#68 Jessi and the Bad Baby-sitter

Summary

Dawn is officially gone, and the BSC is officially busier than ever. They're so swamped that they can barely find sitters to cover all the jobs, and even have one or two times when they can't do that. Kristy realizes that they need to take on a new member, and Jessi thinks she has the perfect solution: her new friend, Wendy Loesser. Wendy is great with kids, and has already baby-sat a little. Jessi brings Wendy to a BSC meeting, and after a little grilling in between job calls, the club agrees to send Wendy to the Barretts with Jessi on a trial basis. The job goes very well, and Jessi is happy that she was able to help the club out of a tough situation.

Things go well for about a week. Then, Wendy doesn't show up until almost the end of a club meeting, and doesn't get why everyone's upset. She'd been sitting, and the parents were late getting home. Kristy is pretty mad; not only was Wendy late for a meeting without calling, but she also accepted a sitting job without offering it around to the other club members. Jessi feels responsible for Wendy's behavior, since she was the one who brought Wendy into the club, but since Jessi is so used to the club rules, she doesn't really get where Wendy is coming from.

The next day, Jessi and Wendy are scheduled to sit together at the Pikes'. Wendy doesn't show up until 15 or 20 minutes until after she was supposed to be there, and not until after Jessi had interrupted Mary Anne's homework time so she could come and help. At another club meeting not long after, Wendy barely makes it on time, and she's mad because she had to skip out on a video game tournament. Kristy takes her to task for her lateness at the Pikes', and Wendy quits the club. She doesn't like all the rules, and she doesn't like having to turn her regular sitting job with non-BSC clients over to the club.

After the meeting, Jessi is pretty bummed. She really liked being friends with Wendy and wants to continue that friendship, even if Wendy isn't in the club anymore. Jessi is sure that Wendy must be mad at her because of the way things went with the BSC, but her mother suggests giving Wendy a call. Jessi does, and as it turns out, Wendy was afraid that Jessi was mad at her! They agree to be friends...and we never heard about Wendy again (I think...)

Also, some of the sitting charges are videotaping their play ("Snow White and the Seven Zorbs," complete with an appearance by Captain Planet) to send to Dawn. That, and Margo Pike gets caught shoplifting.

Rating: 2

Thoughts and Things

• I'm totally on Wendy's side about not turning over her regular sitting jobs to the club. Why should people who are used to counting on Wendy have to go through the whole process of calling the club? They even got mad at her for accepting that job at the last minute, when calling the club wouldn't have been possible. Geez.


• Reading a Suzanne Weyn book right after a Peter Lerangis book is such a huge contrast. She's so much more formal and old-fashioned than he is. For instance, Suzanne would write that a character "enjoyed their meal," while Peter would write that a character "scarfed their food down." I can spot a Suzanne Weyn book within the first paragraph...


• I love that Hodges put one of Claudia's junk food paintings on her wall on the cover!


• Why is it that gum-chewing characters are always "bad?" Janet and Leslie were specifically mentioned as chewing gum in #3, Dawn took up gum-chewing in #50 during her rebellious phase, and now Wendy is blowing a bubble on the cover. What gives?


• Everyone keeps saying that there's no way that Dawn will stay in CA. Heh...


• Speaking of Dawn in California, I'm confused as to the timing. She leaves in early fall (probably September) and is supposed to be there for 6 months. Kristy is freaking out about what they'll do when Shannon can't be the alternate office anymore in spring, but Dawn should technically be back by then. Also, she DOESN'T come back in the spring or summer; she comes back in SS #12, which takes place around Christmas. That means she was either gone for three months, or a year and three months.

#67 Dawn's Big Move

Summary

Dawn has been missing California, her dad, and Jeff a lot lately. She's been missing it so much, in fact, that she decides to try living there again for 6 months. Her Stoneybrook family is pretty surprised at this, and Sharon is understandably hurt. She agrees to try and work something out, though. Mary Anne actually takes the news pretty well, unlike when Dawn leaves forever later in the series. She actually encourages Dawn to go, and tells her that even though she'll be missed, her happiness is the most important thing.

Sharon and Jack have multiple pphone discussions about the logisitcs of Dawn making this change. They have to coordinate with both SMS and Dawn's CA school to see if she'll be able to switch from one to the other. Jack also has to learn about Dawn's everyday life (dating, curfew, etc), since he hasn't been around for that for awhile. The guidance counselors at both schools agree that the change wouldn't be too tough for Dawn to handle from an academic point of view, so it's official: Dawn is going to be a California girl again.

