It’s 1986, a time when jellies, scrunchies, stirrup pants–and the first The Baby-Sitters Club book ruled the Earth.
The Baby-Sitters Club is a series of novels written by Ann M. Martin (and a team of ghostwriters). With over 200 books published, including the original series, spinoffs, graphic novels, and a Netflix show, The Baby-Sitters Club is a pretty big phenomenon.
But it all started in 1986 with book #1. Kristy is just a normal thirteen-year-old girl living in Stoneybrook, Connecticut. After watching her mom struggle to find a sitter for her little brother, Kristy suddenly gets an idea to start a babysitting club. She recruits her pals and before long, the BSC is in full swing. Kristy, along with Claudia, Stacey, Mary Anne (and later Dawn, Jessi, and Mallory) meet three afternoons a week in Claudia’s junk-food-filled bedroom. Their meetings consist of hanging out, eating high-carb snacks, and taking calls from clients. Sounds pretty good to me!
Other than its worldwide popularity and fun story premise, there are, in my opinion, four additional reasons to read The Baby-Sitters Club:
1. You have insomnia. Anytime I can’t sleep, I grab a Baby-Sitters Club book, and I’m usually able to drift off quickly. Because the books are lighthearted and fun and because there’s nothing dark or twisty, I’m pretty much always guaranteed a happy-cozy ending and a good night’s sleep.
2. You love cheesy fashion trends and slang phrases from the 1980s and 1990s. The Baby-Sitters Club is full of them. Here’s the rundown:
Fashion Trends:
turtleneck: Kristy’s shirt of choice, preferably worn under a sweatshirt or sweater.
legwarmers: Uhh, Jessi is a ballerina, and those leotards get cold, so we’ll give her a free pass.
perm: A painful, smelly, chemical process in which curls are created in the hair. Stacey’s got one that goes perfectly with her blonde city-girl hair.
Slang Phrases:
fresh: Book #36 breaks down the meaning of this word far better than I can: Dawn is so cool. (Or, as Claudia Kishi . . . would say, she’s fresh.)
totally: I think another example (from book #76) serves best here: Then I looked out my bedroom window and realized my outfit was all wrong. Totally.
For a more comprehensive guide of cringy (also kind of great) trends from the 80s and 90s, see books 1-131.
3. You don’t mind large chunks of exposition and nearly nonexistent plots. The Baby-Sitters Club has great examples of both. Each book includes huge chunks of exposition and backstory. In the writing world, these are often called “info dumps.” For the most part, the entirety of chapter 2 focuses on reintroducing each character (where they’re from, what they look like, personality traits) and relaying information about the club (how it was formed, how it works, how often the members meet and where). Very necessary information that is unapologetically dumped into chapter 2. The crazy thing? It totally works!
What also works? A lack of plot! In the The Baby-Sitters Club books, like episodes of Seinfeld, nothing much happens. Entire books might revolve around the girls wracking their brains for ideas for a parade float or items to donate to the school auction. Maybe a kid they babysit for is struggling to learn how to ride a bike or to overcome shyness and make new friends. Although nothing super-exciting happens, somehow, I get hooked every time.
4. You like realistic, relatable characters. According to the Internet, you can’t go through life not knowing which Sex and the City character you are. But I think you can’t go through life not knowing which Baby-Sitters Club character you are, so here’s a little quiz. Which best describes you?
Headstrong girlboss who’s a stickler for punctuality: You’re a Kristy.
A little bit annoying, overly sensitive, and whiny: You’re a Mary Anne.
Junk-food junkie who’s also a beautiful super-talented artist who makes her own jewelry: Hello, Claudia.
Health-food nut who enjoys tofu and chickpeas: Your name is Dawn.
Sophisticated city girl: Hi, Stacey.
Awkward tween with braces and curly red hair, but you did just get your ears pierced!: Mallory is your name.
Tall, graceful tween ballerina who also just got her ears pierced: You’re a Jessi!
As you can see, each amazing girl has her own strengths and talents. These baby-sitters are resourceful, relatable, and a little bit wacky in the best way.
That’s it! Those are the four main reasons that as an adult I read The Baby-Sitters Club, But just in case you need another reason to read these books, here’s one more. I once read about a study in which older adults were given music from their youth to listen to. Researchers noticed that after subjects listened to music from their youth, their faces actually looked younger. I’m not sure if reading books from my youth will work the same way, but I’m willing to give it a try! Bye, bye expensive face cream! Hello, more Baby-Sitters Club!
Thanks for the post!