Summary: In this first book in the series, three girls
who have grown up together start new adventures. They all babysit, but sometimes it can be
challenging for parents in their town to line up a sitter. Kristy gets the idea to create a Baby-sitters
Club, where the three girls and a new girl named Stacey all gather with their
schedules ready, and the parents only have to make one phone call to access
four girls. It follows their adventures
from dog-sitting (something they decide the club doesn’t do) to getting to know
Kristy’s potential step siblings. Along
the way, they learn how to get along with potential step parents and about
Stacey’s diabetes. All of it is part of
the struggles of growing up. Impression: I absolutely LOVED the Baby-sitters Club
books as a kid. I worked hard to collect
all of the books, and they were proudly displayed on my bookshelf in my
room. It was interesting to see the
graphic novel depictions of each of the beloved characters and to go back and
relive the adventures of the girls. Suggestions for library setting: The graphic novel section of our library is
super popular. Though these books are a
bit dated, I wonder if their adventures would stand the test of time. I plan on loaning my personal copy of the
first one to a couple of my graphic novel readers to get their opinion. I’d love to see the Babysitters Club become
popular with another generation of kids!
Telgemeier,
Raina, and Ann M. Martin. (2006). The
Baby-sitters Club: Kristy's Great
Idea (graphic Novel). New York: Graphix.
This graphic-novel version of a popular series
describes how the Baby-Sitters Club was formed,
focusing on the girls' friendships and some of their amusing jobs. Subplots
include Kristy's gradual acceptance of her mother's boyfriend and their
eventual engagement and Stacy's medical problem (readers may think it's
anorexia, but it is really diabetes). The black-and-white cartoons are clear
and uncluttered, and the language is simple enough for slow or reluctant
readers.
Gordon, R. (2006).
The Baby-Sitters Club: Kristy’s
great idea. School Library Journal, 52(7), 128.
Telgemeier offers a spirited
graphic novel adaptation of the debut title in Martin's The Baby-sitters Club
series, the story of the four founding members of this fledgling club. The
graphic-style black-and-white panels engagingly spotlight the camaraderie, as
well as the minor spats, among the quartet of seventh-graders--outspoken tomboy
Kristy, earnest, shy Mary Anne, artistic and free-spirited Claudia and the
somewhat secretive newcomer to town, Stacey--as they team up to launch a
baby-sitting service. Various sitting jobs provide the story's livelier
moments: Kristy arrives at one stint to discover that her charges are
rambunctious pooches rather than kids, and Mary Anne attempts to rescue a
family's cat from the yard of an alleged witch. Telgemeier also portrays the
tale's quieter moments, as Kristy gradually and credibly comes to accept her
divorced mother's new fiancé and his children, and Stacey reveals that her
mysterious behavior is due to the fact that she has diabetes. The artist adds
abundant energy to the pages and, largely through amusingly exaggerated facial
expressions, ably captures each character's personality. This will likely hook
reluctant readers on this affable group of girls and may well spur a new
generation of youngsters to move on to the original series. A second
adaptation, The Truth About Stacey, is due in the fall.
Kristy’s great idea. (2006).
Publishers Weekly. 252(17), 61.
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