When Dawn breaks the news to the other members of the BSC, they 're surprised but understanding...with one exception. That would be (surprise, surprise) Kristy. She's worried about what will happen to the club with one full member gone. Shannon is too busy to take on the role, and Logan doesn't really want to try it again. The girls consider just taking on a new member, but everyone is kind of afraid of ending up with another Janet or Leslie.

As the big day gets closer and closer, Dawn starts to have second thoughts. Jessi comes back from a weekend in Oakley, where she was visiting Keisha, to find that EVERYTHING had changed (including Keisha). Stacey has also had similar experiences going back to New York, which makes Dawn worry that she won't fit into her old life as quickly and easily as she'd like to. She even briefly changes her mind and decides to stay in Stoneybrook, after making a pros and cons list (also after the BSC had thrown her a goodbye party, and after her plane ticket had already been bought). In the end, though, Dawn decides that regardless of what her list says, California is where she belongs.

In other news, Stoneybrook is hosting an event called "Run For Your Money." People form teams and compete in all kinds of contests and sporting events against teams from Lawrenceville, and the winning city gets money for charity. Needless to say, Stoneybrook wins.

Rating: 2.5

Thoughts and Things

• The whole pros and cons list was already used in Dawn on the Coast. The only difference was that in that case, the list told her to stay in California, but she chose Stoneybrook.


• Once again, the girls throw one of their members a goodbye party that includes primarily children as guests. Sheesh. All the baking of cookies they do for the occasion was fun to read about, though. Yum!


• I always mix up events that happened in this books with ones that happen in Farewell, Dawn. I my head, they're essentially the same book.


• Quote: "Oh, this is absurd!" Richard was struggling with the zipper on his pants. "And where am I supposed to drop this?" I really don't want to know, Richard....

M#10 Stacey and the Mystery Money

Summary

Stacey and Charlotte have a big day planned. They're going to go shopping and have lunch in downtown Stoneybrook, and both of them are excited. Things go pretty well until they Stacey tries to buy some earrings at the Merry-Go-Round. The clerk there immediately recognizes the ten dollar bill that Stacey gave her as counterfeit, much to Stacey's surprise. Betty (the clerk) calls the police. She doesn't suspect Stacey, but there has been a rise in counterfeit activity in Stoneybrook, and the police need to be aware of what happened. Charlotte is convinced that Stacey is going to jail, but all the cops want to do is ask her, Betty, and the clerk at Bellair's (where Stacey originally got the $10). Maureen takes care of Charlotte while Stacey is being questioned.

The other girls in the club decide that they need to do some research on counterfeiting. They go to the library, and even pay a visit to Betty at the Merry-Go-Round, to pick up a flier that had been given to all local shops about how to spot counterfeit bills. They also decide to stake out various public copy machines around Stoneybrook, since counterfeiters would DEFINITELY use a public machine to do their dirty work. Sheesh. Anyway, they see Stacey's English teacher, Mr. Fiske, looking at new copy machines in an office supply store. Could he be the culprit? No one really thinks so. In fact, Kristy thinks it might be Terry Hoyt (a new boy in school) and his family, who are responsible for all the fake money. They showed up right around the time that the counterfeiting started, they move around a lot, there's a closet in their house that Terry's younger brother wouldn't let Kristy open when she was sitting, and she found a school ID card belonging to Terry's twin sister, Tasha, with a different name. Stacey doesn't want to believe that the Hoyts are capable of committing any kind of crime; she and Terry have a little thing going on, and she just doesn't see him as being capable of doing something so awful.

In spite of their initial skepticism about boring Mr. Fiske being a counterfeiter, the BSC decides to follow him one day after school. It's not exactly a successful trip, although Stacey DOES almost follow him into the mens' room. After she gets home, she gets phone call from Terry and ends up telling him everything they've been up to. He seems to know an awful lot about counterfeiting, but he doesn't come right out and confess that his family is responsible. Stacey isn't sure whether her conversation with Terry should make her feel better or not....

