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ariatari's review
2.0
Teenage drama. Teenage angst. Need I say more? Mediocre, stereotypical account of teenage life.
finesilkflower's review against another edition
2.0
Dawn freaks out over a concert.
After their catastrophic fight, Dawn misses Sunny (but is not willing to admit any fault, cut Sunny any slack, and honestly doesn't seem to like Sunny much. She SAYS "I miss her," but doesn't make you feel it. Anyway.) Dawn is psyched when Ducky scores tickets to her favorite band and invites her along, but she feels nervous that he's also invited Sunny. She makes some half-hearted attempts to make up with Sunny before the concert, but Sunny isn't interested. The concert is predictably disastrous
As in [b:Dawn: Diary 2|361717|Dawn Diary 2 (California Diaries, #7)|Ann M. Martin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1389730686s/361717.jpg|351816], Dawn has some nice moments with Mrs. Winslow and with Ducky (she is super up on Ducky in this book, repeatedly stating that she loves him, holding his hand to comfort him, etc.) But she is overall insufferable. She has no sense of perspective, gets mad at Carol for suggesting that what Sunny is going through is harder than what she is going through w/r/t Mrs. Winslow's illness, and over-obsesses about this dumb concert because she has nothing else to worry about.
Granted, this is in-character for her; the other characters are also terrible here, and in an OOC way. Sunny is just plain mean when she should be overly glib and cuttingly sarcastic. Ducky is sweet, but bland; he has hardly any quips. At one point he wears a sideways cap. NO. YOU DON'T GET IT. A bowler, maybe. A trilby, yes. Newsboy cap, fine. NEVER a baseball cap. NEVER.
Stuff Bad Kids Do One recurring conundrum of the California Diaries is that it feels the need to make itself edgy by discussing topics like underage drinking and drugs, but it can't bring itself to do so matter-of-factly lest that normalize them. This book reaches new heights of vagueness in a sequence where Dawn and Maggie go shopping in the Square, which I guess is supposed to be sort of like the Village, with little shops where you can get "leather clothes, ripped clothes, incense, and hair dye," noting that her dad doesn't like her shopping there because of the people who hang out there: "Dad calls them punks and constantly reminds me of the dangers of marijuana. If only he knew what those kids really do." Uh, what? Maggie and Dawn stop in the Tea Shop: "You can buy an awful lot more than tea there, and I don't mean just food." Um, again, what? Seriously, it could be a lot of things. "Maggie and I didn't go into the back of the Tea Shop, which is where the interesting things happen," Dawn adds, but declines to go into it any further. Okay, I was thinking head shop, but now I'm thinking... prostitution? I don't even know. Also, I can't imagine that a place that's a front for illicit substances/activities of any description is actually a good place to get tea, so if you're not going to bother going in The Back, WHY ARE YOU EVEN THERE.
The Ambiguously Gay Ducky:
Author Gratefully Acknowledges: There's no acknowledgement. Does this mean this one was written by Ann M.? I hesitate to say that explains why it's terrible, because Ann M. obviously created the series and also has personally written many of my top favorite BSC books and the ones I think are legitimately the best, including the first dozen or so. [b:Kristy's Great Idea|233722|Kristy's Great Idea (The Baby-Sitters Club, #1)|Ann M. Martin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1389241314s/233722.jpg|2302767] is really seriously good! But a lot of her later books just have this blandness and dullness to them. I should have known it was an Ann M. book when Dawn spent the first chapter doing nothing and reading the newspaper. And when Dawn daydreams about watching Gone With the Wind with her celeb crush (along with When Harry Met Sally and Buffy the Vamprire Slayer? For some reason?) Ann M. is the only one who thinks Gone With the Wind is a romantic movie that young teens would like, not a four-hour racist soap opera.
Timing: February 5 to March 13
Revised Timeline: Counting the number of in-book years that have passed since Dawn was introduced at age 12 in [b:Dawn and the Impossible Three|233719|Dawn and the Impossible Three (The Baby-Sitters Club, #5)|Ann M. Martin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1390193163s/233719.jpg|226353], she should be 23 now. Okay, so a lot of the underage drinking/calling Dad to come get us stuff doesn't make a lot of sense when the characters are 23+. Drinking and driving is dangerous at any age, but Dawn's not drunk, so couldn't she just drive? Maybe she's one of those annoying people who never learned to drive because she never intended to own a car for environmental reasons, like me.
After their catastrophic fight, Dawn misses Sunny (but is not willing to admit any fault, cut Sunny any slack, and honestly doesn't seem to like Sunny much. She SAYS "I miss her," but doesn't make you feel it. Anyway.) Dawn is psyched when Ducky scores tickets to her favorite band and invites her along, but she feels nervous that he's also invited Sunny. She makes some half-hearted attempts to make up with Sunny before the concert, but Sunny isn't interested. The concert is predictably disastrous
Spoiler
as Sunny and Ducky both get blasted on tequila shots (oh, Ducky, why?) and Dawn calls her dad to prevent him driving home. Sunny gets bent out of shape and takes the bus home to avoid a lecture from Dawn's dad. At the very end, Dawn learns that Mrs. Winslow's apparent improvement isn't because she's recovering--it's because she's stopped treatment. Dawn finally goes next door to comfort a crying Sunny.As in [b:Dawn: Diary 2|361717|Dawn Diary 2 (California Diaries, #7)|Ann M. Martin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1389730686s/361717.jpg|351816], Dawn has some nice moments with Mrs. Winslow and with Ducky (she is super up on Ducky in this book, repeatedly stating that she loves him, holding his hand to comfort him, etc.) But she is overall insufferable. She has no sense of perspective, gets mad at Carol for suggesting that what Sunny is going through is harder than what she is going through w/r/t Mrs. Winslow's illness, and over-obsesses about this dumb concert because she has nothing else to worry about.
