Dawn: Diary 3

California Diaries #11

by Ann M. Martin

Although Dawn and Sunny are no longer best friends, both share a concern for Sunny's mom who is dying of cancer and she may be the one thing that brings the two girls back together. Original.

Genres: Young Adult, Fiction, Middle Grade, Childrens, Contemporary, Diary, Friendship

176 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1999

About the author

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

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

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

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

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

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

Reviews

[Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Edit: I finally got my hands on the original paper book and holy crap Kindle that's almost half the book you left out! Bumping it up a star because that ending was something. Seeing Sunny finally letting out all the hurt and pain even if it meant she was horrible to Dawn (deserved Dawn still sucks) and Ducky (undeserved we all need a friend like Ducky) while she did it. Glad I got to actually read the rest of the story because the ending was so good and helped this otherwise dull annoying Dawn book pretty good.

I didn't think I could hate a fictional character so much. But I actually hate Dawn. She actually thinks she's going through the same thing as Sunny because she is close to Mrs. Winslow. That is her mother you absolute moron. You technically have two mothers one of whom you abandoned and who's heart you broke by moving away for good so f you for that Dawn. As always Dawn serves no purpose in this series other than to tie it to the BSC. There is talk of a big concert and Dawn being worried about attending with Sunny who rightfully hates her. Lord she's so judgemental and sanctimonious in this book. How can anyone like her? Two stars because Dawn is a horrible human being and because the kindle version ended before the concert that the book was leading up to. Not sure if the actual book did too or if that was just the ebook version. I will have to look and see. We also get a set up for the next book which I know I will need several boxes of kleenex to get through. Mrs. Winslow has stopped treatment and the dining room has been turned into a hospital room. I'm bracing myself for this one, it's gonna be rough.

[Amanda Del Brocco · Rating 2 out of 5]

This e-book is the worst e-book that I have ever seen. It abruptly ended because it chopped the final third of the book and I had to look all over the internet for the part that I was missing.

The book was okay, probably the most boring one of the series. The plot about Dawn being obsessed with the band felt odd, because she’s normally the laid back one.

[Jaclyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 stars for the ebook version. At first I thought the abrupt ending was a cliffhanger to get us to buy the next book in the series (sunny's diary 3) but I just saw a couple of reviews here that says the e-version chopped off the entire final third or so. Boo hiss, now I gotta find out how the story ends.

(The copy I read was all about Dawn's fight with Sunny, Sunny's mom's health continuing to decline, and Dawn getting super excited about a late night concert at club. Then it ends literally as Ducky arrives to pick Dawn up for the concert. And apparently things actually happen at the concert.)

Also Dawn, you keep bugging Ducky to make Sunny ride in a separate car or drop out of the concert altogether just coz you and she are fighting. What makes you so sure that, given a choice between you two, it isn't YOU whom Ducky will drop?

[Devon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel like I like Dawn a little better when reading the California Diaries than I ever do while reading the BSC, BUT this book made me feel my old BSC rage toward her again. I know she's a 13-year-old, but...dang. The self-righteousness. I'm behind on my book reviews and have read further ahead to know how this resolves, but this book was a struggle. And the conflict felt very weak and forced vs. the other books.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dawn, honey. We need to have a talk. How on earth can you be so boring? I do not understand this, at all.

I'd like to say that this is where we part ways, but it isn't. I still have like 100 BSC books to go in my epic re-read of all things BSC-verse related. At least, I guess, the California Diaries made me hate you slightly less.

Slightly.

Lil bit.

Sorta.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

For most of this book it's just the usual "Dawn thinking she's better than Sunny", but then the ending hits (and even that doesn't prepare you for what happens next.) That said, even though Dawn is pretty annoying, I really like the whole concert plot.

[Sarah Cawlfield · Rating 2 out of 5]

Weakest of this series.

[Meg GlitteryOtters · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Abby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I gave this book a star for every time Dawn had an amusing fantasy about Pierre X.

