoy reading about a character who acts that way. See? This is why the Dawn books irritate me. She is hypocritically judgy and over the top dramatic, and this is just a turnoff for me.
Margo's talent - I cannot think of anything more repugnant to my personal sensibilities than peeling a banana with one's feet and then eating it. Over and over. Gag.
While there were a few moments of mildly redeeming entertainment value, overall this one remains one of my least favorite visits to Stoneybrook. My original rating sticks at two stars. Best news is that the next time Dawn takes the mic is another eight books away.
July 26, 2020
I’m surprised the author said this was one of her favorite books to write, because it was the worst one yet! First thing that was off was Dawn. Her narrative didn’t match her voice. Strong, cool-headed Dawn was vulnerable and caught up in a catty competition with a pageant? All of the babysitters have been acting progressively more immature book by book. In this one, the only level-headed ones we’re the 11 year-olds!
There was such a missed opportunity with this plot point. They all acknowledged from the beginning how sexist a pageant is, yet not a single one of them spoke to or about the girls about how special they were. They whispered about the awful singers, and were humiliated by the answers. These are 5 year old pageant girls!! How sad to build up something so serious and pressuring that these girls bawled after. Not one of them was taught the value of competition. They will all suck at sports or dance classes growing up.
The book bugged me and if I read it with my daughter someday, we will be having lots of deep conversations.
There was such a missed opportunity with this plot point. They all acknowledged from the beginning how sexist a pageant is, yet not a single one of them spoke to or about the girls about how special they were. They whispered about the awful singers, and were humiliated by the answers. These are 5 year old pageant girls!! How sad to build up something so serious and pressuring that these girls bawled after. Not one of them was taught the value of competition. They will all suck at sports or dance classes growing up.
The book bugged me and if I read it with my daughter someday, we will be having lots of deep conversations.
December 20, 2022
De babysittersclub geraakt verdeeld. Alle meisjes coachen iemand anders van hun pupillen om deel te nemen aan een schoonheidswedstrijd.
In dit boek wordt de zin en de onzin van schoonheidswedstrijden getoond. De babystiiters raken verdeeld, maar zullen uiteindelijk toch inzien wat het beste is en hun vriendschap voorop stellen.
De schrijfster vertelt dit alles wel met de nodige humor.
Een speciaal gastoptreden (via de telefoon) is voorzien voor Petra, een van de oprichtsters van de club, die al een tijdje naar Amsterdam verhuisd is.
Ook de rol van de ouders wordt nog eens in het licht gehouden. Dat blijkt ook geen zwart-wit situatie te zijn, maar zoals alles in het leven bevat het eerder grijze tinten.
Zoals altijd, de kleine gebeurtenissen uit het leven die voor pubers grote betekenis hebben, met een lach en een traan. Alles komt goed al loopt het niet altijd volgens de planning.
Het einde is ook even grappig als onverwacht.
Deel 15 uit een reeks waar de schrijfster steeds een nieuwe plot bedenkt zonder afbreuk te doen aan de originele opzet.
In dit boek wordt de zin en de onzin van schoonheidswedstrijden getoond. De babystiiters raken verdeeld, maar zullen uiteindelijk toch inzien wat het beste is en hun vriendschap voorop stellen.
De schrijfster vertelt dit alles wel met de nodige humor.
Een speciaal gastoptreden (via de telefoon) is voorzien voor Petra, een van de oprichtsters van de club, die al een tijdje naar Amsterdam verhuisd is.
Ook de rol van de ouders wordt nog eens in het licht gehouden. Dat blijkt ook geen zwart-wit situatie te zijn, maar zoals alles in het leven bevat het eerder grijze tinten.
Zoals altijd, de kleine gebeurtenissen uit het leven die voor pubers grote betekenis hebben, met een lach en een traan. Alles komt goed al loopt het niet altijd volgens de planning.
Het einde is ook even grappig als onverwacht.
