No lie, my adult self was totally stoked when I found out that AMM was releasing a prequel to the BSC series, so lots of anticipation with this one. Hopefully it doesn't let me down like Star Wars: The Phantom of the Menace (I'm looking at you, Jar-Jar Binks...).
This book starts the last day of 6th grade at SMS/New York City, and the chapters are alternately narrated by Kristy, Mary Anne, Claudia, and Stacey. Obviously, Kristy's, MA's, and Claudia's stories are intertwined, and the book ends with the great idea. Let's get it started (HAH!), let's get it started in here!!!
Kristy - After school ends, Kristy goes home and finds her mother getting ready for a date with Watson Brewer (he's taking her to Chez Maurice, home of the most dibble French food ever). Kristy is huffy to see Watson at her house, so she decides to write her dad at his last address in California, telling him about school ending, Claudia's crazy outfits, and her upcoming birthday, dropping some pretty substantial hints that she would like him to come visit for her birthday. However, about a week later, the letter is returned as undeliverable, which means that the phantom Mr. Thomas has moved again and not told the kids where he was. Plus, Watson starts spending more time at their house, further depressing Kristy. He asks Kristy to babysit for Karen and Andrew, but she refuses, so Sam volunteers. What the...? I absolutely cannot imagine Sam babysitting voluntarily, just...bizarre. Kristy feels like her night has been ruined by Watson and his perfect dad skills. She decides the best way to distract herself is to get Mary Anne into babysitting, and she encourages MA to take charge and be assertive for the first time in her life (aww...). She goes to Claudia's birthday party with Mary Anne, and they spend the whole time swimming and avoiding the boys. However, after seeing how grown up Claudia's party was, Kristy decides to not have a sleepover, and just do a family dinner instead. Kristy invites MA and Claudia to her dinner, but Claudia has other plans, and Kristy feels snubbed. Kristy keeps up her irrational hope that her father will show up for her birthday, and as she blows out the candles on her cake, she looks around her backyard for him. He's not there, of course, and Kristy is upset, but doesn't let her mother know. Mary Anne gives her a hug and sits beside her the rest of the night, just being her friend (another aww...). Kristy ends the summer older and wiser, knowing who her true family is.
Mary Anne - This summer starts out the same as the previous one, with Mr. Spier picking out Mary Anne's outfits everyday and leaving a long list of rules (for instance, Mary Anne must call Mr. Spier at work by 9:30am). She hates her bedroom, which has been painted pink for ages, because her favorite colors are navy blue and yellow (personally, I always pictured MA as a pink, flowery girl, even in later books. Interesting). However, as she is digging around in her attic one day, she comes across a box filled with some of her mom's old stuff, including a couple of dolls. She decides that even though she doesn't want to play with them, she would like to make them some new outfits. Kristy suggests that they ask Claudia for help, since she is the queen of fashion. However, when they show up at Claudia's house with the dolls, Claud tries to hide her horror and quickly jumps at the chance to go downtown with Mimi. Mary Anne feels a little hurt, but decides to make some new doll clothes herself as best as she can. Then Kristy delivers the game changer. She calls and asks Mary Anne to help her babysit the Pikes (those blue-eyed and dark haired kids - even the prequel is lacking in consistency, AMM). Mary Anne has never babysat before, and is super nervous. She asks Mr. Spier for permission, and he promptly tells her that she is too young. Mary Anne counters with the fact that Kristy and Claudia both babysit, and Mr. Spier finally agrees, with stipulations. Mary Anne must always babysit with another sitter, never by herself, even if she is only sitting for one kid, and she must call and check in with her dad every half hour (I'm sure the parents of the kids she's sitting for will wonder why the babysitter is on the phone so much when they get that phone bill, way to make your daughter look responsible, Richard). However, the sitting job goes fine, and Mary Anne realizes that she loves babysitting. MA also has her birthday coming up, and when her dad asks what she wants, she lists "craft kits, doll design clothes set, The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, and a hamster" - however, after attending Claudia's grown up pool party, she decides that she doesn't want to do a birthday party. A few days later, MA gets a phone call from Mrs. Newton, asking her to babysit for Jamie for a couple of hours. Kristy is unable help MA, so she calls Claudia to come be her joint-babysitter (Mr. Spier's rules, after all). Claud is hesitant, but decides to help her anyway. Mrs. Newton is understandably shocked when two sitters show up, but MA explains her dad's rules and assures her that she will only pay for one and that it will be split between the two girls. Mrs. Newton rolls with it, because this is Stoneybrook, after all. Later on, as a surprise for Kristy's birthday, Mary Anne organizes "Kristy Day," in which several neighborhood kids, plus several of their friends (Mariah and Miranda Shillabar, Lauren Hoffman, girls we never hear about again) show up and have a parade down Bradford Court for Kristy. Mr. Spier finds about this, and decides that Mary Anne is responsible enough to sit on her own now. But still not responsible enough to wear blue jeans to school. Wish I was kidding, y'all.