Later on, Stacey and Charlotte take another shopping trip downtown. They're just about to head to the Rosebud for lunch when a man runs toward them. He hadn't seen Stacey and Charlotte, so they hide behind a car. As he's running, he drops a bag, but doesn't come back for it. It's full of fake money! Charlotte suggests they call the police, but Stacey is determined to solve the case herself. She gets Claudia to come down and take a picture of the culprit when he comes back for the money, and then calls Terry as well. They have to wait awhile, but the man eventually comes back, and they get their pictures. Terry and Stacey take the roll of film to a one-hour photo place, and Terry says they can just give the pictures to his dad when they get them, and he'll take care of everything. Stacey starts to worry; was including Terry in everything a mistake. Not so much. Terry's dad is in the Secret Service, and he's the main guy assigned to work on the counterfeiting case. That's why the family moves around so much; once a case is solved, they head to a new place and a new case. His name isn't even Terry Hoyt, but David Hawthorne. Stacey is sworn to secrecy; NO ONE is supposed to know what Mr. Hoyt/Hawthorne does for a living. In the end, the counterfeiters are caught, and the Hoyts have to move on yet again.

Rating: 2.5

Thoughts and Things

• So...8 year old Charlotte has the sense to want to call the police to deal with the bag of money, but Stacey doesn't. Way to set an example, Stace!

• Everyone who reads this book seems to like Stacey and Terry, but I don't care much for them as a couple. Terry/David is just kind of.....there. He reminds me of Jeremy from the Friends Forever books.

• I love the Charlotte/Stacey shopping trip from the beginning of the book. When I was 8, I would have loved having my sophisticated 13 year old baby sitter take me out on the town like that. Except...I didn't have a sophisticated 13 year old baby sitter. I had my grandma. :)

• Sam and Stacey are pretty much done as of this book. At some point, they'd agreed to see other people, and Stacey even runs into Sam on a date when she's out with Terry.

#66 Maid Mary Anne

Summary

Mary Anne is visiting the Stones' farm one day when Mrs. Stone asks her if she enjoys sewing. When Mary Anne tells her that she does, Mrs. Stone suggests that she meet Mrs. Towne, a neighbor of hers who does fantastic needlwork projects. Mary Anne is interested, but doesn't know how she'll arrange a meeting when she's too shy just to just go up to the door and introduce herself. It isn't until her club meeting later that someone suggests that she call Mrs. Towne. Well, DUH. Mary Anne does so, and Mrs. Towne invites her over the next day. They have tea, and talk gardening and sewing for awhile. Mrs. Towne has filled her house with her own work, and Mary Anne is impressed. She asks Mrs Towne to give her lessons, and they schedule the first one for that weekend.

When Mary Anne arrives for her lesson and knocks on the door, no one answers. She tries again before letting herself in, worried that something might be wrong. Something definitely is; Mrs. Towne had fallen and broken her ankle. Mary Anne calls 911 and her father, and they get Mrs. Towne to the hospital. She's okay, other than the ankle thing, but Mary Anne still decides to stop and and see how she's doing as often as she can.

Mrs. Towne wants to go ahead with Mary Anne's sewing lessons in spite of her injury, and when Mary Anne arrives for the first one, she notices something. Mrs. Towne's house, which had been pretty clean up to that point, is starting to get a bit cluttered. Mary Anne wants to help, so she does a little tidying and straightening. Then, Mrs. Towne gets an idea: instead of paying money for the lessons, Mary Anne could help around the house until her ankle is better. The arrangement works pretty well at first; Mary Anne is learning some new sewing techniques, and Mrs. Towne is getting the help she needs around the house. Fairly quickly, though, Mary Anne's duties at Mrs. Towne's are getting in the way of everything else in her life. She's late for a BSC meeting, has to leave a few meetings early to help Mrs. Towne, and bails on plans with her friends. It's not as if Mrs. Towne even needs all the help she's getting from Mary Anne; her ankle is healing nicely, and she's able to be up and active with the help of canes. Mary Anne finally decides that she needs to have a talk with Mrs. Towne, and tells her that while she doesn't mind helping out, she can't always be available to do so whenever Mrs. Towne wants. Mrs. Towne apologizes, and decides to hire a housekeeper to help her around the house from time to time, so she can relax and enjoy things a little more.

While Mary Anne is receiving sewing lessons, she's also giving them to a class comprised of (who else?) baby sitting charges. The kids decide to make a quilt as a get well present for Mrs. Towne, and they're all having fun with the project. They're having fun, that is, until Buddy Barrett and Nicky Pike leave the class. Someone at school had been making fun of them for being involved in a girls' activity, so they go overboard trying to be macho and manly. They're back in class in time to finish the quilt, though.

Rating: 3

Thoughts and Things

• I'm really surprised that Ann didn't write this book, since she's so into sewing herself.
• Oh, lord....Carolyn on the cover. She looks like some reject from an 80s music video. No...an 80s exercise video.
• I wonder if the title is supposed to be a pun. "Maid Mary Anne" sound like "Maid Marian."
• This book was better than I remember it being when I read it before.
• Lots of "Dawn wants to go back to CA" foreshadowing.