Deel 15 uit een reeks waar de schrijfster steeds een nieuwe plot bedenkt zonder afbreuk te doen aan de originele opzet.
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November 8, 2021Loved the story!
Dawn's Have to be jealous when there's a formal ceremony to welcome Jessi and Mallory into the Baby-sitters Club don't you think so. Dawn's a special baby sitter too
When dawn helping to prepare Margo and Claire for the Little Miss Stoneybrook contest? That make me more interesting. Kristy, Mary Anne, and Claudia are helping Karen, Myriah, and Charlotte enter the contest, too. And nobody's sure where the competition is fiercer: ( I don't want to tell it read and see )
hahhaha
Anyway great Story
Dawn's Have to be jealous when there's a formal ceremony to welcome Jessi and Mallory into the Baby-sitters Club don't you think so. Dawn's a special baby sitter too
When dawn helping to prepare Margo and Claire for the Little Miss Stoneybrook contest? That make me more interesting. Kristy, Mary Anne, and Claudia are helping Karen, Myriah, and Charlotte enter the contest, too. And nobody's sure where the competition is fiercer: ( I don't want to tell it read and see )
hahhaha
Anyway great Story
August 18, 2022
BSC re-read as a 32 year old #15...
Another bleh one. The pagent storyline was a bit bland. Was surprised to see how ruthless the Babysitters were to literal children because they were so desperate for their kids to win the pagent. Dawn calling a literal child "not that pretty" because the kid knew her way around a beauty pagent was gross. The Jeff storyline was sad though - i feel bad for Dawn and her mom.
Another bleh one. The pagent storyline was a bit bland. Was surprised to see how ruthless the Babysitters were to literal children because they were so desperate for their kids to win the pagent. Dawn calling a literal child "not that pretty" because the kid knew her way around a beauty pagent was gross. The Jeff storyline was sad though - i feel bad for Dawn and her mom.
October 25, 2021
This book was far better than I remembered it. The BSC's charges are in pageant mode and our five mains all have a kid they are sponsoring, and all think their kid will win! Dawn is the focus of this book and she deals with her brother Jeff moving back home to CA. This was a fun read and I enjoyed almost every scene in it!
April 1, 2021
I was not into this one as much as I was into some of the other books in this series but I'm hoping there will be better books coming up because I'm planning to read every book in it.
Hopefully you all enjoy this one, though.
Hopefully you all enjoy this one, though.
July 1, 2022
Pretty sad - made me tear up for jeff, dawn and her momma. Cute story line with the pageant
November 27, 2025
All the top reviews talk about pageants and the quality of this book as a middle grade book. This review is not that. This review is my opinion judging it against the other BSC books. This is not a great BSC book. Is it the worst? I’m sure it’s not, there’s so many of them. But is it my least favorite of the ones I’ve read in this reread spell? Probably. There’s no logic, no commitment to any one concept, and very little quality in any capacity to either storyline. The girls are competitive, but they don’t spend much time competing with each other? It’s not until the second half of the book that we have all the girls competing who will compete. Most of the book was Dawn crying or being slightly petty about Jeff, but not even that was well written even for a Baby-sitters club book. I just felt like this one was more of a draft than a published book. Will some people love this? Yup. Will I ever change my feelings on it? Veeeery low chance.
March 21, 2024
This is another installment where the B-plot - Dawn's brother moving back to California - is way more interesting than the main story, which involves most of the babysitters lightly influencing the girls they look after into entering a local beauty pageant. This actually reminded me of the previous book (Hello, Mallory) where it's super-clear how the story the story will be resolved when the girls realize that they're in the wrong. I get that this series can be a little formulaic at times, but it's annoying that more time is spent on predictable rivalry than Dawn's family situation.
January 24, 2019
Uh Oh! Looks like trouble is brewing. When a Beauty Pagent is set to be held in Stoney Brook the girls have their hands full. Dawn is coaching Claire and Margo Pike. Kristy has her hands full with her little sister Karen. Mary Ann is taking Mariah and Claudia is bringing Charlotte Johansson. With competition fierce and hours of training the babysitters lose the TRUE meaning of entering this pagent in the first place. It’s supposed to be fun!!! So why is everyone freaking out and being sneaky? Lots of life lessons in this book. Enjoyed it.
