macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
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Post by macca on Mar 16, 2006 19:35:33 GMT -5
For a Jessi book, this one was quite entertaining... and FUNNY! I couldn't believe it. Some of the Aunt Cecelia scenes were hilarious. However the basic plot was just... meh, personally I found the toupee-removal prank far more "horrible" than Jessi's act in the Follies. I think this is the book where the BSC writing style changed, it's very Peter Lerangis, the sort of forced teenage humor and expressions.
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Post by sugarmonkey on Mar 17, 2006 9:38:28 GMT -5
I vaguely remember this one. It was okay for a Jessi book. I liked the teacher in this one. How he decided that teaching wasn't his thing. I don't quite remember, does Jessi commit the pranks herself or just laugh at them? Either way I guess for BSC world this would be a case of a babysitter gone bad. Not as bad as Stacey, but bad for Jessi. Well, I guess she is only 11.
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Post by bscfan24 on Mar 17, 2006 12:07:36 GMT -5
My favorite part of this book was the BSC Follies. The backstory I didn't like at all. As much as I love Dolly Parton, Jessi's skit sounded awful.
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macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
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Post by macca on Mar 17, 2006 16:45:37 GMT -5
Jessi did a skit in the Follies featuring Mr Trout (and his bald head and tendency to pronounce R's as W's) which sent him over the edge, he never turned up to SMS again and basically skipped town. All the other pranks, Jessi just observed and occasionally laughed at. I didn't really think it was Baby-sitter Gone Bad, because Jessi was opposed to doing the skit (it was actually one of the two Dollies - a teacher - who insisted on it!). She did drop her books along with the rest of the class, though (only decided at the last minute).
For some reason, I found it sweet that Jessi wrote to him at the end - and that he wrote back.
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Post by bscfan24 on Mar 17, 2006 17:19:48 GMT -5
I did find the letters sweet. At least he knew that one of the students liked him. I still think it was kind of silly for the teacher to just let hte students drive him away to another school.....but if it worked for him.
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macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
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Post by macca on Mar 17, 2006 20:44:26 GMT -5
He wasn't even driven away to another school, he was going into computer programming or something... just discovered teaching wasn't for him, I guess.
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Post by bscfan24 on Mar 18, 2006 15:29:21 GMT -5
Ahh. That makes more sense. I haven't read that book in a long, long time. I might have to go back and re-read them.
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Post by aln1982 on Mar 26, 2006 17:43:46 GMT -5
I think Jessi didn't really want to do the stuff to Mr. Trout but wanted to fit in. I see her as kind of a follower and see that she really wants to be accepted in all of the books. I thought it was really nice that she wrote him a letter and apologized.
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macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
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Post by macca on Mar 26, 2006 19:02:13 GMT -5
Yeah, I don't think Jessi wanted to go along with the pranks either. But I think it was somewhat cowardly of her to do so, considering every Chapter Two makes reference to her struggle to fit in as The Black Girl. Surely Jessi could identify with Mr Trout and not just blindly follow the class tormenting and bullying, although that's easier said than done for an eleven yr old who's the Only Black Girl in sixth grade and desperate to fit in somewhat.
That said, Mr Trout was a big boy and considering he was a qualified teacher, really should've been able to handle the situation slightly better. Not that it excuses the class behavior. I liked the letter of apology too, it endeared me to Jessi somewhat.
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Post by sotypical42483 on Jul 18, 2006 12:07:52 GMT -5
I had to search back for the thread on this book! I HATED this book!!! I think it had a lot of potential, I thought it was going to be pretty good, but I hated it. Those kids were SO MEAN and the worst part was, the principal, the other teachers, and even Jessi's parents blame MR. TROUT! They said that he was too sensitive... but come on, those kids were total assholes. Especially in class. I mean, do people get on Mary Anne and tell her she's too sensitive? Not really, only when they're arguing. I just thought it was very messed up everyone blamed the teacher for the jerky students. That said, the Sixth Grade Follies could've been a good plot, I guess. The BSC follies were cute. Ooh this one was FULL of omg Jessi is black moments. The one girl doesn't go to Jessi's house for the meeting (her family wasn't nice to the Ramsey's when they moved in), the one kid's dad has to come scope things out, Jessi goes on and on about being black and playing one of the Dollies, and being a black GIRL and playing Mr. Trout, and the Dollies inform Jessi and her random friend that they want a good mix of students in the follies (meaning not just white kids, as Jessi says). Anyway, I hated how they treated Mr. Trout, especially with the whole Twout thing and the toupee thing I felt bad for him. I was happy Jessi wrote the letter at the end and he wrote back though
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Post by greer on Jul 18, 2006 13:17:28 GMT -5
I think it is kind of mr. Trout's fault though. What he said in his letter is true; teaching middle schoolers just wasn't the right career for him.
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lilafowler
Sitting For The Johanssens
Posts: 1,163
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Post by lilafowler on Jul 18, 2006 14:03:03 GMT -5
^I agree. I'm teaching that bitchy age group for the first time right now, and one thing I was repeatedly told was not to take any nuts from the kids, because once you do, it's over. Jessi's classmates are only eleven; once the sub came in he was able to take control quickly enough. I think part of Mr. Trout's problem was that he started out going too easy on them -- you can't get control of the class back once you give it up!
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Post by greer on Jul 18, 2006 15:34:00 GMT -5
I love how this board replaces certain words with "nuts."
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Post by supernatural babe on Jul 18, 2006 15:58:36 GMT -5
I read this and I was furious! Okay, I know every school has unruely kids but bloody hell SMS take the cake. Allright fair enough, Mr Trout should have asserted his authority straight away but the kids should know that enough was enough. The kids didn't give him cheek, they flat out went out of their way to humiliate and bully him. I ended up throwing this book across my room in disgust. Kristy really needed a slap. How can you laugh about someone being assaulted and say he brought it on himself. No, he didn't ask the kids to rip the wig from his head. ^^^Isn't that a criminal offence?^^^
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lilafowler
Sitting For The Johanssens
Posts: 1,163
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Post by lilafowler on Jul 18, 2006 18:25:14 GMT -5
It's such a random word, too. Eat nuts and die!
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