Logan Bruno, Boy Baby-sitter

Summary

Logan is still being made fun of by some of his track teammates for being a sitter, so when members of the kiddie gang the Badd Boyz start to pay attention to him, he's kind of excited. These guys couldn't be more stereotypical if they tried: they're not the smartest cookies in the jar, they wear leather jackets, they keep cigarette packs in their rolled up sleeves, and they like to work on cars. Clarence King and some of the other track guys are scared of them, and tend to leave Logan alone if the Boyz are around.

First, one of the boys (he calls himself "T-Jam") compliments Logan on his understanding of Julius Caesar, and hints that he needs tutoring. What does Logan do? He gives T-Jam his homework and says that they can discuss it later. If Logan doesn't honestly think that his homework is going to be copied, he needs help. Next, the Boyz invite Logan to have lunch with them. He's amazed when they go outside to the parking lot for lunch (this isn't allowed at SMS), and even more amazed when some of the older gang members drive up with pizza for them. Oh, excuse me; "za." Logan gets a thrill out of being bad (Badd?) enough to eat lunch in the parking lot with a bunch of kids who smoke and think nothing of it.

That weekend, Logan meets up with his new friends at a strip mall downtown. He's supposed to buy a copy of the new Nicky Cash CD for Mary Anne at Sound Ideas, and the Boyz go with him. Logan knows the owner, and while they're talking, T-Jam manages to get an awful lot of information out of him about exactly when the next shipment of Nicky Cash CDs will be coming in. As they leave the store and meet up with the other Boyz, Logan starts to notice some odd behavior in his new friends: they run out of stores, hiding stuff they supposedly bought, and distracting sales clerks by pretending to be interested in stuff that Logan is fairly sure they don't care about. Then, he sees T-Jam open an unlocked car and steal some sunglasses. Logan calls him on it, and T-Jam actually returns the glasses. Things just get worse from there, though; Logan witnesses one of the Boyz stealing something from someone else's locker, and threatens to tell on them. They point out that if they go down, so will Logan; after all, he was in the main part of the school after hours, and there aren't any witnesses to prove that he wasn't breaking and entering, too.

That Saturday, the Boyz arrive during breakfast time at the Brunos' to get Logan. They head to Sound Ideas, to "watch" the shipment of Nicky Cash CDs arrive. While they're being unloaded, there's a commotion inside the store. Someone tried to steal a woman's purse, and even though they weren't successful, the culprit got away. As Logan and his friends leave to meet up with some of the older members of the Boyz, Logan notices something very interesting on the floor of their car: a box of Nicky Cash CD. The attempted purse-snatching had just been a ruse to distract everyone while the CDs were taken. Logan demands to be let out of the car, even though it's a long walk back to his house. He doesn't particularly want to spend another minute in the car with those guys, who he now knows were just using him. They warn him to keep quiet, and Logan is kind of in a panic. He wants to Boyz to pay for what they did, but he's afraid of getting in major trouble himself, since he was with them the whole time. The Boyz try to buy his silence with a leather jacket like theirs, and a pair of Nicky Cash tickets, but Logan wants none of it. Unfortunately, Mary Anne sees the tickets before Logan can give them back, and he doesn't think he can disappoint her.

When Logan and Mary Anne are eating dinner at Renwick's before the show, they get to talking about all the things that have gone missing from lockers at school. Mary Anne mentions that one of the items happens to be pair of Nicky Cash tickets, and that they went missing right when Logan found his pair in his locker. He comes clean to Mary Anne, and she's mad. It's not about missing the concert, though; it's the fact that Logan let himself be so taken in by the Badd Boyz. When Mr. Bruno comes to get them to take them into Stamford, they go back to the Brunos' house instead (they'd called the owner of the tickets and she came and picked them up). Logan tells his parents everything, and they call the police. The Boyz had another CD heist planned for that weekend, and when they try their old tricks, most of them end up arrested.

Rating: 2.5

Thoughts and Things

• Lerangis described Mary Anne's concert outfit as "sexy." Gross.
• The whole "bad kids using good kid for cover" plot is nicely reused during Stacey's "bad girls" phase. There's even a concert involved there, too.
• I'm glad Logan only got two books of his own during the series; he's not that fascinating to read about.
• Who in the world are those kids on the cover supposed to be? That scene doesn't happen in the book.
• Nicky Cash is some sort of boy band offshoot. Remember back when the whole boy band phenomenon was ending and so many of the old members of those groups tried to solo? I think Justin Timberlake is really the only one who made it big. Well, Ronan Keating from Boyzone did, too, but that was mostly in Europe.

