{"id":143,"date":"2022-08-31T13:56:57","date_gmt":"2022-08-31T13:56:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www2.scholastic.ca\/scholasticblog\/?p=143"},"modified":"2023-02-14T20:42:37","modified_gmt":"2023-02-14T20:42:37","slug":"the-baby-sitters-club-friends-and-entrepreneurs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.scholastic.ca\/scholasticblog\/2022\/08\/31\/the-baby-sitters-club-friends-and-entrepreneurs\/","title":{"rendered":"The Baby-Sitters Club: Friends and Entrepreneurs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Originally published by On Our Minds on March 21, 2022<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Are you a Kristy, a Mary Anne, a Claudia, or a Stacey? Part of the appeal of Scholastic\u2019s well-loved series, The Baby-sitters Club, is the distinct point of view of each of its characters, as well as following along as they come together to create an innovative and well-run business built on their individual strengths and collective friendships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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They are role models because they \u201ctake charge and care deeply about each other and the kids around them,\u201d said David Levithan, Vice President, Publisher and Editorial Director, Trade Editorial<\/strong>, and one of the series\u2019 editors (who admits that Claudia taught him more about fashion than he ever hoped to learn).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than that, the sitters were representative of many young girls and their challenges in a way that wasn\u2019t accessible to them before. \u201cThe Baby-sitters Club featured diverse characters and some tough topics, which was rare to see at the time the books were being published in the 80s,\u201d recalls Charisse Meloto, Vice President, Global Brand Publicity and Franchise Strategy<\/strong>. \u201cThe series tackled many themes including racism, death, divorce, eating disorders, blended families, and work life balance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Written by Ann M. Martin and first published in 1986, the books initially focused on a circle of four friends with very different personalities coming together to address a challenge in their community \u2014 how difficult it was to find a trusted babysitter. Kristy\u2019s great idea, The Baby-sitters Club, solved this problem and gave the sitters the chance to shine. Together, they developed their skills, came up with creative ways to distinguish their business (kid kits!), fended off the competition, and recruited new members \u2014 all from Claudia\u2019s bedroom. At the same time, they navigated very real personal struggles and found solutions together, making for ultra-relatable role models.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe BSC characters are total trailblazers. I like to say that before we had Carrie, Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte, we had Kristy, Claudia, Mary Anne, and Stacey!\u201d Charisse joked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Club president Kristy<\/strong> has strong opinions and ideas, and we\u2019re along for the ride as she learns how to be a good leader. Sensitive, smart and quiet Mary Anne<\/strong> finds her voice throughout the series and learns to stand up for herself. Stacey<\/strong>, a mathlete and sophisticated former New Yorker, embraces femininity and excels in STEM at the same time. She also navigates life with Type 1 Diabetes, and readers have actually reported recognizing the warning signs of diabetes thanks to Stacey\u2019s story. Cool and confident Claudia<\/strong> is a talented artist, but not a perfect student (and that\u2019s ok). She also explores her Japanese-American culture and finds her place in a multigenerational family, with the help of her beloved grandmother. \u201cAs an Asian-American, it was meaningful for me to see a character like Claudia \u2014 she\u2019s not just the sidekick friend, but an important main protagonist in the entire series,\u201d said Charisse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe most exciting, especially for books first published in the 80s, is that each girl is confident in her own skills and taps into her strengths to support each other and build their business. \u201cThey were entrepreneurial girl bosses before the term \u201cgirl boss\u201d was even coined,\u201d said Charisse. \u201cPlus, the BSC girls are about building one another up. As valuable members of their community, they also took being role models seriously.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While The Baby-sitters Club was originally supposed to consist of only four titles, there are now approximately 250 titles, with four spin-off series, e-books, audiobooks, a feature film, an HBO series from the 1990s, and a 2020 Netflix original series taking a new spin on the story \u2014 not to mention a wealth of fan blogs and podcasts, and even a soundtrack. More than three decades later, over 190 million books have been sold and the graphic novel adaptations are reaching a new generation of readers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEach iteration of the BSC has really matched its times and what kids are concerned about in those times,\u201d David explained. \u201cThe BSC members in the new Netflix series are dealing with a lot of issues that didn’t exist in 1986 . . . but at heart, the bedrock of family and friendship remains the same.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why do these stories still resonate? The girls are unapologetically themselves. Whether you identify with one of the characters\u2019 racial or cultural heritage, hobbies and talents, family structure, or struggles and triumphs, there is still something for you, no matter how old you are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAt this point, it’s not unusual to see parents and children at Ann’s signings together — the parents carrying their old paperbacks from the 80s and the kids holding their Graphix editions from the 20s. The series is for both of them,\u201d David said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Originally published by On Our Minds on March 21, 2022 Are you a Kristy, a Mary Anne, a Claudia, or a Stacey? 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