macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
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Post by macca on Oct 23, 2006 18:01:07 GMT -5
Wow, Abby was a major BIATCH in this one, but it was nice to see some realism for a change. The way she acted was typical of a self-centred, 13 yr old girl. Could've done without all the soccer talk (totally unathletic here) but did enjoy the conflict. Also felt the "PC" aspect was for once presented in a subtle manner and not so totally in your face.
Why is Abby's dead father such a prominent aspect of EVERY SINGLE Abby-narrated book? He always seems to play a part somewhere.
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Post by spazgirl on Oct 23, 2006 19:37:36 GMT -5
"Is it because I have mental retardation?" I thought the PC aspect was almost over the top. Although I was confused because I didn't realize until almost the end of the book that the girl Abby was rivaling against was mentally disabled. Abby's stubborness sure is annoying though. I would've liked this book more if she had gone to her father's grave with her family.
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Post by aln1982 on Oct 24, 2006 15:00:56 GMT -5
I agree with spazgirl about the PC. I had forgotten about that quote she mentioned but noticed it when I read the book. I also was confused at first about whether the other girl was mentally disabled. I did think Abby was a jerk, though. In all, I couldn't stand this book. But I never like reading the books about the kids with "mental retardation" (I feel like a jerk, myself, for saying that but it's the truth.)
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lilafowler
Sitting For The Johanssens
Posts: 1,163
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Post by lilafowler on Oct 24, 2006 19:42:49 GMT -5
^Was this one worse than Dawn and Whitney, Friends Forever?
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Post by spazgirl on Oct 24, 2006 20:54:16 GMT -5
Nothing is worse than "Dawn and Whitney, Friends Forever". This one was just too pc, but not sappy like Dawn and Whitney. At least not when it came to those with mental retardation.
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Post by baseballchica03 on Oct 24, 2006 22:17:17 GMT -5
I don't get why Kristy was so pissed. I can understand being annoyed about Abby (or anyone) being a bad sport, especially if her "rival" was mentally disabled, but Kristy took it WAAAAY too far.
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Post by aln1982 on Oct 25, 2006 7:45:25 GMT -5
I don't remember Kristy in this one. Maybe I'll have to reread just to see what my feelings are on her - if I can get through it again. I also disliked none of the books more than Dawn and Whitney, Friends Forever except maybe Kristy and the Secret of Susan or Jessi and the Awful Secret (stereotypical "girl is anorexic" stories are one of the biggest things that annoy me.)
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lilafowler
Sitting For The Johanssens
Posts: 1,163
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Post by lilafowler on Mar 18, 2007 15:15:42 GMT -5
I just read this one for the first time. I definitely didn't realize Erin was mentally retarded until she accused Abby of holding it against her. I feel like the moral wasn't as obvious as that of most other BSC books (not that I couldn't figure out Abby was being a thingy) -- I figured they could have either made Abby blatantly assume she was a better player than Erin because she was mentally retarded, as opposed to the throwaway comment she made when the team members were first introduced (something like, "I realized I was expecting the mentally retarded players to be worse than the partners"), or just have Abby dealing with her jealousy of Erin, without the fact that she was retarded. As it was, I was kind of confused about what the point of this book was.
I love horrible puns, and I totally cracked up when Abby said Petra looked "petra-fied". I also liked her saying Erin's job at the ice cream parlor was "cool", whether that was intentional or not.
Why was Connie 15 and still a student at SMS? The book is set in August, so Connie would be getting ready to start a school year at SMS -- if she had graduated from the eighth grade that June, she probably would have said she was an SHS student.
I didn't understand Abby's problem with going to her dad's grave. And she never mentioned having any problem with her paternal grandparents in Abby's Lucky Thirteen, so I didn't get why she was so reluctant to visit them.
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mckay
Junior Sitter
Posts: 672
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Post by mckay on Mar 18, 2007 23:05:12 GMT -5
I haven't actually read this one, but...isn't the phrase "mental retardation" politically incorrect these days? I know the book was written in 1997, but even then I don't think it was "acceptable."
