Kristy and the Worst Kid Ever is the 62nd book in The Baby-Sitters Club series.
Back Cover Summary[]
The big news in Kristy's neighborhood is that the Papadakis family is getting a foster child. The Baby-sitters think taking in a troubled child is a really special thing to do. Kristy's sure the new kid will fit right in.
Only Lou (and don't call her Louisa!) turns out to be a terror. She's rough and tough, and none of the kids want to play with her.
Kristy knows she should feel sorry for Lou. But Kristy's even sorrier that she has to baby-sit for her!
Summary[]
Lou's aunt and uncle take Lou and her older brother Jay in. Kristy notes at Lou's going away party that Lou will be one sitting charge the BSC will never forget. Lou gets a new puppy that she names Happy, and sends a letter to Kristy.
Subplot[]
There's an auction at school to raise money for new computers. The BSC tries to donate the best gifts; Kristy and her friends donate items from celebrities that they get when they write and free baby-sitting time. Some donations include: One student’s parents had donated dinner for two at their French restaurant. Another student, whose parents ran a sporting goods store, had donated an expensive new baseball glove. Cokie donated a three-minute shopping spree at Power Records.
The BSC's Donations includes:
- Kristy: Lorne Conners, whose album had won four Grammies [sic] the year before, had sent her an amazing T-shirt — with her autograph scrawled across the front and an autographed photograph of J.C. Kalisi, one of the first women ever to win an Olympic gold medal in track.
- Jessi received old toe shoes and a note from a famous prima ballerina.
- Mallory: one of her favorite authors sent a boxed set of her books, each one autographed and a warm-up blanket belonging to the horse that had most recently won the Kentucky Derby, and a note from the horse’s trainer.
- Stacey: a baseball autographed with the names of the entire baseball team that had just won the pennant.
- Mary Anne: a Cam Geary jacket that he wore in one of his movies.
- All together: Twenty-four (24) hours of baby-sitting to be scheduled at the convenience of the purchaser, donated by the Baby-sitters Club of Stoneybrook.
Meanwhile Jessi babysits the Craines and takes them for a walk to SMS, and the girls are amazed.
Characters[]
Kristy's Family
- Kristy Thomas
- David Michael Thomas
- Sam Thomas
- Charlie Thomas
- Karen Brewer
- Andrew Brewer
- Emily Michelle Brewer
- Elizabeth Thomas-Brewer
- Watson Brewer
- Nannie
BSC Members
Kids
- Linny and Hannie Papadakis
- Lou McNally
- Nancy Dawes
- Buddy, Suzi, and Marnie (mentioned)
- Margaret, Sophie, and Katie Craine
Preteens
Teenagers
Adults
- Mr and Mrs Papadakis
- Natalie Barrett (mentioned)
- Madeleine Prezzioso (mentioned)
- Ms. Colman (mentioned)
- Mrs. Craine (mentioned)
- Ms. Garcia
- Mrs. Graves - Lou McNally’s social worker
- Mr. and Mrs. McNally - Lou's paternal aunt and uncle
- Ms. Thames - auctioneer
Locations[]
- Brewer/Thomas House
- Papadakis House
- Kishi House
- Craine House
- Stoneybrook Middle School
Pop Culture and Real-Life References[]
- The Wizard of Oz
- Popeye
- Déjà vu (60s song)
- Little Women
- Monopoly
- Cabbage Patch Babies
- Big Bird
- Baryshnikov
- A Little Princess
- The Great Gilly Hopkins
- Cole Porter
Continuity and Inconsistencies[]
Continuity
- Kristy remembers the infant care class from Kristy and the Baby Parade. Jessi also remembers Andrea winning the stroller division.
- Patrick is still living in California
Inconsistencies
- Logan bids on a pair of pearl earrings for Mary Anne, despite the fact that she doesn't have pierced ears.
- SMS doesn't have a playground but had one in The Truth About Stacey
Ann M. Martin's Dear Reader Letter[]
Dear Reader,
For a long time I had wanted to write a story about foster children. One day my editors and I had a meeting and tried to figure out what the next year’s worth of Baby-sitters Club books would be about. We thought of ideas for twelve books, and decided that #35 would be the story about foster kids. We also decided that a great title for this book would be Stacey and the New Kids on the Block (the “new kids” being foster kids who move into Stacey’s neighborhood).
Now, keep in mind that it takes a year to make a book. The author has to write the story, of course, and the story has to go to the printer and be set in type. Also, an artist has to make a painting for the book cover. It’s a long process! I began to work on books #32, #33, and #34. At the same time, #35 had already been advertised as Stacey and the New Kids on the Block. Lots of kids saw the ad and thought the story was going to be about the singing group, which had suddenly become really popular. Readers were very disappointed when #35 was finally published and they discovered that the book did not star Jon, Jordan, Joe, Donnie, and Danny. In fact, it wasn’t about foster children, either. My editors and I had gotten excited about an idea for a mystery, and we decided to postpone the story about the foster child until this book, Kristy and the Worst Kid Ever. And I had to answer a lot of letters about what happened to the book involving the New Kids on the Block. See what can happen when you change your mind?
Trivia[]
- Lou's hair and clothing change from the original printing to the reprint in effort to make them look more feminine in an tomboyish way.
- Sam still works for the A&P
- Andrew’s not crazy about dogs, although he liked Louie and he likes Shannon, too.
- Kristy does extra studying.
- Dawn wraps her sandwiches in wax paper.
- Mary Anne may not remember her mother, but she still thinks about her and wonders what she was like.
- Mrs. Barrett called during a meeting time.
- Kristy used and still does pick the shortest books for book reports.
- This is the second appearance of the Craine girls.
- Claudia gives Kristy a make over at the sleepover.
- Mary Anne tricked Kristy by saying that she liked the Fritos dipped in butterscotch pudding, which made Kristy gag.
- The cover is described in chapter 10.
- Kristy likes getting new sweaters and even has a favorite.
- Stacey said her parents took her with them to an auction at an art gallery in the East Village in New York once
- Kristy donated and bought an autographed photograph of J.C. Kalisi, one of the first women ever to win an Olympic gold medal in track. She's one of her heroes.
- The BSC's group donation of free baby-sitting went for over a hundred dollars.