Kristy's Great Idea: The Baby-Sitters Club, Book 1 Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

i really like the book, it’s not to hard to read and i also really like the graphic novel baby sisters club

My daughter is in the 5th grade and she is 10 years old. She loves is and is eager to read to see what happens next. Thankfully there is a series!

"I think of something to say, and I say it. I think of something to do, and I do it. Mom calls it impulsive. Sometimes she calls it trouble."–KristyI turn 36 at the end of the month, and thought it would be fun to join "Baby-Sitters Back, Alright!" book club, hosted by The Bookshelf in Thomasville, for a nostalgic trip down memory lane. I missed the first go round, so I have a lot of catching up to do! I started this series when I was about 10 or 11, and I didn't have the luxury of reading them in order.My mom would buy fine jewelry from a lady that had a cute little consignment shop. In a tiny, forgotten corner of her store were random things for sale belonging to her daughter, who was in high school at the time. The great thing for me was that she was an avid reader! And she seemed to have all of these books, so my mom started letting me buy these 2-3 at a time. She even had all of the spin off series of books, like Baby-Sitters Little Sister, the Super Specials, and various episodes from the 1990s television show on VHS. I'd gobble them down in a weekend and wait anxiously for my mom to take me back to the shop.Because it's been so long, I forgot just how special these books were to me, and how much of myself I saw in each one of these characters. My favorite was always Claudia; she seemed to be able to express her artistic side so naturally in her dress and room decor. I wanted to be like that! Although it took me a long time to finally embrace that funky side of myself, and to wear the things I wanted to wear. I mix patterns now, people! When I turned 25, I bought my first "red-red"lipstick. It seemed to shout "grown-up" to me. That's how stuffy I used to be.My least favorite of the group was Kristy. Until rereading Kristy's Great Idea, I hadn't realized just how much we had in common! Our parents are divorced and our dads weren't the greatest. In fact, Kristy hadn't even heard from her dad for about a year at the point of our first meeting her. That was pretty much the story of my life at that age, and I didn't have any friends who had clue about what that was like."Mom tries to spend a little time alone with each of us kids every day. She feels guilty that she and my father are divorced and that she has to work full-time to support us. It’s not her fault that Dad ran off to California and got married again and doesn’t send Mom much child-support money."The tenderest parts of this book centered around Kristy's uneasiness about her mom's boyfriend, Watson, his kids, and her assessment of the level of risk remarriage would expose her family to. Her rudeness to him is something I did do when my mom was dating my stepfather. In the end, she just wants her mom to be happy, and for everything to be alright. It was really touching. I'm so happy to be reading through these "classics" at this chaotic point in time. They're a breeze to get through and very distracting. Now if only I could get a copy of those VHS tapes!