August 27, 2016
Dawn sets out to prove her worth as a baby sitter in this book. In a subplot, her brother Jeff moves back to California, leaving Dawn and her mother shattered. I first read this when I was about ten years old. It was borrowed from my frenemy who was mostly a little sociopathic bitch, but whose parents bought her every single BSC book in the series, even all the mysteries, super specials, etc. I was friends with her just so I could borrow her books.
Things I remember from reading this as a kid:
Mallory and Jessi throwing fits about a beauty pageant for young girls coming to Stoneybrook. Interestingly, I had never considered the sexism involved with most pageants, probably because they weren't a part of my life, or my interests at all. I still appreciate this book for bringing it up.
The pageant itself, where Margo peels a banana with her feet (which is disgusting) and Karen sings "Wheels on the Bus", and Charlotte runs off the stage in a panic. As a kid I LOVED reading about this train-wreck.
Things I've considered since reading this as an adult:
I didn't remember that right from the beginning of the book the baby sitters become super jealous and competitive with each other. It was a little over the top, especially considering that they aren't usually like that. And it seems odd that they get competitive over a pageant that they don't really believe in anyway, although we're supposed to believe that their underlying competition is who is best baby sitter.
Although I think it's a little unrealistic that Jeff (and later Dawn) just get to move back to California, I think the plot for making that happen is well done. It's a plot that's stretched out over several books, with Jeff's behavior escalating from being moody and grouchy at home, to getting into trouble at school, to getting into violent fights with his classmates. When giving a classmate a black eye becomes something that happens on a regular basis, then it's time to take more serious measures, like talking to a psychiatrist, or . . . moving in with dad for awhile. Since Jeff wants to go so much I guess I understand why Dawn's mother lets him go, but I do feel that having him see a psychiatrist for a little while might have made things easier on the whole family in the long run. Having Jeff move back to California so easily made it that much easier for Dawn to give up on living in Stoneybrook and move back as well. However, it was pretty terrible for Dawn's mother to move her children so far away from their father, and in the middle of the school year. Maybe she got what she deserved. There seems to be underlying dysfunction to Sharon Porter (who was formally Sharon Schafer, and will someday be Sharon Spier) although the series glosses over it. Look at wacky Sharon, with her mismatched earrings and her messy house. Why does Dawn keep referring to her parents "messy marriage" and "messy divorce"? Why did Sharon flee across the country in the wake of her divorce with her two children in the middle of the school? Why does Dawn make a big deal about seeing her father for the first time in eight months in The Ghost At Dawn's House? But most of all, why do Jeff and Dawn want so desperately to be back in California that they fight tooth and nail to move back there for good? And why does Sharon cave in and send them back so easily? The more I think about this in relation to the entire series (and the character Dawn turns into) the more I think there was something seriously wrong with Sharon. In this book Dawn and Sharon agree that they feel more like sisters than mother and daughter, which I don't think is good, but there seems to be something sinister underneath even that simple thought. Is Sharon a fit mother?
I think it's amusing that all the mothers who are asked by their children if they can enter the Little Miss Stoneybrook pageant all act like they hate the idea of a pageant, but then let their daughters participate anyway. I guess most of the girls treat it as something like a game anyway, and since their mothers don't make a big fuss about it, the girls aren't angry when they don't win. They are disappointed, but they don't feel the crushing guilt, anger, or devastation that the little girls on Toddlers and Tiaras seem to. And then they move on to something else, and (as far as we know) don't really have much to do with pageants for the rest of their lives. (There is a foreshadowing in the last page of this story that Claire wants to enter another beauty pageant, but since this is never mentioned again I'm assuming she lost interest a day later.)
