The Scapegoat

Fabulous Five #27

by Betsy Haynes

Struggling in science class since her move to London, Christie Winchell is determined to prove her worth to her teacher, Miss Finney, by entering the school's annual science competition

111 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

ABOUT ME

Maybe it's because my feisty grandma chased tarantulas around with a broom when we lived on an oil lease property when I was a baby that made me love danger and adventure. And maybe it was my father's spending nights as a trombonist with the bands of his day and his days spent drawing sketches that sparked my artistic side. Do you suppose that because my mother stood only four feet ten inches tall that I feel like a giant at five feet? And I'm sure my FBI (Full Blooded Italian) step-father, his seven brothers and sisters and their families are responsible for my LOVE of Italian food. That's who I am. Who are you?

My First Book, Peppy The Frog That I Wrote In The 2nd Grade

I'll always be a child at heart. Whenever I close my eyes, wonderful, funny, awful, embarrassing memories of middle school/​junior high come flooding back to fill the pages of my contemporary novels. My childhood friendships and rivalries with old enemies all find their way into my books. I've even spied on my own kids for story ideas.

Unlike most kids who can't wait to grow up, I've gotten younger--at least my stories have. I've stepped into the world of 7 to 10 year olds.

I and my husband, Jim, live in Texas on Lake Lewisville north of Dallas. We are owned by our greyhound, Miller. Our favorite things to do are traveling the world and boating.

Reviews

[Tiffany Spencer]

Scapegoat
Christy is dropped off at school by one of the drivers (Finchley) of her father’s company. She’s greeted by her friends Niki, Phoebe, and Elenor. Coming in the company limo attracts a lot of attention -which embarrasses Christy-. Nikki is the knockout Beth. Phoebe is the kock off Jana. Elenor is the kock off Katie. They start talking about some boy named Connie whose going to have a horse back riding party at his parents country home. Christy says she hopes he’ll ask her. Phoebe says he said he would and then the hell rings. Everyone is talking about her coming to school in the limo and by then she wishes she hasn’t asked her father to take her. Christy is more concerned about her science project. She gets the feeling her teacher (Mrs. Finney) doesn’t really care for her. The project is about how plants suck up water into their stalks and leaves. The teacher doesn’t say anything about Christy’s. She just starts a lecture about how animals and plants use food and water. Mrs. Finney continues to talk through the bell but finally dismisses them. All around her the girls are talking about how they’ve gotten B’s and (one) A. Christie looks at her project. She’s gotten a D-. She goes up to the teacher and asks what she did wrong. She tells her she rushed the project. Her celery had barely turned red.

Christie doesn’t think the grade is fair but she knows that if she takes it back the teacher will think she added more dye and cheated. She vows to do better on the next project. When Christie gets home she gets a letter from Chase. (I won’t recap this letter I don’t really think that much of Chase, but I will say he’s doing better in school and not skipping practice and credits it on her good influence). Christie is impressed by it. (I’m not). He also asks her for some kind of suvenior. And brags about some medals he got). He wants to know if she’s moving back and tells her he’d like it if she did.

She takes out her “magic box” It has class pictures, lists of there favorites, etc. She looks at some pictures of Chase and some notes. She puts his letter instead of in the box under her pillow. Christie’s mom at dinner realizes Chrity still misses her friends when she asks if her dad is enjoying his new job. She says eventually they’ll be transferred back, but tells Christie to look on the positive side and points out all her new friends (and the other new people she’s meet). Later that guy Connie asks Christy to his party. She’s aked her out twice but she’s turned him down because Niki use to like him. Now tho Nikki is dating someone else but there’s still Chase. She tells him she’ll come. He tells her there’s someone he wants her to meet. Later Christy wonders who this could be.

Christy tells her new friends about the call last night.The science lesson for today is in optics. Christy thinks about Mr.D’s last lesson about London. After hearing the morning announcements a science competition is announced.All of the students are expected to enter. Christy is excited and thinks this will help her get into Oxford. They have a quiz and she gets through it quickly. Mrs. Finney says they can pick their own projects and she’ll be one of the judges. She tells them the more in genius the better. She says can they think of something that can help them see. Christy tells the class about how to take a piece of paper, roll it up, and put your eye up to it. Somehow you’ll see a hole in your hand . The teacher calls iit “a parlor trick” and says they’re more serious about science there.
Mr. Winchell drops Christy off at Connie’s. The “person” Connie introduces her to is a beautiful Arabian horse named “Rigel”. That takes Christy’s breath away. She hates when the day ends. Connie tells her “Rigel” wants her to come back. Christy gets a letter from Jana, She’s worried that she and Randy haven’t dated anyone else. She wonders if she should talk to other boys to see if they’re right for each other and if she should tell him. She tells her she thinks it’s a good idea and maybe she should just talk to him about it. Then she tells him about her day. BLAH BLAH BLAH she thinks of Chase and wonders if she should see Connie. Then she looks at the Oxford material her mother left. But she won’t be going if she doesn’t improve her science grade and she’d better come up with something for the science project. She looks through her science book but can’t come up with anything,

Christy watches in class as all her science teacher’s praises again go tto a girl that isn’t really all that special or smart. Her teacher announces there will be a special field trip to a historic Tower in London and there will be a test afterward. (The girl’s name is Sarah). When asked how far they’ve come, Sarah says she’s almost done. Connie calls later and asks her out to a movie. She tells him about Chase and how she promised that she told him she wouldn’t date anyone else. He said tell him she meet someone but accepts her answer and says he had to try. Some of Christie’s friends think Chase sounds great. Phoebe tho says she’ll take a Baron over a fish. She thinks about how Melanie would kill her for turning down a Baron.

