The Baby-Sitters Club #23: Dawn on the Coast

Dawn is going back to California for two weeks for spring break. Sharon is a little sad about her leaving, but takes her out for a celebratory dinner. After a breakfast of dry granola, she hops on the plane. She thinks her flight attendant looks like a kewpie doll and the woman ignores her the whole time to flirt with the guy sitting next to her.

From the moment she gets to California, she feels like she never left. Her dad takes them to Disneyland, the housekeeper makes healthy dishes all the time and she loves the sun. Sunny invites her over for a surprise and reveals that she started her own babysitting club with some girls in the neighborhood. They have meetings, make their own kid kits and are making their own collection of healthy recipes for kids. One of the girls even loves scary stories just like Dawn.

Dawn also gets a sitting job with two of the kids she once babysat for. She takes Clover and Daffodil to a carnival and loves being with them. The more she thinks about it, the more she wants to stay in California. She finally broaches the subject with her dad and he agrees to talk it over with her mom. She asks for a few days to think things over.

Sunny is excited and thinks she should move back. She makes a pro and con list that shows California as the winner, but can’t make up her mind. She tries calling Mary Anne, but she isn’t home. Then she realizes that she wants to share California with the people in her life, but moving back wouldn’t feel the same and she wants to go home to Connecticut.

Jeff acts out, but finally asks why she doesn’t want to come back. He thinks that she doesn’t want to live with a bunch of guys. She explains how much Connecticut feels like home. Her dad tells her that he knew all along she would go back. Dawn calls her mom, who reveals that she always knew Dawn might want to move to California.

The entire BSC comes to the airport to welcome her home. They giggle and gossip about her trip and everything that happened in town. Dawn thinks about how much she loves her mom, Connecticut and all of her friends there.

*How does Dawn know what a kewpie doll is or looks like? She doesn’t seem like the type to know about obscure dolls.

*Part of why Dawn decides to come home is Nicky Pike. He feels left out in his family and sneaks out to the secret passage. Kristy finds him and he tells her that he can’t wait for Dawn to come home, so she writes her a letter and tells her.

*Dawn’s dad tells her that she should bring the entire club back for a visit.

*I wish I had two weeks for spring break! Hell even in college I only got one week off for spring break.

*It always feels weird when Jessi writes one of the older girls. Here she sends Dawn a postcard after visiting her old neighborhood. It just doesn’t seem like they have any interaction outside of the club meetings.

*Dawn buys every member a pair of Mickey Mouse ears and gets Mary Anne a stuffed Minnie Mouse doll. That is a lot (a lot) of money. I remember paying like $20 for a pair of ears when I was a kid.

*Sharon is still dating Trip in this book and mentions that he’s taking her to a humor lecture. When she mentions her plans for the two weeks, she never even mentions Richard. And then she turns around and marries him in seven books.

*Dawn mentions at least three times that she could never, ever leave her mom. Talk to me in 50 books or so.