The baby sitters are all furious that Mariah doesn't win the title of Little Miss Stoneybrook, and they get really upset about it. I get where they're coming from, but I think it worked out perfectly. Mariah got a great prize for her true talent and charm, a prize that she was very happy with. She doesn't have to go on to the next pageant (which I guess is Little Miss Stamford) and therefore doesn't get sucked into the world of pageants. The "pageant head" as Claudia refers to her, Sabrina Bouvier, doesn't have to face her mother's disappointment, and they do get to go on to the next pageant, which they want to do. Everyone is happy with the final outcome.
Things I remember from reading this as a kid:
Mallory and Jessi throwing fits about a beauty pageant for young girls coming to Stoneybrook. Interestingly, I had never considered the sexism involved with most pageants, probably because they weren't a part of my life, or my interests at all. I still appreciate this book for bringing it up.
The pageant itself, where Margo peels a banana with her feet (which is disgusting) and Karen sings "Wheels on the Bus", and Charlotte runs off the stage in a panic. As a kid I LOVED reading about this train-wreck.
Things I've considered since reading this as an adult:
I didn't remember that right from the beginning of the book the baby sitters become super jealous and competitive with each other. It was a little over the top, especially considering that they aren't usually like that. And it seems odd that they get competitive over a pageant that they don't really believe in anyway, although we're supposed to believe that their underlying competition is who is best baby sitter.
Although I think it's a little unrealistic that Jeff (and later Dawn) just get to move back to California, I think the plot for making that happen is well done. It's a plot that's stretched out over several books, with Jeff's behavior escalating from being moody and grouchy at home, to getting into trouble at school, to getting into violent fights with his classmates. When giving a classmate a black eye becomes something that happens on a regular basis, then it's time to take more serious measures, like talking to a psychiatrist, or . . . moving in with dad for awhile. Since Jeff wants to go so much I guess I understand why Dawn's mother lets him go, but I do feel that having him see a psychiatrist for a little while might have made things easier on the whole family in the long run. Having Jeff move back to California so easily made it that much easier for Dawn to give up on living in Stoneybrook and move back as well. However, it was pretty terrible for Dawn's mother to move her children so far away from their father, and in the middle of the school year. Maybe she got what she deserved. There seems to be underlying dysfunction to Sharon Porter (who was formally Sharon Schafer, and will someday be Sharon Spier) although the series glosses over it. Look at wacky Sharon, with her mismatched earrings and her messy house. Why does Dawn keep referring to her parents "messy marriage" and "messy divorce"? Why did Sharon flee across the country in the wake of her divorce with her two children in the middle of the school? Why does Dawn make a big deal about seeing her father for the first time in eight months in The Ghost At Dawn's House? But most of all, why do Jeff and Dawn want so desperately to be back in California that they fight tooth and nail to move back there for good? And why does Sharon cave in and send them back so easily? The more I think about this in relation to the entire series (and the character Dawn turns into) the more I think there was something seriously wrong with Sharon. In this book Dawn and Sharon agree that they feel more like sisters than mother and daughter, which I don't think is good, but there seems to be something sinister underneath even that simple thought. Is Sharon a fit mother?
I think it's amusing that all the mothers who are asked by their children if they can enter the Little Miss Stoneybrook pageant all act like they hate the idea of a pageant, but then let their daughters participate anyway. I guess most of the girls treat it as something like a game anyway, and since their mothers don't make a big fuss about it, the girls aren't angry when they don't win. They are disappointed, but they don't feel the crushing guilt, anger, or devastation that the little girls on Toddlers and Tiaras seem to. And then they move on to something else, and (as far as we know) don't really have much to do with pageants for the rest of their lives. (There is a foreshadowing in the last page of this story that Claire wants to enter another beauty pageant, but since this is never mentioned again I'm assuming she lost interest a day later.)
