Who wouldn't want Claudia for a baby-sitter?

The Baby-sitters Club #56: Keep Out, Claudia!

You always know you're in for a treat when the BSC title includes its own exclamation point. Am I right or am I right? I totally remembered this book from my childhood, partly because I couldn't pronounce the word “prejudice”, which is used like 27 hundred times. I was actually pretty pleased with the handling of the main plotline here, but I could totally have done without the entire secondary plot, partly because it showcased one of my (many) BSC nemeses: the intolerable Jackie Rodowsky. Not to mention the insufferable Karen Brewer. Ugh. But we will get to that. All in good time, my friends.

New client alert (but don't get too attached. I'm 95% sure we never hear of these folks again, though with good reason.) Mrs. Denise Lowell requires a sitter for her 3 children: Caitlin, Mackie, and Celeste. Um, can I be prejudiced against Mrs. Lowell for naming her son “Mackie”? Mary Anne is the first unsuspecting soul to baby-sit for this fam. Mrs. Lowell gives her the once-over on the front stoop and deems her worthy. The kids are well-behaved, but inquisitive, asking MA all about her family and the other BSC members. When they hear about Mal's seven siblings, they decide the Pikes must be Catholic. I definitely remember that from my childhood reading of this book, because I was (and am) Catholic, but I had never heard that stereotype before. I knew plenty of people with big families, but it never occurred to me that their religion would have something to do with it. Also, isn't it a little weird for an 8 year old to know that? I mean, isn't that one of those wink-wink things people say because Catholics are technically not supposed to use birth-control? Does 8 year old Caitlin know that? Because that sort of skeeves me out.


Anyway, the kids like MA and the job goes well, so Mrs. Lowell calls again for a sitter, and this time Claudia gets the nod. When she shows up, Mrs. Lowell stares at her but then eventually decides to let her in, albeit rudely. Claud's job is nothing like MA's. The kids misbehave and disrespect her. Eventually, she gets them to go over to the Hobart's where a bunch of the Stoneybrook kids are practicing being in a band (this is the interminable second plot) and the kids seem to have fun. They go back to the Lowells and continue misbehaving. Mrs. Lowell finally comes home and Claud peaces the hell out, pondering why she felt so awkward, finally concluding that perhaps Mrs. Lowell didn't care for her wild outfit. It involved a demin-fringed vest and leggings, so I'm not too sure that isn't in fact the case.


However, when Mrs. Lowell calls the BSC again, she very specifically requests NOT Claudia, but refuses to say why. Claud and the BSC have a somewhat testy conversation where they try to figure out what Claud did wrong, but the best they can come up with is the outfit thing or the fact that she arrived a bit early. Jessi gets the next sitting job, and spends significant time updating her Kid-kit for the Lowell kids, dressing nicely, and being exactly 5 minutes early, but poor Jessi literally gets the door slammed in her face. BITCH.


It is at this point that the BSC pretty much realizes what they are dealing with. I have to say, though, if Mrs. Lowell is this prejudiced, how did Claudia's last name not tip her off? I mean, obviously, Jessi Ramsey could be of any number of backgrounds, but isn't Kishi pretty clearly Japanese? Next, Kristy baby-sits for them, and tries to ask Mrs. Lowell what her deal is, but is interrupted by the kids after being told that MA was excellent and Claudia did a “perfectly adequate job”, so she doesn't get to needle her about rejecting Jessi. The kids call Claudia funny-looking. Again, if they weren't referring to her ethnicity, they'd have a valid point. I would venture a guess that most of the world would consider Claudia's clothes (NOT her person) funny-looking.


Mrs. Lowell calls again and has the nerve to request a “blond-haired, blue-eyed baby-sitter.” Honestly, what is this woman's deal? I don't understand why she keeps calling if she doesn't like most of the sitters. If she's this bigoted, why would she hire a baby-sitter sight unseen in the first place? Anyway, Stacey and Dawn are both like “Um, over my dead body.” but Kristy doesn't think they'd be acceptable because their parents are divorced. Um, honestly, KT, I don't really think that's the issue. Regardless, Kristy tells Mrs. Lowell they're fresh out of blond-haired, blue-eyed sitters, except for Logan, but in Mrs. Lowell's world, boys don't baby-sit, so that's out of the question.

The girls discuss how they feel about this, and how they can't do much of anything because they are really just kids themselves, so all they can do is be good examples for the kids they baby-sit for, which WOW. It's nice to see them acknowledge that for once. Also, we get some excellent parenting in this book, from Elizabeth, Watson, and Nannie, and Mr. Kishi, and repeated second-hand from Mr. Ramsey. Who was the ghostwriter on this one? Nicely done on some aspects, especially the BSC being essentially helpless in the face of this racism. That's a hard reality that we all have to learn, and do the best we can with what we have to combat it in whatever small ways we can. For the BSC, that means not taking any more jobs for the Lowells.

Side plot: Jackie Rodowsky gets the very first line in this book. That is never an auspicious beginning. Anyway, the BSC decides to help the kids form a band and give a concert in the Newton's backyard. There is an inordinate amount of time devoted to this incredibly dull plotline. Suffice it to say, it's the same as every other “Let's put on some lame performance that no one in the real world would ever come see” plot we've dealt with in the past. The kids play instruments and sing, and they perform songs from Fiddler on the Roof, which causes Mrs. Lowell to pack up her brood and leave in a huff, after stopping by one of the rehearsals with her kids. Jackie Rodowsky is the emcee and he is super annoying and tries to guilt the audience into donating money for the kids to get band t-shirts, as if we are ever going to hear of the band again. Claudia and the other baby-sitters do their usual freak out, OMG, is this going to suck schtick, what if it rains, blah, blah, blah, but it all comes up roses in the end, so yay?
 
Well, I think we all learned a very valuable lesson this week. Don't be a racist. Seriously. Don't.