Granted, this is in-character for her; the other characters are also terrible here, and in an OOC way. Sunny is just plain mean when she should be overly glib and cuttingly sarcastic. Ducky is sweet, but bland; he has hardly any quips. At one point he wears a sideways cap. NO. YOU DON'T GET IT. A bowler, maybe. A trilby, yes. Newsboy cap, fine. NEVER a baseball cap. NEVER.
Stuff Bad Kids Do One recurring conundrum of the California Diaries is that it feels the need to make itself edgy by discussing topics like underage drinking and drugs, but it can't bring itself to do so matter-of-factly lest that normalize them. This book reaches new heights of vagueness in a sequence where Dawn and Maggie go shopping in the Square, which I guess is supposed to be sort of like the Village, with little shops where you can get "leather clothes, ripped clothes, incense, and hair dye," noting that her dad doesn't like her shopping there because of the people who hang out there: "Dad calls them punks and constantly reminds me of the dangers of marijuana. If only he knew what those kids really do." Uh, what? Maggie and Dawn stop in the Tea Shop: "You can buy an awful lot more than tea there, and I don't mean just food." Um, again, what? Seriously, it could be a lot of things. "Maggie and I didn't go into the back of the Tea Shop, which is where the interesting things happen," Dawn adds, but declines to go into it any further. Okay, I was thinking head shop, but now I'm thinking... prostitution? I don't even know. Also, I can't imagine that a place that's a front for illicit substances/activities of any description is actually a good place to get tea, so if you're not going to bother going in The Back, WHY ARE YOU EVEN THERE.
The Ambiguously Gay Ducky:
- Ducky is as excited as Dawn to see the fictional Belgian rock band (??), Jax, and apparently for the same reason: the supercute lead singer, Pierre X. "Can you believe that in a mere week will be ON OUR WAY to see Pierre?" Ducky gushes. Not Jax, Pierre.
- At the concert, Ducky and Dawn dance; Ducky is "really good," of course. "People turned to look at him. After awhile, I couldn't keep up with him, so when this girl and this guy sort of started dancing with him, I signaled that I was going to head back to our table." Ah ha ha. Way to keep it ambiguous.
- When Dawn and Maggie return to The Square with Ducky, there's more "extreme window shopping (Ducky practically lives for it)."
- There's a weird moment early on, I almost hesitate to put it in this section, when Dawn tells Ducky, "I love you, you know that. So pardon me when I say that you are such a guy. That was such a guy thing to say." And Ducky is just sort of taken aback and doesn't respond. What? I don't know. I'm putting it here because I suspect it was meant to be a Ducky-is-gay hint, but it just doesn't come off. He's not gender-non-conforming, he shouldn't mind being called a guy (although it WASN'T a guy thing to say--it was a deeply emotional, friendy thing to say: it was "If Sunny ever needed you, it's right now.")
Author Gratefully Acknowledges: There's no acknowledgement. Does this mean this one was written by Ann M.? I hesitate to say that explains why it's terrible, because Ann M. obviously created the series and also has personally written many of my top favorite BSC books and the ones I think are legitimately the best, including the first dozen or so. [b:Kristy's Great Idea|233722|Kristy's Great Idea (The Baby-Sitters Club, #1)|Ann M. Martin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1389241314s/233722.jpg|2302767] is really seriously good! But a lot of her later books just have this blandness and dullness to them. I should have known it was an Ann M. book when Dawn spent the first chapter doing nothing and reading the newspaper. And when Dawn daydreams about watching Gone With the Wind with her celeb crush (along with When Harry Met Sally and Buffy the Vamprire Slayer? For some reason?) Ann M. is the only one who thinks Gone With the Wind is a romantic movie that young teens would like, not a four-hour racist soap opera.
Timing: February 5 to March 13
Revised Timeline: Counting the number of in-book years that have passed since Dawn was introduced at age 12 in [b:Dawn and the Impossible Three|233719|Dawn and the Impossible Three (The Baby-Sitters Club, #5)|Ann M. Martin|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1390193163s/233719.jpg|226353], she should be 23 now. Okay, so a lot of the underage drinking/calling Dad to come get us stuff doesn't make a lot of sense when the characters are 23+. Drinking and driving is dangerous at any age, but Dawn's not drunk, so couldn't she just drive? Maybe she's one of those annoying people who never learned to drive because she never intended to own a car for environmental reasons, like me.
sammah's review against another edition
3.0
Dawn, honey. We need to have a talk. How on earth can you be so boring? I do not understand this, at all.
I'd like to say that this is where we part ways, but it isn't. I still have like 100 BSC books to go in my epic re-read of all things BSC-verse related. At least, I guess, the California Diaries made me hate you slightly less.
Slightly.
Lil bit.
Sorta.
I'd like to say that this is where we part ways, but it isn't. I still have like 100 BSC books to go in my epic re-read of all things BSC-verse related. At least, I guess, the California Diaries made me hate you slightly less.
Slightly.
Lil bit.
Sorta.
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