My girlhood heroines were the girls of The Baby-Sitters Club — Kristy, Mary Anne, Claudia, Stacey, Dawn, Mallory and Jessi.
These girls taught me about growing up, responsibility, diversity and accepting others for who they were. Stacey’s diabetes taught me that some kids had daily health problems to contend with. Dawn’s tough transition from California to the East Coast taught me to be nice to the new kid in class, and Jessi and Claudia taught me that we’re all the same on the inside and not to discriminate against others because of the colour of their skin.
Each of the girls was so different, yet in each of them I saw a bit of myself and also qualities that I wanted to possess. I related to Mary Anne’s shyness and love of books, and would have done anything to be more like Dawn with her cool Californian attitude.
I can’t say that I think about The Baby-Sitters Club every day, but when I do I look back with fond memories as if they were childhood friends of my own.
The great thing about these books is that they’ll be around for a long time for future generations of girls to read and enjoy.
-Lucinda R.