SS #10 Sea City, Here We Come!

Summary

It's time for another trip to Sea City, and the whole club (minus Shannon) ends up there for one reason or another this time around. Here's the rundown:

Kristy has another big game with the Bashers planned before she takes off for the beach. The problem? A good chunk of her team is on vacation, so she's forced to recruit a bunch of new (and awful) players at the last minute to avoid forfeiting. It's no surprise that the Krushers lose spectacularly (34-1), but Kristy is actually kind of proud of her team for not giving up.

Claudia is taking a summer school math class. Am I the only one who's a little surprised that this is apparently the first time that she's had to go to summer school? Anyway, she ends up doing pretty well in the class. So well, in fact, that her new friends (that we never hear from again)start calling her "the smart one."

Jessi has been hired by the Pikes to be the second mother's helper (along with Mallory). She's determined to be Super Sitter, and she does a decent job of it. Too bad that being a Super Sitter leaves her so exhausted by the end of the trip that she's ready for another vacation!

Dawn runs a Mini Camp at her house with Mary Anne. they finish up camp with a sleepover in the barn, where Dawn tells a pretty decent ghost story about Jared Mullray's supposed fiancee. Then, she sits for Franklin DeWitt/Harris's kids when they come down to Sea City for the weekend to spend time with the Barretts, and stays on as a guest of the Pikes. She also puts up with a lot of crap from Stacey.

Mary Anne is also a guest of the Pikes. She's excited to spend time with Logan, who comes down with Franklin and the kids for the weekend. Logan is pretty aware of what went on between Mary Anne and Alex the last time they were in Sea City, and he's kind of nervous that they'll rekindle what little romance they had back then. As it turns out, Logan has nothing to worry about. So, in honor of Mary Anne's homecoming, he borrows a horse and carriage from a friend of his and drives Mary Anne back to her house from the Pikes'.

Mallory....oh, lord. Toby (as in, Stacey's 15-year-old ex boyfriend, Toby) starts paying attention to her, and even asks her out. She's flattered at first, but after calling Ben Hobart, she decides that he's the only one she wants to date for the time being.

Stacey is crabby and jealous that Toby likes Mal after dumping her during their last visit to Sea City, and she pretty much spends the whole trip being a little twit to everyone. She also feels a little strange being there as a mother's helper for the Barretts, not the Pikes, and has to deal with a stressed-out Mrs. Barrett, who's nervous about her first vacation as a single parent.

Bill is the hurricane that hits the east coast, causing damage in both Stoneybrook and Sea City. In fact, Sea City is evacuated, and since none of the Pikes, Barretts, or BSC members make it out before the causeway is under water, they hole up in the Sea City Elementary School gym for a night.

Rating: 3.5

Thoughts and Things

• The Karen chapter was so totally unnecessary. Why, Lerangis, why???


• I used to get irritated at Stacey's behavior in this book, but I'm a little more understanding than I used to be. After all, if an ex of mine starting trying to get with someone like Mallory, I'd be mad, too. Don't get me wrong, I normally like Mal, but let's face it; she's only 11, and she's not exactly a supermodel.


• I don't think I need to dwell too much on the age difference between Mallory and Toby. What I'm REALLY surprised about is the fact that Mr. and Mrs. Pike were apparently totally fine with their 11 year old going out with a 15 year old! There's just something wrong with the whole situation, and if I were a parent, there's no way that would happen.


• This book needed more Sea City and less random stuff (see first bullet point). 9 of the chapters didn't even take place in Sea City!


• I wanted this Claudia outfit when I was younger: "...she was wearing ripped cut-off jeans held up by a frayed rope belt, a t-shirt with the collar torn off, huge white socks all bunched up around the ankle, and old-fashioned black lace-up shoes." Does Claudia only have one ankle?


• Mallory was a really crummy sitter in this book. She was constantly leaving the kids alone or ignoring them to flirt with Toby, go off with her friends to complain about Stacey, and leaving them with other sitters (who were supposed to be on vacation) so she could go shopping for stuff for her big date. Once, near the end of the vacation, she even told Margo and Claire to go outside and play by themselves so she could sleep longer. Geez.


• Someday, I'm going to have a Heath/Skor taste test.
  