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starrynight
Sitting For The Kuhns
The Royal Diner of Pizza Express
Posts: 4,004
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Post by starrynight on Mar 19, 2007 10:43:35 GMT -5
But I never like reading the books about the kids with "mental retardation" (I feel like a jerk, myself, for saying that but it's the truth.) I feel the same way...
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Post by aln1982 on Mar 19, 2007 16:11:04 GMT -5
So glad to hear I'm not alone. My least favorites in the series are this one, Kristy and the Secret of Susan and Dawn and Whitney Friends Forever. Though I am going to reread this one soon because I'm in a "soccer mood"
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mckay
Junior Sitter
Posts: 672
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Post by mckay on Mar 20, 2007 15:28:00 GMT -5
Dawn and Whitney almost amused me because, even as a kid, I recognized how awful and condescending it was.
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Post by aln1982 on Apr 16, 2007 23:34:47 GMT -5
Am rereading and hating less than usual. Still no way to avoid the thought that Abby is awful! Erin bugs me, too, because she seems so defensive of not being "stupid." I understand why she feels that way but she only makes the situation with Abby worse. And she is pretty competitive herself. I think Abby is setting a terrible example for the kids and was glad that Karen was so appalled by her behavior. Also liked how Kristy wasn't pleased with her and her attitude. As for the thing with visiting her dad's grave, this seems weird since her mom is usually the one who has the problems with remembering him, etc. And didn't Abby just see her dad's parents at her Bat Mitzvah and now she suddenly doesn't want to see them again?
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wanderingfrog
Sitting For The Arnolds
Official BSC Archivist
Posts: 2,552
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Post by wanderingfrog on Apr 17, 2007 0:09:55 GMT -5
Why was Connie 15 and still a student at SMS? The book is set in August, so Connie would be getting ready to start a school year at SMS -- if she had graduated from the eighth grade that June, she probably would have said she was an SHS student. Well, since Connie is mentally retarded, it's not that odd that she might have failed a grade or started school a year late. (I was looking at the book, and feel compelled to make the most pedantic, useless correction ever: Connie actually goes to Kelsey Middle School, not to SMS.) What bothers me the most about this book is that the mentally challenged players don't seem the least bit different from the other characters in any way except that they are slightly more giggly. I don't think it's very useful to give the impression that developmentally disabled people are exactly like everybody else in every single way. That doesn't teach anybody about tolerance or developmental disabilities or anything.
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Post by aln1982 on Apr 17, 2007 9:47:16 GMT -5
Why was Connie 15 and still a student at SMS? The book is set in August, so Connie would be getting ready to start a school year at SMS -- if she had graduated from the eighth grade that June, she probably would have said she was an SHS student. Well, since Connie is mentally retarded, it's not that odd that she might have failed a grade or started school a year late. (I was looking at the book, and feel compelled to make the most pedantic, useless correction ever: Connie actually goes to Kelsey Middle School, not to SMS.) What bothers me the most about this book is that the mentally challenged players don't seem the least bit different from the other characters in any way except that they are slightly more giggly. I don't think it's very useful to give the impression that developmentally disabled people are exactly like everybody else in every single way. That doesn't teach anybody about tolerance or developmental disabilities or anything. Agree. When I first read this one, I could barely tell if Erin was one of the "athlete" players. I finished this one a little bit ago and wanted to add that I was even more annoyed with Erin at the end. She seemed to have an attitude like "I know I'm good." Abby did at least make an effort but I didn't think Erin ever showed good sportsmanship. She seemed to have a really bad attitude - even worse in some ways than Abby. And it bugged me how she was telling Abby the "rules" on not "ever calling anyone stupid, ever." Come to think of it, some of her statements did show that she was mentally disabled as she seemed to have a somewhat "childish" perspective in things.
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