"Now, what would you do with a pet squirrel?" #3 The Truth about Stacey (1986)

AKA Stacey Goes Behind her Parents Back (For the First Time)

Stacey's have a rough time with her parents. They can't accept her diabetes as a fact and drag her from doctor to doctor to try to cure her or at least improve her. Dr. Johanssen helps Stacey get through to her parents by helping her make an appointment with a respected diabetes expert. Stacey talks to her parents, who agree to lay off. Since they stop fighting with her diabetes, I guess they start fighting with each other, so they can get divorced 25 books down the road.

Meanwhile the club has a new problem: competition in the form of the Baby Sitters Agency. The new club consists of older girls who can work later hours. Many of the club's clients switch to the BSA for jobs, including Mrs. Newton, who has a newborn. Eventually, the BSC wins their clients back when parents realize most of the BSA sitters aren't up to the standards they're used to. Yay, happy ending.

Interesting tidbits:

Stacey says there is only one middle school in Stoneybrook, yet by eighth grade ("next year"), there's another, called Kelsey Middle School, that Kristy was supposed to go to. Kristy's mom has to pay a fee so that David Michael and Kristy don't have to change schools. Oddly, though, they're able to catch the school bus. Usually, buses only pick up students who live out of the school's territory if they have special needs and are being bused to a special program. Maybe Watson slipped someone some money to pick the kids up? Karen goes to private school and eventually starts living with the Brewers for a month at a time, so someone (Nannie, I'm sure) drops her off at school, so why not Kristy and David Michael too?

Stacey says Janine is dull, which I don't find fair. She's got a lot to say on a lot of subjects--it just may not be what Stacey's interested in. What Stacey really seems to mean is that Janine is pretty even keeled and rarely raises her voice.

Kristy calls the BSA to see how it works. She says her name is Candy Kane and she needs a sitter for her brother so she can go on a date with Winston Churchill. And being really stupid, the girl on the other end of the line barely notices.

Stacey says much of the reason her parents watch her like a hawk is that they aren't able to have another child, and since she has a life threatening illness, they live in fear of losing her. Talk about pressure.

This book is the first time Kristy sits in Claudia's chair with a visor on. Although she sits in the desk chair while Mary Anne sits in the director's chair. Before that, Stacey says Kristy lounged around on the floor...which is what is seen the (original) cover of Kristy's Great Idea.

Poor Charlotte. The other kids won't even let her play on the playground; they keep calling her "teacher's pet." Wonder what she did exactly to get bees in their bonnets. It says everyone was irritated because she would do all her work quickly and never make mistakes, but that just doesn't seem like enough to cause the hate.

Huh. Mary Anne and her dad are having Thanksgiving with Kristy's family and Watson.

The very first BSC baby arrives in the form of Lucy Jane Newton. I wonder if she's named for AMM's love of I Love Lucy (which shows up every so many books or so--Mary Anne was watching it in #2. In either case, it's not a very eighties name, but neither is Jamie, so I approve.

Is it wrong that I get glee out of picturing Stacey passing out at school and fall face first into a bowl of tomato soup?

Hee hee. A "triple emergency" club meeting.

You know, of all the boys in the BSC universe, I dislike Pete Black the least. Yeah, he does the food sculpting and things the other boys do, but he seems like a nice guy, and he actually takes his job as class president (which he wins in #53, Kristy for President) seriously. There was a boy like that in my high school...he was also captain of our undefeated football team and spent a year in the NFL. He was one of those rare kids that EVERYONE likes, for good reason.

I am trying to put together as many parent names from the BSC-verse as I can. Dawn's parents are Sharon and Jack; Mary Anne's, Richard and Alma. Stacey's mom is Maureen and Mallory's is Dee. Claudia's mother is Riyoko. Kristy's parents are Elizabeth and Patrick. Of course, there are step-parents; Dawn's stepmom is Carol; Watson is Kristy's stepdad and Samantha is Stacey's step-mother to be. Dr. Johanssen is Peggy; Mr. Newton, Roger and his sister in law, Mrs. Feldman, is Julie. I'll be on the lookout for others.

Another update to make things more timeless: Stacey goes to the movie theater concession stand and is short on money, so Laine (her "ex" friend) lends it to her. In the original book, there was an amount for the snacks. Here, it just says, "He told me the price."

Outfits:

No real outfits; just accessories

Stacey:

Dino on a beret

Red glittery, beaded sneakers (maybe with purple?)

Footprint covered leg warmers

Plastic butterfly barrettes

Fingertip-less red lace gloves

New clients

Mallory Pike (10)--36

Baby Lucy Newton--26