The baby sitters are all furious that Mariah doesn't win the title of Little Miss Stoneybrook, and they get really upset about it. I get where they're coming from, but I think it worked out perfectly. Mariah got a great prize for her true talent and charm, a prize that she was very happy with. She doesn't have to go on to the next pageant (which I guess is Little Miss Stamford) and therefore doesn't get sucked into the world of pageants. The "pageant head" as Claudia refers to her, Sabrina Bouvier, doesn't have to face her mother's disappointment, and they do get to go on to the next pageant, which they want to do. Everyone is happy with the final outcome.
January 4, 2023
Read via audio (narrated by Stephanie Einstein).
April 6, 2019
In the process of rereading books from my childhood, I picked up the book Little Miss Stoneybrook . . . and Dawn (The Baby-Sitters Club, #15) by Ann M. Martin. Typically, I don't care for books that are written about beauty pageants because they don't usually represent them correctly. This book was no exception. One of the reasons I usually take exception to books about pageants is that I participated in them for eleven years (from age 8 through age 19) and have fond memories of them; beauty pageants are usually portrayed in a negative light, especially by those who have never competed in them. After the death of JonBenét Ramsey, beauty pageants were put in more of a negative light. Pageants where contestants wear a lot of makeup started to be referred to as glitz pageants, and many pageants popped up where there was minimal makeup worn. (Yes, I know this book was written pre-JonBenét.)
The events in the beauty pageant weren't exactly represented correctly. There isn't usually a parade of the girls where they introduce themselves. Usually, the girls are introduced by an emcee who reads a little biography, or snippet, about the contestant as they walk the stage / runway. And, just as a side note, not all beauty pageants have a talent portion or interview portion. However, the little girl who won the pageant was representative of a portion of the girls who do enter pageants, but not all girls and their mothers are like these particular characters.
Another thing that wasn't exactly represented correctly is that there is no way babysitters, let alone ones that haven't competed in pageants, would prepare their charges for the competition and be backstage getting them ready. I understand why the author wrote the book this way; Ann M. Martin was trying to teach the lesson that being competitive isn't always worth it, especially when it can ruin friendships, but I feel like it would have been more realistic if the babysitters themselves had competed in a pageant themselves.
What I did enjoy about the book was the sub-plot of Dawn's family problems. When her parents divorced, Dawn's mother moved to Connecticut with the kids. Dawn's brother Jeff was having a terrible time adjusting to life on the East Coast and wanted to move back to California to live with their father. I felt like this was a very realistic situation for the most part. However, I'm not sure that the kids would have been separated from each other. Overall, I gave Little Miss Stoneybrook . . . and Dawn (The Baby-Sitters Club, #15) three out of five stars.
Synopsis: When Jessi and Mallory are given a special ceremony for joining the Baby-sitters Club, Dawn is envious because she didn't get one. To prove she is a great babysitter, Dawn jumps at the chance to help out the Pike family and prepare Claire and Margo for the Little Miss Stoneybrook beauty pageant. But, things get out of hand when the rest of the members of the club decide to enter some of the kids they babysit for into the pageant to show that they are the best babysitter.
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The events in the beauty pageant weren't exactly represented correctly. There isn't usually a parade of the girls where they introduce themselves. Usually, the girls are introduced by an emcee who reads a little biography, or snippet, about the contestant as they walk the stage / runway. And, just as a side note, not all beauty pageants have a talent portion or interview portion. However, the little girl who won the pageant was representative of a portion of the girls who do enter pageants, but not all girls and their mothers are like these particular characters.
Another thing that wasn't exactly represented correctly is that there is no way babysitters, let alone ones that haven't competed in pageants, would prepare their charges for the competition and be backstage getting them ready. I understand why the author wrote the book this way; Ann M. Martin was trying to teach the lesson that being competitive isn't always worth it, especially when it can ruin friendships, but I feel like it would have been more realistic if the babysitters themselves had competed in a pageant themselves.