Finally, I'd like to thank both Ali at Travel Rambling and Jannie at Fitzie's Soda Shoppe for giving me the Beautiful Blogger Award! I guess I'm supposed to pay it forward and give the award to some of my favorite blogs, but most of you have already been given this one. :) So, I guess I'll skip right to the 7 interesting facts about me:

1. I have a sweet tooth that would rival Claudia's.
   
2. I never learned to ride a bike.


3. Until I went to London last March, I had never been off the west coast of North America.


4. The first BSC book I ever read WAS the first BSC book: Kristy's Great Idea. For some reason, my grandmother had a copy of it and Phantom Phone Calls. I borrowed them and was hooked.


5. When I was really little, I was scared of Jesus. No kidding. It was the idea that you had to die to meet Him that bothered me. He and I are on better terms now. ;)


6. I can clearly remember things that happened when I was two.


7. I never cook Pop Tarts.

M#9 Kristy and the Haunted Mansion

Summary

Kristy, Bart, and their combined Krashers softball team are on the way home from a game when a big storm hits. Charlie's driving them, and visibility isn't exactly ideal. He misses the turn to head back to Stoneybrook, and the crew finds themselves trapped on an unfamiliar road, between two washed-out bridges. There's a large, spooky, old house nearby, and Kristy and Charlie knock on the door to the caretaker's cottage to ask to use the phone. The old man that answers the door gives Kristy the creeps, and informs them that he doesn't have a telephone, and that the power's out. He agrees, though, to let them stay up at the house overnight, and gives them blankets, flashlights, and a little food.

The house turns out to be pretty cool. There's a lot of old-fashioned furniture, pictures, and even bells on the wall that were used to signal servants in the olden days. Kristy, Charlie, Bart, and the younger kids have a great time exploring the house, but they're a little creeped out by one thing: in spite of the fact that the house hasn't been lived in for a long time, there's no dust or mustiness anywhere. Everything is well kept up, as if people had been living there all along. Jackie Rodowsky, who heard a story about that particular house from Shea, is convinced tht it's haunted.

When Kristy takes Karen and Patty (a Basher) up to one of the bedrooms that had caught their attention earlier, they find a diary. It belonged to Dorothy Sawyer, who lived in the house until she was 18. The diary ends the day before she had planned to run away and marry a man that her father didn't approve of. Later, they find some newspaper articles that indicate that Dorothy never met up with her fiancee as she was supposed to, and was presumed drowned in a storm that blew up that same day. They also find pictures of Will Blackburn, the guy she was supposed to marry, and the kids think he looks awfully familiar....

The next day is clear and sunny. As the kids are preparing to go home, Buddy Barrett figures out who Will Blackburn reminds him of: the caretaker. Kristy approaches him and calls him Mr. Blackburn....yep, they're one and the same. He never really got over Dorothy's death, and it's comforting to him to keep the house (which he now owns) the way it was when she lived there. Kristy decides that he's not creepy after all; just kind of sad and lonely.

To celebrate Kristy's safe return, the BSC holds a slumber party at the Brewer mansion. Karen wanders in late that evening, and tells them she can't stop thinking about Dorothy. She'd nicked a picture of her from one of the photo albums they looked at, and Karen is convinced that Dorothy reminds her of someone she knows. The girls pass the picture around, and Mary Anne recognizes her as the woman that owns the sewing shop that she frequents. The next day, the BSC members (and Karen) go to the store to confirm her identity. She is indeed Dorothy Sawyer, and she faked her own death. As much as she loved Will, she knew she'd have the same overprotected life as his wife that she'd had as her father's daughter. Instead, she spent her life traveling and doing all the things she wanted to do, but she'd been lonely. Dorothy decides to pay Will a visit.

Rating: 2.5

Thoughts and Things

• If I were Will and I got a visit from a woman who faked her own death to avoid marrying me, I'd shut the door in her face. That's just not nice.
• Will calls telephones "contraptions," as if they're some new-fangled device that he couldn't possibly be expected to understand. The thing is, he would have been born in the mid 1910's, and phones were getting more and more common around that time. It's weird that he wouldn't have had one growing up, or that the Sawyers wouldn't have, since they seemed to be well-off.
• This book was kind of light on plot, but I did enjoy reading about the house. Gotta love cool old houses!
• I can't believe that Kristy just let the kids wander around the house, looking at things and poking their nose into someone else's stuff with hardly a mention as to whether or not it was okay.
• I think I might have made my first mistake in terms of chronology. This book and #65 were published in the same month, but everyone is still in school in this one, and in #65, the school year is just about over. Ooops....