Posted originally on my blog:[...]As a little girl, I absolutely loved The Baby-sitters Club series and would save up every penny I could to purchase the newest one. Of course, Kristy’s Great Idea came out when I was only a year old, so I can’t claim to have been a fan from the very beginning. But considering I read my first BSC book at the age of five or six, I definitely feel a kinship to the book and its characters.Kristy’s Great Idea is where it all begins. Kristy Thomas has entered into seventh grade with her childhood friends, Mary Anne Spier and Claudia Kishi. Despite having a rocky summer vacation, the friends are trying desperately to keep their friendship from drifting away. This isn’t exactly easy as it is becoming clear Claudia is growing up, thus leaving Kristy and Mary Anne to feel as if they are being left behind.Nonetheless, in a spark of genius, Kristy comes up with an idea of forming a club/business that will help parents with easily locating a babysitter with only one phone call. As Kristy brings the idea to her friends’ attention, Claudia suggests inviting a new girl, Stacey McGill to join them and in no time, The Baby-sitters Club is up and running. The girls experience some memorable, yet stressful experiences as they embark on their first babysitting gigs. But nothing, not dogs, crazy kids or a spooky witch next door can keep these girls down.Each girl in the club is different from the other.Kristy Thomas: Living with her single mother and three brothers, Kristy is the tomboy in the club. She’s athletic, impulsive and bossy. She has yet to gain an interest in trivial things like boys and dating. As the creator of The Baby-sitters Club, she’s nominated President and with that title comes the responsibility of hosting the meetings three times a week. In this book, she struggles with overcoming her dislike for her mother’s new boyfriend, Watson. After years without a man in the house, Kristy even goes as far to avoid meeting Watson’s children until an emergency leaves him in desperate need for a sitter and only Kristy being available to help.Claudia Kishi: Claudia is an exotic beauty with a great passion for art, clothing and boys. Her discovery of boys has caused some distance between her and her best friends, Mary Anne and Kristy in the summer prior to Kristy’s Big Idea. But with the creation of The Baby-sitters Club, she has found it to be helpful in keeping their friendship strong, while still having enough room to add in new girl, Stacey. Though Claudia is extremely creative, she lacks any enthusiasm when it comes to school. Especially since she’s lived in the shadow of her genius sister, Janine. As Vice-President of the club, Claudia’s room serves as home base for the club’s meetings and she’s always willing to provide plenty of snacks.Mary Anne Spier: Mary Anne Spier is shy, quiet and childlike. Some of which comes from her overprotective father, who tries too hard to protect his daughter. Despite their differences, she is Kristy’s best friend and at times a good voice of reason. She still dresses like a little girl and with her strict father always looking over her shoulder, she finds it hard to see a time in the future where that may change. As Secretary for the club, she’s responsible for maintaining the club’s schedule. Though she’s quiet and demure, she’s fiercely protective of her friends and is probably the most loyal of them all.Stacey McGill: A New Yorker, born and raised, Stacey is still adjusting to small town life when she’s invited to join The Baby-Sitters Club. She’s sophisticated, fashionable and just as boy crazy as Claudia, making her the perfect choice for a new best friend. Due to her diabetes, she’s extremely cautious with what she eats and has to spend a lot of time worrying about her health. She’s naturally good with numbers and this helps her to be the perfect candidate for the club’s Treasurer.Say what you will about the writing. It’s meant for young girls, not a grown adult and the writing reflects Martin’s intended audience. The pace can be a little slow at times and clearly being in the mind of a twelve year old is not always the best experience. Nonetheless rereading this book brought back so many memories. For one, I am still young enough to remember The Baby-sitters Club television series from the 90’s and Kristy’s Great Idea was one of those episodes. As I was reading the book, I can still envision the original actresses who portrayed Kristy, Claudia, Mary Anne and Stacey. While I enjoyed rereading this book, I wish I could recapture the enthusiasm and joy I had experienced as a child. Perhaps, it’s just proof that as I have aged, so has my literary tastes.

I read "The Baby-Sitter's Club" beginning in third grade (in early 1992), right up until 1995 when I graduated sixth grade. I loved the series and only parted ways with it when I felt I was "too old" for the books. By that point, there were easily 80 books and I may likely have read all of them. When I found out the series turned 30 this past week, I felt a little nostalgic and decided to read the book that got me started as a nine-year-old in 1992.24 years later, as a 33 year old, I realize why I loved these books so much. I love nostalgia (I write about nostalgia as a hobby), and this felt natural. These girls felt like old friends. I love their personalities and adventures getting the club started. Did then, and do now. Was this book too easy for me? Of course! I'm 21 years older than I was when I stopped reading them. Was it addictive? As much now as it was then! Am I going to re-read the series based on wanting to read this book over? No, but I'm curious about the ones I didn't read after I stopped reading the series.I love how this series started, then and now. It doesn't feel dated at all (even though there is no mention of cell phones). This book has an innocent feel that makes me appreciate the times I grew up in.Kristy's great idea became quite the lucrative business for girls that wanted to do what they love most. If only we can all take a page from that ambition.Her great idea got me started on a series that I still love to this day. Times change, interests change, but I will always feel grateful to a Great Idea that got me really reading!

I read these books when I was growing up and I absolutely adored them. Deciding to read them again in my 30s I was worried that they would let me down… but they didn’t. I absolutely adored this first instalment of The Babysitter’s Club and the absolute nostalgia feels I got making my way through it were even better!!! I love how timeless this story is and the issues that Martin addresses are as relevant to young girls today as they were all those years ago!Can’t wait to get stuck into the next book of the series!

My 9 year old daughter read this book in a single sitting. It was appropriate for her reading level and she loved the characters and storyline. We will be carrying on with this series.

I love this book! It's a great story and I love reading it! It arived in excellent condition and I can't wait to read it again!

Great! Reminds me of my childhood , reading it to my neice. Well written and entertaining stories.

Brilliant story, the kindle edition is just the same as the written book I remember