What I did enjoy about the book was the sub-plot of Dawn's family problems. When her parents divorced, Dawn's mother moved to Connecticut with the kids. Dawn's brother Jeff was having a terrible time adjusting to life on the East Coast and wanted to move back to California to live with their father. I felt like this was a very realistic situation for the most part. However, I'm not sure that the kids would have been separated from each other. Overall, I gave Little Miss Stoneybrook . . . and Dawn (The Baby-Sitters Club, #15) three out of five stars.
Synopsis: When Jessi and Mallory are given a special ceremony for joining the Baby-sitters Club, Dawn is envious because she didn't get one. To prove she is a great babysitter, Dawn jumps at the chance to help out the Pike family and prepare Claire and Margo for the Little Miss Stoneybrook beauty pageant. But, things get out of hand when the rest of the members of the club decide to enter some of the kids they babysit for into the pageant to show that they are the best babysitter.
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July 2, 2018
Appropriately enough, I read the majority of this book while watching the Miss Universe Pageant the other night. Which my sister was forcing me to watch. I'm with Mallory and Jessi on this one: these competitions are, for the most part, completely useless and sexist. I will say this though, the Little Miss Stoneybrook contest was a heck of a lot better than some Toddlers & Tiaras episodes I've watched. Also forced lol.
Okay, let's get serious for a minute shall we? Who here can peel a banana with their feet while reciting "this is the house that Jack built"? Anyone? No? Well, then Margo definitely should have won the talent competition. Or at least taken second place after that goody-goody Myriah Perkins. Am I getting ahead of myself here? Sorry.
Claudia agrees to babysit for Charlotte without asking the other BSC members, which as you'll recall, is a big fat no-no. But Charlotte asked for her specifically, because she misses Stacey, so I don't know why the others get all bent out of shape. But of course they do and suddenly they're all trying to prove how they're the best baby-sitter ever. Even though they're only 13 and can't stay overnight or drive or know CPR (yet).
So when Mrs Pike asks Dawn if she would help Claire & Margo prepare for the Little Miss Stoneybrook contest, she of course jumps for it. And then all the other BSC members have to drag some poor innocent kid into the middle of their petty, little feud. Mary Anne "encourages" Myriah Perkins, who has actual real talent, to join; Kristy tells loud-mouth Karen about it; and worst of all, Claudia talks Charlotte into it. There are no "What Claudia is Wearing" but we do get a nice visual of Claire & Margo's choices for the competition vs what they actually end up in, including an alligator swimsuit, a sparkly princess party dress, velvet dresses, sailor outfits and painters clothes.
Luckily, or maybe unluckily because this book was pretty dull, the mini-feud does not turn into a full-fledged BSC FIGHT. They realize in the end that they were being stupid and putting all their insecurities on these poor kids. I mean come on, poor Charlotte ran off the stage in tears! None of the "good" kids win of course, although Myriah does get second place which is A-OK with her since it's a toy store shopping spree!
There's also a subplot with Dawn's brother Jeff...he goes totally berserk and joins a gang and stops eating....oh wait, no he doesn't. He gets in a fight at school and finally talks his mom and dad into letting him move back to California. Dawn is of course pissed, because he's breaking the family up even more and she doesn't get to move back to Sunny Cali. *Foreshadowing*
Blogged: SeeJennRead
Okay, let's get serious for a minute shall we? Who here can peel a banana with their feet while reciting "this is the house that Jack built"? Anyone? No? Well, then Margo definitely should have won the talent competition. Or at least taken second place after that goody-goody Myriah Perkins. Am I getting ahead of myself here? Sorry.
Claudia agrees to babysit for Charlotte without asking the other BSC members, which as you'll recall, is a big fat no-no. But Charlotte asked for her specifically, because she misses Stacey, so I don't know why the others get all bent out of shape. But of course they do and suddenly they're all trying to prove how they're the best baby-sitter ever. Even though they're only 13 and can't stay overnight or drive or know CPR (yet).
