OMG. I loved the BSC when I was little. Though I doubted it, a small part of that love must have lived on in me somewhere (like the way chicken pox lives on in your body even after you're well again) because I enjoyed reading this comic version so much. It was pretty embarrassing to be reading this on the bus and smiling, but I was so happy to be able to re-experience being twelve years old that it didn't bother me. ( )

⅘ stars
Raina is such an amazing illustrator and from someone who loved the novels, this brings them to life, we get to see the characters in colour and the settings.
( )

This is one of my little sister's favorite books and I had nothing else to do this afternoon so I read it. It was a pretty frustrating experience. These girls are some of the most short-tempered I've ever seen in a book. One breaks down in tears because her mother calls another one of the girls "my." The main conflict of the book starts because one girl takes a job of taking care of a baby without asking the other girls? What middle-schooler would prefer to take care of a crying, poopy baby instead of an older child?

Overall I found the story dull and frustrating, but I'm giving it the benefit of the doubt and assuming it would be better if I was 11. ( )

In the last installment, the BSC banded together to fight off the rival Baby Sitters Agency, but in this story, their conflict is with each other; it stems from "job-hogging" but ends with none of the members talking to any of the others.

Shy Mary Anne makes a new friend, Dawn, during this period, and the two of them realize that Dawn's mom and Mary Anne's dad dated in high school.

After a near-disaster at Jamie Newton's fourth birthday, the club makes up, and accepts Dawn into its ranks. ( )

After their facedown with the "Baby-Sitters Agency," the Baby-Sitters Club thought they could handle any problem that they came their way. But can they survive a big argument among its members? Meanwhile, Mary Anne chafes against her strict father's rules and surprises everyone by making a new friend, Dawn.

This book is the third in a graphic novel series based on the middle-grade novels of the same name. Having read the originals years ago when I was a tween myself, I can no longer remember enough about them to make a point-by-point comparison, so this review will be about the graphic novel as a standalone work.

This book picks up right where the last one ended, moving from late fall/early winter of the girls' seventh grade year to spring. Although I suppose you could pick up this book on its own, it certainly stands up better after reading the first two titles. The focus has shifted now to Mary Anne as narrator, and we see the majority of events from her point of view, with a handful of babysitting exceptions.

What's nice about this series is how it can tackle some heavier issues while still remaining light-hearted and full of humor. Everything remains at an appropriate level for young readers. For instance, one lovely page spread features wordless panels as a glum Mary Anne goes to visit her mother's grave and sits quietly there. Mary Anne (and the other girls) continue to show a lot of responsibility and maturity, despite their flare-up at each other.

The illustrations are in Telegemeier's recognizable style, which allows for a lot of emotion to be seen. There could be a little more diversity among the cast; there seem to be a disproportionally high number of blonde and red-headed people in this town as compared to the actual population. ( )