“Kissing was much more fun”…..BSC # 95: Kristy + Bart = ?”

Memory Reaction

I remember a few things about this one. The first is being surprised that there was so much kissing in the book. Not that I’m a prude, it’s just that the BSC was usually pretty tame when it came to that stuff…they would mention so-and-so kissing someone, but wouldn’t go into details about it. In this book, I remember how Kristy’s parents walk in on them making out in her house, and that Kristy was annoyed she was missing the movie because Bart wouldn’t stop kissing her. I also think my mother saw me reading it, and was all, “since when is the BSC about romance?” (Not that she thought it was inappropriate, I think it was just surprise). The answer’s pretty much always, but I guess this title stood out to her. Or she never saw the title of some Stacey and Mary Anne books.

I also remember that when Kristy’s grounded, her parents actually don’t let her leave her room (except to use the bathroom). Which seemed a bit over-the-top to me as a kid, and still does now.

Revisited Reaction

Kristy and Bart have been living somewhere in between friends and couple for about 75 books, and Bart’s apparently ready to take it to the next level. He refers to her blatantly as his girlfriend to friends, tries to kiss her the whole time they’re at the movies, and keeps putting his arm around her. Kristy’s a bit confused about it, cause while she likes Bart, she isn’t sure she’s ready for a full-on relationship.

One night while Kristy’s baby-sitting for her siblings, Bart shows up after the kids have gone to bed and Kristy lets him in to watch the Mets game. And that’s really what she was planning on doing, but Bart has other plans and starts kissing her. This is still what’s happening when her mother and Watson get home, and they’re pretty pissed about it. Apparently, there’s some rule about how Sam and Charlie can’t have girlfriends in the house when no one else’s home. It never occurred to Kristy that the same rule would apply to Bart, which tells you everything you need to know about that relationship. But anyway, she’s grounded for the weekend, and blames Bart. When she’s allowed to use the phone again, she tells Bart this and says to stop calling her. But, then she’s all upset that he wasn’t calling her. Anyway, she finally ends up telling him she just wants to be friends. Which he accepts, but then Kristy’s upset that he asks another girl to a dance. This makes it sound like Kristy’s a little bit bi-polar, but I think it’s realistic…definitely more than any other relationship we’ve seen these girls have.

Anyway, Kristy and Bart do have a pretty mature talk about the whole thing, and both acknowledge that neither of them is totally happy with how things worked out, but that that’s kind of the way it has to be. And they still are friendly enough to have Krusher/Basher softball games.

Subplot: Kristy has an idea for creating her own version of the Guinness book of World Records, with crazy records set by kids. So, we’re forced to hear about sitting jobs where little kids do stuff like throw potatoes around the yard or catch cereal with their mouths, with a BSC member getting exhausted from watching them.

High/Lowlights

• Kristy tells us that she lives in the “countryish” section of Stoneybrook. She goes on to say that some people call it the rich section, but she doesn’t because it would make her sound snobby. But telling us that sounds completely un-snobby?

• Kristy’s talking to Anna (Abby’s sister) about music, but starts just going along with what Anna says because she knows nothing about music. She even says, she doesn’t know the difference between a French horn from an English muffin. But I’m pretty sure that isn’t really true. She couldn’t have come up with a better example?

• What’s weird, is that when Bart complains about Kristy always baby-sitting, she tells him he should join the club, then they could see each other more. Bart does the whole, “but I’m a guy” thing, and then says it’s different for Logan because “his girlfriend’s a member.” Which is really weird coming from the guy who keeps announcing himself as Kristy’s boyfriend. I think they just did it so Kristy could angst about he meant by it.

• Even as an adult, it seems really over-the-top of her mother to make her stay in her bedroom all weekend. I get that they didn’t want her to watch TV all weekend, but why not make her clean the place, instead of giving themselves the extra work of bringing her meal to her room?

• Watson’s actually the one who walks in on Kristy and Bart kissing…..it’s pretty awkward.

• So far days after it happens, Kristy keeps thinking about how much she hates Bart for “doing this to her.” Which is kind of bratty, but again, probably realistic.

• Claudia outfit: “A bowling shirt with the name Ralph sewn over the front pocket, and matching loose rayon pants, gathered at the waist with a leather strip. She’d pinned her hair with a barrette in the shape of two bowling pins.” She explains to Mrs. Prezzioso that she doesn’t actually bowl, and Mrs. P pretends that it’s a good look, but clearly thinks it’s weird. That may be one of the few times Claudia gets a weird reaction to her clothes.

• Stacey has to explain to Kristy that she may have hurt Bart’s feelings when she said she didn’t want to date him. Which should seem obvious, but since we’re talking about 13-year-olds, I’m thinking it’s realistic (apparently a theme for this book).

• In an attempt to help Haley and Matt “set records,” Mrs. Braddock buys a whole bag of potatoes, several bunches of bananas, and several rolls of toilet paper that the kids can use to break records. Which seems like a huge waste of money and food. Surely they could have found a more practical way to do it.

• They have this whole set up of Kristy talking about Charlie not being allowed to have his girlfriend over when no one else is home, and it’s really just an obvious set up for Kristy getting in trouble later.

• I’m somewhat surprised by Kristy being surprised that Bart introduced her as “his girlfriend.” I was always under the impression that she was embarrassed to admit it, mainly because she didn’t want Bart to hear her say that before he acknowledged her as his girlfriend. But maybe I was reading her wrong.

• As one of the stupid record things the kids are doing, Margo Pike peels bananas with her feet, which was also her talent from the Little Miss Stoneybrook Pageant. And I like continuity so that was one of the few good parts about the subplot.

• Not only do we have to hear about the kids trying to break records, we also have to see them put on a show demonstrating them.

• Kristy says at the beginning that the rule about Charlie and Sam not having girls over sounds like a dumb rule, but her parents enforce it. But I really don’t think that’s a dumb rule, it seems like a pretty obvious one.

• Whenever I hear about these girls doing a project, I can’t help but think how they would do it differently if the books were taking place today. Like, how they could have created a blog instead of a book, or could have at least made a better book than what’s described (basically a photo album with pages of text stuck in). They even reference using “fancy” computer software to make it, but it’s still sounds old-fashioned.