So when Mrs Pike asks Dawn if she would help Claire & Margo prepare for the Little Miss Stoneybrook contest, she of course jumps for it. And then all the other BSC members have to drag some poor innocent kid into the middle of their petty, little feud. Mary Anne "encourages" Myriah Perkins, who has actual real talent, to join; Kristy tells loud-mouth Karen about it; and worst of all, Claudia talks Charlotte into it. There are no "What Claudia is Wearing" but we do get a nice visual of Claire & Margo's choices for the competition vs what they actually end up in, including an alligator swimsuit, a sparkly princess party dress, velvet dresses, sailor outfits and painters clothes.
Luckily, or maybe unluckily because this book was pretty dull, the mini-feud does not turn into a full-fledged BSC FIGHT. They realize in the end that they were being stupid and putting all their insecurities on these poor kids. I mean come on, poor Charlotte ran off the stage in tears! None of the "good" kids win of course, although Myriah does get second place which is A-OK with her since it's a toy store shopping spree!
There's also a subplot with Dawn's brother Jeff...he goes totally berserk and joins a gang and stops eating....oh wait, no he doesn't. He gets in a fight at school and finally talks his mom and dad into letting him move back to California. Dawn is of course pissed, because he's breaking the family up even more and she doesn't get to move back to Sunny Cali. *Foreshadowing*
Blogged: SeeJennRead
January 6, 2023
Oh my god Dawn is fucking insufferable.
“Claudia’s a fashion nut who is always wearing the latest fad…” no she isn’t. She dresses like an artist and paints her own clothes and puts together totally unique outfits. Wtf Dawn. Shut up. The most interesting thing about you is your stupid house.
Dawns mom Sharon is a friggin mess. She walks around with one earring; ink stains on herself; puts bicycle pumps in the linen closet…that’s beyond “adorably absent minded;” that’s some kind of disorder. Anyway she finally does something right and sends Jeff back to California to live with his dad. After months and months of Jeff saying “I want to go back and live with Dad,” and being ignored, he finally starts acting out and gives a kid in school a black eye (for the second time!!) and Sharon finally puts down her brown rice vegetable casserole long enough to actually listen to him. Side note, I was vegan for seven years and their food STILL sounds disgusting to me.
Dawn goes to Claudia’s house to see her reading the paper and “ordinarily, she does not enjoy reading…” except for the myriad of Nancy Drew books hidden in her room? Has Dawn met these people??
Dawn is super upset that Jeff’s moving back to CA and confesses she misses it too and wants to go back; she’s just staying bc of her mom. Personally I think there should be a law that parents aren’t allowed to move their children out of state when they divorce. It’s just so messed up. Dawn is acting like such a selfish brat about the whole thing. If she loves Jeff so much why would she want him to be miserable?
Claudia can’t read out loud? To a 9 year old? That’s embarrassing. She needs serious academic help. Is she getting dumber? She didn’t seem this stupid in her last POV book.
Blah blah blah a stupid pageant that I skimmed through and then Jeff calls Dawn from CA and sounds much happier so now she’s happy in her stupid little farmhouse with her stupid white blonde hair.
“Claudia’s a fashion nut who is always wearing the latest fad…” no she isn’t. She dresses like an artist and paints her own clothes and puts together totally unique outfits. Wtf Dawn. Shut up. The most interesting thing about you is your stupid house.
Dawns mom Sharon is a friggin mess. She walks around with one earring; ink stains on herself; puts bicycle pumps in the linen closet…that’s beyond “adorably absent minded;” that’s some kind of disorder. Anyway she finally does something right and sends Jeff back to California to live with his dad. After months and months of Jeff saying “I want to go back and live with Dad,” and being ignored, he finally starts acting out and gives a kid in school a black eye (for the second time!!) and Sharon finally puts down her brown rice vegetable casserole long enough to actually listen to him. Side note, I was vegan for seven years and their food STILL sounds disgusting to me.
Dawn goes to Claudia’s house to see her reading the paper and “ordinarily, she does not enjoy reading…” except for the myriad of Nancy Drew books hidden in her room? Has Dawn met these people??