Christy decides to butter her teacher Mrs. Finney up by mentioning she wants to go to Oxford-because she thinks she went to Oxford-. But her teacher Mrs. Woolsley gives her a look when she sees her science books and makes a comment about she hopes there all progressing with their projects. She got a C on a science test. The teacher took off for spelling and grammar. Then she knows she can’t talk to her about Oxford or anything else. When she gets home, she gets a letter from Melanie about Shane and Igor. She tells him he was sitting with Tammy and the Fantastic Four. When they confronted him he said he was just talking to her. Melanie promises they’ll get to the bottom of it, but Christy starts to cry feeling hopeless.

Later, she sits for a kid named Jenny who reminds her of Beth. She goes “missing” but she finds her in the toy box pretending she’s a kitty. Connie calls and asks if she can go riding Saturday. HE says it’s not a date. So she agrees. Mrs. Woolsely notices Christy’s science grade and asks her basically what the problem is. When she hears she’s not choosen a project she tells her to talk to Mrs. Finney. On the trip, Christy makes an effort to show she’s interested and answers the teachers’ questions correctly. She tries to give a lot of compliments on the twoer, and England, She even throws in wanting to go to Oxford. She tells her she’s trying really hard in her class. She tells her that she doesn’t think she’d appreciate a Rhodes scholarship. Still, she tries to impress Christy with her knowledge but she just tells her she shouldn’t speak without knowing what she’s talking about.

Jana mother tells her that she and her father will help her come up with something. She gets another letter from Jana and Chase. He’s training for the junior Olympics and is shaving his head (if anyone cares). Jana says Randy does like the idea. Jana says Chase is hanging around Tammy a lot lately.

After they ride horses, Connie tajes abitger stav at asjubg Christy out -rather he says “Rigetl” wants to go to the movies as “friends” of course. Christy just says they wouldn’t let him in. Late, she watches Jenny again. Christy calls Connie and tells him she’ll go to the moview with him next week and he gives her an idea for a science project. She tells her mother and father about the idea and shows them the list. They all start immediately to get things together. On their date, they go to the youth center and see a movie. She decides she will go out with Connie again -even though she doesn’t know what she’ll do about Chase-.

Chritie turns in her project about the different era’s of England (past, present, future). She was inspired when Connie said if you take a few good things and put them together you come up with something great. Christy’s project is the most elaborate. Connie shows up and gives her a bracelet from Rigel’s hair (For luck). Christy is announced the first place winner. Mtd. Woolsley tells her she looked into why her science grade was so low. She was beaten out to go to Oxford by an American girl. Mrs. Finney’s score was thrown out because it was the highest. She knew she had been wrong. She tells her she’s a dedicated educator and asks that she’ll give her a second chance. She gets a trophy and puts Chase’s picture there. She then writes Jana back.

My Thoughts
Well I guess I got my answer. We *do* hear from Christy again. This one felt a little off with all the new people. I was slightest disappointed that Chase still came up in this book. I wanted every mention of him left in the last book I just am not impressed with this character. Even when he was writing Christy letters did you notice he asked her for something (a suvenior from the War Room of Winston Churchill). It’s always about what he can get from Chrsty’s. I really thought she saw that there was no future with him. She did give Conrad a chance and that was good at least, but I’m ready for her to MOVE ON from Chase. And ironically recently I meet a Sarah a lot like this one. Also it feels SO good (you don’t even know how much) to have a teacher that gives you a hard time and you show them up and have them look at you with this kind of awed admiration. YES, I’ve had it happen.

Rating: 5

[Sayo -bibliotequeish-]

As a kid every Saturday we went to Kmart, and every Saturday my mom would let me buy one thing, and it was ALWAYS a fabulous five book. (The cover looks like a spiral notebook cover... I thought that was very clever)
I also managed to track down all the Taffy Sinclair books at a thrift store.

This book i remember buying because I didn't know what the word scapegoat was, and I had to look i up

I wonder if this series is still at my parents I would definitely read them again.
I remember in the Taffy books Melanie was chubby and it make references to her eating brownies and then one day she was like NO i don't want the brownie... and then she got skinny.
This is a very vague memory... so don't quote me on this one, what you CAN quote me on is that Taffy had a crooked bicuspid, and Jana ate cream cheese and jam sandwiches,... which I tried because of her and they were DIS-GUS-TING, and I never trusted her again.