2 out of 5 stars
This is such a classic BSC cover. Their outfits are a little understated for their personalities, but it's still quintessential BSC. And that is the best thing I'll say about this book, unfortunately. I've hit a string of duds lately. But they're also not as well-known to me, which is kind of nice.
The story opens with Stacey and Mallory walking home from school and enjoying the crisp autumn air. I am so ready for fall and Halloween, it is not even funny! I've been stockpiling Halloween decorations for my new apartment for weeks now. It's going to be awesome. :) And now I'm trying to remember if there are any BSC Halloween books? Why can't I think of any? Anyway, the girls are walking home, Stacey loves math, Mallory has a lot of siblings, etc. Stacey gets home and her mom is there and looks really tired and worn down. She went on two job interviews and goes to take a nap. I always remember her mom working at Bellair's but she doesn't get that job til the end of this book. So I obviously read plenty of books after this one.
Stacey's "Old Dad" calls her and tells her he got a huge promotion at work, with a raise, and they're having a big dinner for him. He wants Stacey to come to the city for the weekend and be his date and even tells her to buy a new outfit. Which is as good a time as any to do What Stacey Wore to the dinner.
"Zingy's! That's all punk stuff!" (Mary Anne)
"I like to think of myself as the Sherlock Holmes of fashion," [Stacey said] "I'll put together the perfect outfit at Zingy's. Trust me. It'll be perfect for me and my dad."
By the time I left I was carrying a shopping bag in which were folded a hot pink (fake) silk jacket which fell to my knees, new black leggings, pink-and-black socks, and a black body suit. I planned to wear the outfit with black flats, and to dress it up with some jewelry and maybe a couple of barrettes in my hair.
The girls go shopping at the mall for Stacey's outfit and hit the new restaurant, The Rosebud Cafe. (Another thing I remember being there forever.) This is another classic BSC moment, the girls at the mall. It brought back memories of the hundreds of times I went to the mall with friends and my sister. Mall rats of the 90s unite!! :D
Okay, so let's get to the main story-line finally. "Stacey's choice" Stacey is at school when she gets called to the office over the loud speaker (tre embarrassing). The secretary tells her that her mom collapsed during an interview and that Mrs Pike is on her way to take Stacey to the hospital to see her mom. She's frantic, of course, and thinks the worst. But Mrs McGill just has pneumonia. Which okay, is pretty bad, but I feel like Stacey went waaay overboard. She stays home from school, sets up a schedule of adult sitters when she does have to go back to school, and decides to cancel her trip to NYC. Which of course pisses her dad off. And Stacey says some ugly stuff: "Maybe if you weren't a workaholic, there'd be something more in your life. But you're married to your job." ooh, harsh!!
In baby-sitting news, all the neighborhood kids are obsessed with ordering free/cheap crap from magazines. Like a stamp licker, bust developer, moondust, you know...crap. It's all fun at first, especially when they start getting the stuff in the mail. Who doesn't love fun mail?? But then they run out of money and they finally realize they don't need all this junk or it doesn't work or they're not that special with their moondust. And hey, they really want a yo-yo, the cool new fad. So they gather all their junk together and come up with a travelling road show, with skits and dances, to pawn their useless crap on other people. No one wants it of course, but they do pay for the performances. (The Pike triplets rap. I see a Vanilla Ice-esque career in their future.) In the end, the kids make back their money and get their yo-yos and everyone's happy.
Back with Stacey, she finally decides to go to NYC for the dinner on Friday night and come straight back home Saturday morning. Good compromise, right? Well, the train is late, there's traffic, Stacey has to iron her outfit, and they get to the dinner about 15 minutes late. Stacey gets up multiple times during the dinner to check on her mom and then wants to leave at like 10:00, before the fun even starts. Her dad is naturally annoyed, but Stacey doesn't care. There's a weird part at the train station where Stacey questions what happens to the homeless people when they die and no one ever hears about it. Morbid much? Stacey gives a guy five bucks and her dad tells her she "can't take care of everybody"; she replies "but I can try". Wow, subtle Stace.
A week or two go by, Stacey's mom is all better, Stacey hasn't talked to her dad, and Claudia buys the kids' wrinkle-away lol. (Trust me, it's never too early to start preventative measures!) Stacey realizes she shouldn't have had to choose between her parents and makes up with her dad. The end. Oh! There's baby pictures in the back of this one, I guess they started doing that now. Kind of fun.
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