Dawn is super upset that Jeff’s moving back to CA and confesses she misses it too and wants to go back; she’s just staying bc of her mom. Personally I think there should be a law that parents aren’t allowed to move their children out of state when they divorce. It’s just so messed up. Dawn is acting like such a selfish brat about the whole thing. If she loves Jeff so much why would she want him to be miserable?
Claudia can’t read out loud? To a 9 year old? That’s embarrassing. She needs serious academic help. Is she getting dumber? She didn’t seem this stupid in her last POV book.
Blah blah blah a stupid pageant that I skimmed through and then Jeff calls Dawn from CA and sounds much happier so now she’s happy in her stupid little farmhouse with her stupid white blonde hair.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 29, 2017
Ah, Insufferable Dawn. What would we do without you? This was before Dawn got REALLY self-righteous and truly annoying, but she was on her way in this one! Then again, they were all pretty bratty in this except for Jessie and Mallory. The youngest, and newest, members of the BSC were by far the most sane and rational. Imagine that!
Anyway, this particular book brings us the Little Miss Stoneybrook pageant, a contrived plot device that drives a weird wedge between members of the BSC. It gets so bad that they drag children into it, forcing them to compete (including poor Charlotte) in the pageant in a feeble attempt to make the winning sitter look like...the best sitter, I guess. I don't even know, it was ridiculous.
Dawn is in charge of "coaching" Claire and Margo Pike, neither of which have an appropriate pageant dress nor a decent talent. Somehow Claire ends up reciting Popeye The Sailor Man and Margo recites the House That Jack Built while peeling a banana with her feet.
Why did nobody intervene at that point?
In the end a polished stage child wins (not Myriah Perkins, so suck it Mary Anne) and that's that. They learn a lesson called "don't use little children as a weapon against one another". Also Jeff gets permission to move back to California, and thus, for a short time, gets to escape Dawn and Sharon.
Anyway, this particular book brings us the Little Miss Stoneybrook pageant, a contrived plot device that drives a weird wedge between members of the BSC. It gets so bad that they drag children into it, forcing them to compete (including poor Charlotte) in the pageant in a feeble attempt to make the winning sitter look like...the best sitter, I guess. I don't even know, it was ridiculous.
Dawn is in charge of "coaching" Claire and Margo Pike, neither of which have an appropriate pageant dress nor a decent talent. Somehow Claire ends up reciting Popeye The Sailor Man and Margo recites the House That Jack Built while peeling a banana with her feet.
Why did nobody intervene at that point?
In the end a polished stage child wins (not Myriah Perkins, so suck it Mary Anne) and that's that. They learn a lesson called "don't use little children as a weapon against one another". Also Jeff gets permission to move back to California, and thus, for a short time, gets to escape Dawn and Sharon.
December 6, 2021
I remember being confused by this book the same way I was confused by book 5, because the title and the cover made it look like this would be about spoiled little girls that were giving Dawn headaches, but really it's about teenage babysitters using little girls as part of their selfish plans.
I would say this is the book where BSC jumps the shark, because the pageant is clearly something the author wanted to write about although it didn't align with the "strong women" values the series is supposed to project (see: multiple "pageants are stupid/sexist" comments from multiple characters but which are said without much thoughts and principles behind it).
I also thought it was so strange that Dawn only thought about Jeff going back to California only in scenes where she was home, although I guess the pageant was arguably a distraction that she needed. Still, realistically, and based on California Diaries, Jeff moving would be something on her mind 24/7, a stupid pageant be damned.
I would say this is the book where BSC jumps the shark, because the pageant is clearly something the author wanted to write about although it didn't align with the "strong women" values the series is supposed to project (see: multiple "pageants are stupid/sexist" comments from multiple characters but which are said without much thoughts and principles behind it).
I also thought it was so strange that Dawn only thought about Jeff going back to California only in scenes where she was home, although I guess the pageant was arguably a distraction that she needed. Still, realistically, and based on California Diaries, Jeff moving would be something on her mind 24/7, a stupid pageant be damned.
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