[Kiana · Rating 3 out of 5]

With Dawn, Diary Three we enter into the third phase of the California Diaries series, and things (slowly start to wrap up for the characters). Unfortunately, Dawn’s entry is once again one of the dullest installments, and half of this book is pretty pointless filler.

Dawn’s always been the weakest of the five narrators, and that doesn’t change here. We’re just off the roller coaster ride of Ducky, Maggie, and Amalia’s issues, and Dawn is moping because Sunny won’t talk to her (she seems to have conveniently forgotten that she was the one who instigated a lot of that fight, and never seems all that guilty about the things she said or the judgment she cast). Not to mention that Dawn, Diary Three is a considerably long book by California Diaries standards, and it’s not a deserved length. It’s all stalling before the showdown, and Dawn spends all of it whining about Sunny or how bored she is or phoning various people to have meaningless conversations to entertain herself. It is Ennui, the Tween Angst Story. Which, to be fair, isn’t unrealistic but it’s not particularly compelling.

However, I will say that by being so childish and petulant, Dawn does read as her age—the lack of understanding or patience she has for Sunny, and her endless obsessing about her singer crush sound exactly like a thirteen-year-old. The fantasies she has about her meeting Pierre X or having a weekend alone with him sound embarrassingly like my tween daydreams. And seriously, the main conflict is Dawn freaking out for two weeks about having to be in the same car as Sunny for one night—which is exactly the right level of immature and ridiculous for a thirteen-year-old. This, of course, clashes with the liquor and edgy behavior in the story’s back half, but that’s always been a problem with this series. I was actually surprised to see the word “marijuana” mentioned (albeit in an off-handed remark).

However, I love the way the book handles the concert/club showdown and for the first time Dawn’s stubborn do-gooderness is really reasonable, as she refuses to drink and even calls her friends out when they do. She handles the situation, start to finish, like a boss, and I was quite impressed with Ducky and Amalia’s behavior, too. The follow-up with the reaction of Dawn’s father and the lectures and grounding were also realistic and smart, with them being disappointed but also proud and appreciative that Dawn and Ducky did the right thing (at least given the situation they got themselves into).

This is easily one of the weaker California Diaries books—the cracks in the storytelling and pacing show big-time—but it largely makes up for it with its careful treatment of Ducky’s character coming off of book ten and Dawn’s maturity regarding the whole concert showdown. And the ending leaves us with hope that the characters are slowly starting to grow up and work through their problems.

3 stars.

[Hannah Howard · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was OK, but not my favorite. I liked it because it told a story about a normal girl, and at one point I was like, "ooh! Keep reading I want to see what happens!" Some parts were also kind of weird though. There was some parts talking about drinking, and friend promised not to drink and he did. So there was some parts that I was like whoah! But overall it told a good story of a girl and she got back her best friend. It was a fast read, and it was in a diary form. There is a few other books in the series before and after this one, that you could read if you loved the book and wanted to keep reading it.

[Tanya · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very late night read.
This one was okay. I found it a little off putting that everything is so serious and then Dawn started going on and on about Jax and Pierre X... totally random. I mean I guess it worked to cause a little conflict and get across the morality/drunk driving sub storyline, but I dunno.
Then again, I guess a infatuation storyline would be more realistic when I consider these girls are supposed to be 13 years old!
I dunno, it just seemed kind of odd and out of place. I liked the way it finished up, and I'm fully prepared to bawl in the next book of the series.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was o.k. But I don't really like any of Dawn's diaries. She is my least favorite character.

In this book Dawn deals with Sunny. Dawn wants to be friends with Sunny again but every time she tries to Sunny pushes her away. Eventually Dawn talks to Sunny.

During this whole book Sunny's Mom is Dying of cancer.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I so appreciate Dawn's handwriting. 1,000 times better than Ducky's. I do not understand why a concert in a club that serves alcohol would allow 13 year olds to attend. I just don't. Overall a fine book in the series and the handwriting ease of reading moved it from 3 to 4 stars.

[Brittany · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this whole series of books. (I'm a sucker for books written as diaries).

[Renee Naumann · Rating 2 out of 5]

Can we talk about the font in this book? 😍