Claudia - Claudia is looking forward to her twelfth birthday this summer, and decides that instead of the slumber party she usually has, she would rather have a boy-girl pool party. Her neighbors, the Goldmans, offer to let the Kishis use their pool (what the...? No way I would let a bunch of 12 year olds have a pool party at my house if one of the kids wasn't mine, just seems weird). The Kishis agree, and Claudia excitedly makes a list of who she wants to invite: Emily Bernstein, Pete Black, Rick Chow, Dorianne Wallingford, Darnell Harris (never heard this name before), and Polly Hanson. She debates about inviting Kristy and Mary Anne, since they have grown apart, but she quickly realizes that she can't leave out her oldest friends. Janine, Miss "School is my world, math feeds my soul" (reminds me of how Ashley Wyeth felt about her art), also gets to invite a few of her friends. The day of the party arrives, and everyone shows up as expected. Claudia is a little embarrassed by Kristy and Mary Anne, so she spends most of her time talking with her other friends. Then one of Janine's friends, Frankie Evans, arrives, and Claudia is instantly in love. Frankie is 14 and will be a freshman at SHS with Janine. Surprisingly (wait, this is Stoneybrook, so no big surprise, I guess), Frankie seems just as taken with 12 year old Claudia, and spends most of the party flirting with her, much to Janine's displeasure (apparently big sister has a crush, too). Janine tries to get Frankie's attention away from Claudia, and ends up falling in the pool with all of her clothes on (I can neither confirm nor deny that I may have an incident like that in my past). After the party is over, Frankie gets Claudia's number, and a summer romance is born. Claudia starts spending all her time with Frankie, never having time for Kristy and Mary Anne. Frankie comes over to Claudia's house to see her art (sorry, that just sounds like a phony, make-out excuse), and Mrs. Kishi flips out when Claudia takes Frankie to her room. Claudia has to leave the door open, and Mrs. Kishi stays upstairs as well, "folding laundry." Needless to say, Janine gets more and more huffy, and Mr. and Mrs. Kishi, as well as Mimi, get more and more concerned. Claudia even misses Kristy's birthday dinner in August because she already had a date with Frankie planned (she does send Kristy a nail polish kit as a gift, which is kind of funny). Likewise, she misses "Kristy Day" for the same reason. However, towards the end of the summer, things start to go awry. Claudia goes to the community pool one day with Frankie, and they meet up with a bunch of his high school friends. He basically ignores Claudia once they get there, and the girls get all snarky with Claud. Frankie gets all shady with Claudia, and eventually gives her the "we're in different places right now" brush-off. Claudia is crushed, and she realizes that she has missed Kristy and Mary Anne this summer. Nothing can beat old friends in a time of crisis...unless it's new friends...
Stacey - It's summer in NYC, and Stacey is currently fighting with Her Royal Meanness (Stacey's words), aka Laine Cummings, aka Snotty McSnotterson (that one's mine). Stacey was diagnosed with diabetes this past fall, and she and her parents have been keeping it on the down low, even from the Cummings family. However, Stacey's problems with La Loser started even before that, since the summer before the 6th grade (which is the summer before The Summer Before, is your mind blown?). Laine had gone away to a month-long summer camp in Maine, and when she came back, she started getting all shady with Stacey, avoiding her calls, not saving her a seat at lunch.
However, the friendship struggled along in name, at least, until a sleepover in 6th grade. Stacey and Laine were sharing a bed at a friend's house, and as a result of her diabetes, Stacey wet the bed. Of course, this would seem a logical time to tell your BFF about your diabetes, but no, she doesn't say anything, and Stacey instantly becomes the pariah at her school. When she finds out that they will be moving to Stoneybrook over the summer, Stacey is actually relieved that she can leave the city and the Snot behind her. She continues to babysit in her apartment building, and right before the move, her parents decide to throw her a surprise farewell party, inviting her babysitting charges, the Cummings, and several of her 6th grade classmates. Laine goes ultimate Mean Girl at the party, and tells Stacey (out of earshot of the adults, of course) that she only came to the party because her parents made her, and that the other girls only came to the party because she made them. Retract those claws, Regina George. The girls then proceed to tease Stacey non-stop about the time she wet the bed, and then Laine proceeds to "accidentally" spill her drink on Stacey's outfit.
Needless to say, Stacey wakes up extremely happy on moving day, just so filled with joy of getting away from McSnotterson. She falls asleep on the car ride, and her parents wake her up as they arrive in Stoneybrook. She is all shocked to see that the 'Brook has restaurants, department stores, and businesses (ok...has this girl never left NYC, never driven anywhere on vacation? This is just a little ridiculous, AMM). Plus, all of the neighbors around the McGills bring them food to welcome them, and Stace remarks how friendly people are here, "just like in the city." Umm...what? Granted, I've never been to NYC, but something tells me that when you move into a new apartment, you don't get casseroles and pies from your neighbors there. I'm not picking up what you're putting down there, AMM. Anyway, the first day of 7th grade arrives, and her student guide is Emily Bernstein (Miss anti-Spirit). Stacey sits with Emily and her friends, including Claudia, at lunch, and is impressed with Claudia's "sophisticated" style. And it was the beginning of a beautiful friendship...
The Fashion Before!!!
What Claudia Wore: "Claudia was wearing willowy black pants, cinched at the waist with a drawstring, and a boldly patterned summer shirt with ties that she was adjusting around her midriff. Her midriff would have been bare, but Claud had slithered into a lacy black tank top before she'd put on the shirt. On her feet were delicate silvery sandals, and her hair, which was loooong and thick, was held away from her face with two silver combs."
What Claudia Wore (pool party edition): "I was wearing a bikini with silver jewelry, hair combs, silver sandals, and a shirt that I got for my birthday." (She thinks she looks at least 14)
What Claudia Wore (1st day of 7th grade): "Claudia was by far the most fashionable dresser I had seen at school, with her big earrings and chunky bracelet, her bell bottoms (which I was sure she had decorated herself), and her fluorescent green hat that looked like a bejeweled engineer's cap."
What Mary Anne Wore: "Mary Anne was dressed in a blouse, floral capri pants, and sandals."
What Mary Anne and Kristy Wore (pool party edition): last year's bathing suits, Mary Anne's had a mermaid on it
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