macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
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Post by macca on Jun 25, 2006 22:56:32 GMT -5
I'm currently reading another childhood favorite by Judy Blume - Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret and while it would be ludicruous to compare the BSC with Judy Blume books, it makes me wonder? Should there have been a mention of the girls periods in the books? Of Mary Anne stressing because Claudia, Stacey and Dawn already had theirs and she didn't? Kristy wouldn't be likely to care, of course.
I remember we had this discussion a while ago and a few people said they thought it was unrealistic for the girls to be discussing their periods, but in my experience, pubescent girls did discuss these things with very close friends. Also, in the earlier books, the BSC were all hung up on who had bras and who didn't, so obviously SOME "private" matters were open for discussion. There was also the token Don't Get Pregnant at Thirteen, Gals (MA + 2 Many Babies) book. Shouldn't there have been a token Introduction to your Monthly Friend book?
That said, I think Margaret's experience - the opposite extreme - wasn't any more realistic than the BSC's absent puberty. Do any 12 yr old girls really lie in bed at night begging God for their periods, write to their grandmothers informing them when their friends periods began (who the hell discusses that with their Grandmother?!?) and throw themselves on their bed sobbing because they think they'll be the last of their friends to get It?! Do they really start clubs with one of the rules being that all members must wear bras, even the eleven yr olds?
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lilafowler
Sitting For The Johanssens
Posts: 1,163
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Post by lilafowler on Jun 25, 2006 23:02:32 GMT -5
I remember reading somewhere that girls who grow up without a father usually start their periods earlier, but maybe Kristy's brothers canceled that out, or her uterus was anticipating a really long eighth-grade year living with Watson in his -- get this -- real live mansion.
Also, I actually assumed that all the eighth grade girls were menstruating and that neither of the eleven-year-olds were, just because I started mine right before seventh grade. Very egocentric of me, but it provided an effective fanwank.
Finally -- I would murder my friends if I knew they were telling their grandmothers I had my period. Ugh.
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macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
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Post by macca on Jun 25, 2006 23:08:19 GMT -5
Heh, well I didn't get my period until I was 13 and in eighth grade, although I was one of the last of my peers to get it. I guess that's why I assumed the BSC should be either anxiously anticipating their periods or just beginning to awkwardly contend with the monthly arrival.
Also, on the grandmother thing. I was staying at my Grandma's house and started feeling sick and my grandmother asked me if my period was due. It wasn't, but I wanted to die. I didn't want to hear my grandmother mentioning those things at ALL!! Can't believe there are any 12 yr olds that would truly welcome such a discussion with an elderly relative.
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fluffy
New To Stoneybrook
Posts: 180
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Post by fluffy on Jun 26, 2006 0:10:43 GMT -5
I remember after recieving 'the Talk', my first thought was but that never happened to the BSC! It would have ben very comforting if they at least tried slipping it in casually, like the bra thing.
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Post by spazgirl on Jun 26, 2006 0:29:35 GMT -5
By the time I was 13 I was okay talking about my period with my friends. Although I had started when I was 10 and was pretty embarassed about it. So I didn't let on until I figured out which of my friends had gotten it and who hadn't. I actually lied about not getting it too for a while. I remember once I was reading a BSC book and my sister who is 5 years older than me asked if the babysitters ever got their periods. I scoffed and said no and she said "What? Theres never any like 'Ugh my cramps were so bad today I almost didn't go to school? Thats stupid." When I was 11 or so I just figured the sitters never got their periods. Made me feel older than them somehow haha. They delt with enough "major" topics that somone getting their period would have made an okay book.
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Post by secondhandshoes on Jun 26, 2006 2:52:58 GMT -5
Yeah, I always wondered about that too. I mean, I got mine when I was nine...and by the time I was thirteen almost all of my friends had gotten theirs. Are we supposed to believe that out of a group of 6 thirteen year old girls, none of them are supposed to have hit puberty? It's not something I discussed with my friends, but I most definately "almost missed school because of my cramps"
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Post by morbiddadestiny on Jun 26, 2006 11:32:36 GMT -5
i cried when i GOT my period.
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Post by sotypical42483 on Jun 26, 2006 14:22:43 GMT -5
It never bothered me that they didn't discuss their periods. I guess I always just assumed that they'd all gotten them already. Plus, these books are targetted at girls younger than 13, so I don't know that an 8 year old is interested in reading about periods.
