#62 Kristy and the Worst Kid Ever

Summary

The Papadakises have some news: they're going to be foster parents! Linny and Hannie are pretty excited, as are the baby-sitters. They're a little apprehensive, though, since they know that foster kids sometimes have serious issues that make them a little difficult. Kristy is watching as Lou (short for Louisa) arrives, and she can see, even from across the street, that Lou is going to be a little difficult. When Kristy and Mary Anne actually get to meet Lou, Kristy's initial impression of Lou is proven to be very, very right; she's sullen, rude, and won't play much with the other kids. Things get even worse when Mary Anne is next at the Brewer-Thomas house; she's baby sitting for the younger kids, and the Papdakises plus Lou are over as well. Lou makes it very clear that she has no use for all the rules at the Papdakis house, and that she does not intend to listen to Mary Anne any more than she has to. Lou even tries to get the other kids to leave the yard to go to the playground. Mary Anne totally loses her temper when she has to chase down Lou, and I don't blame her.

Kristy is the next lucky one that gets to experience the fury that is Lou McNally. She's sitting at the Papadakises one night, and Lou is every bit as difficult as she's been before. She only grudgingly lets Kristy check her homework (a Papadakis rule), and makes one rude comment after another when they're playing Monopoly. Then, when Kristy tries to connect with Lou at bedtime, Lou screams at the top of her lungs until Kristy leaves the room. Things really come to a head the morning after a BSC slumber party at Kristy's: she walks into the den and finds Lou holding Boo Boo in a pillowcase and trying to get Shannon to jump up at him. Next, Lou ties a blinfold around Shannon's eyes to see if she can find her toy without seeing it. Kristy (rightfully) lets Lou have it and lectures her on the proper treatment of animals, but it doesn't seem to have any effect on the little terror.

Kristy is baby-sitting at the Papadakises again one day when a call comes in from Lou's social worker. She's found an aunt and uncle, and Lou and her brother are going to live with them. When Lou gets the news, though, she goes ballistic. She trashes the Papadakis's house, trashes the playhouse that Karen, Hannie and Nancy had been working on over at Watson's, and then runs away. Kristy ends up finding her near the brook; Lou was upset about living with her aunt and uncle because she's convinced that her mother, who abandoned the family years before, will come back for her. Lou just didn't like the idea of living with anyone else.

Her aunt, uncle, and brother arrive not long afterwards. They're nice people, and Lou is thrilled to see her brother again. They also have a surprise for Lou; a new puppy! It looks like things might work out for them after all.

Subplot: SMS is having an auction to raise money for new computers. The BSC ends up donating a bunch of autographed celebrity memorabilia, including a jacket worn by Cam Geary himself. :)

Rating: 1.5

Thoughts and Things

• I'm really surprised that Mary Anne didn't just keep that Cam Geary jacket for herself!
• Let's take a look at the cover. This scene is supposed to be happening in the Brewer mansion, and (as EVERY SINGLE BOOK reminds up) Watson is very wealthy. Well, take a look at that tv. That's not exactly the tv of a wealthy person, is it? It looks like the old one from the 70's that was in my bedroom growing up.
• I know I'm probably supposed to feel sorry for Lou, and that her issues stem from the rough life she's had, but I can't stand the kid, and I don't blame the BSC for feeling the same way. I mentally cheered every time one of the sitters lost her temper and really let Lou have it.
• The girls are all excited that the Brewers/Thomases own a copy of The Wizard of Oz. That's....not that exciting. Pretty much everyone I know has a copy of that, especially families with kids.
• Here's a Hannie quote: "This be a playhouse and a clubhouse." There must be a word missing somewhere in there, because that's pretty far off grammatically. Unless, of course, Hannie has suddenly become a pirate. :)