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Post by aln1982 on Jun 26, 2006 16:09:03 GMT -5
i cried when i GOT my period. I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one. The day I got my period was a horrible day - I was ten and at a horse show with a motor home in Nashville 10 hours from home and no vehicle to go to the store. We had nothing but monsterous thick pads that I had to try to wear all weekend. It was miserable. I also got stung on the face by a bee the same day. Very memorable. As for talking about it with my friends, I'm a pretty open person and never was embarrassed to talk about cramps/etc with them. It was pretty embarrassing to say anything about it in front of my dad, though. I remember being humiliated when he was at the store when I had to buy pads or if he asked me what I had stomach cramps from. I did quickly get over that but it would have made an interesting BSC topic to have MA start her period. Wonder how Richard would have handled it.... This might have been a good bonding opportunity for her and Sharon. As for the other girls, I can only imagine how they would have handled it I predict that Kristy wouldn't have been bothered by discussing it in front of anyone and everyone, Jessi would be freaking out with worry because she hadn't gotten hers yet, poor Mal would start hers at 11 and be miserable with cramps and headaches like me. Truthfully, I never really thought about whether or not the girls in the books had their periods or not. It's just not a subject I like to think about and I read the books to get away from reality. I agree that it might have been more realistic - especially considering the target audience - to have mentioned it though.
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Post by greer on Jun 26, 2006 16:39:47 GMT -5
Stacey was always described as having an ample chest--or at least being able to nicely fill out a bikini. (Which makes me a little uncomfortable when talking about a 13-year-old.) Only Kristy and Mallory and Jessi were described as having no chest at all. Period and boobs go hand in hand, so it's sort of weird they were never mentioned. Maybe Ann just really resented hers or something.
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Post by morbiddadestiny on Jun 26, 2006 17:03:22 GMT -5
i cried when i GOT my period. I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one. The day I got my period was a horrible day - I was ten and at a horse show with a motor home in Nashville 10 hours from home and no vehicle to go to the store. ahhh! i was ten and at a shoe warehouse with my mom! i felt cheated getting it so early.
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macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
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Post by macca on Jun 26, 2006 17:30:34 GMT -5
It never bothered me that they didn't discuss their periods. I guess I always just assumed that they'd all gotten them already. Plus, these books are targetted at girls younger than 13, so I don't know that an 8 year old is interested in reading about periods. Even so, by the sounds of it, an 8 yr old isn't too far OFF getting her period. I can't believe how young everyone else got theirs! Nine and ten yrs old... wow. Strange how most of you felt cheated getting it so early. I felt cheated getting it so late! Ugh tweens, who can figure them out? ITA I could understand having no mention of periods if there was no mention of puberty whatsoever, but the girls DID seem to be quite taken with who had boobs and who didn't, who was wearing a bra etc. Stacey was even attracted to Pierre in SS#3 because of his breaking voice and Sam was desperate to start shaving in SS#8. Just periods remained absent.
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wanderingfrog
Sitting For The Arnolds
Official BSC Archivist
Posts: 2,552
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Post by wanderingfrog on Jun 26, 2006 19:41:39 GMT -5
I got my period when I was sixteen and in Grade Eleven. When I was a little kid, I figured that if I was obsessed with getting my period like Margaret Simon was, I'd be obsessively waiting for years and years and years, so instead it made more sense to think about it as little as possible. I didn't have to wonder, Ooh, ooh, am I normal? I already knew I wasn't normal. (No offense to any other late bloomers, if there are any here. I don't mean you're not normal, I guess, I mean you're not average.)
I always did think it was weird that the BSC never mentioned their periods. It might have seemed less weird if they hadn't ever mentioned bras, because then I just would have figured Ann & Co. wanted to leave the issue of puberty out of the series entirely, but with those bra discussions but no period discussions, it just seemed unnatural. (ETA: I guess I didn't read macca's last post too carefully, because just now I'm noticing that she already said almost the exact same thing.)
In Stoneybrook, girls don't bleed.
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Post by hitzpink on Jun 26, 2006 20:49:50 GMT -5
The only thing is, how would it have been handled? Would it have been a regular chapter 2 thing, ie: "Dawn is a real individual. She has her own style that we like to call California Casual. She was also the first one of us to start her period! Claudia wasn't far behind, but I'm still waiting for mine." Or would it have been a subplot (I can't imagine it being a main plot in a BSC book!) where one of the girls starts hers? Or just.. the girls randomly discussing it, like Stacey mentioning she has cramps or something?
Either way, I don't think it's too odd that it was never mentioned. I mean, maybe a passing mention here or there (the cramps thing) would have been cool, but I just think that AMM wasn't interested in taking the books in that direction. IMO there's quite a difference in saying "Stacey fills out her bikini really well" and diving into the period issue.
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macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
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Post by macca on Jun 26, 2006 21:23:49 GMT -5
^ Personally I think it should've been mentioned randomly, just in passing like the bra thing was. Definitely not as a Major Issue like in Are you there God, It's Me Margaret, because that level of obsession is unrealistic IMO.
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