Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2006 21:37:37 GMT -5
^ It's just incredibly unusual for the father to have primary custody and the children's mother to never, ever be mentioned. jen, I wouldn't think any mother really could pack up and leave four kids behind, one of whom is a two yr old. I can think of one similar real-life example, but the kids were all in their teens and early 20s when the mum ran off. My grandmother did it to my mom and her siblings, and her youngest brother wasn't more than a few months old -- so, yeah, it can happen.
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macca
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,084
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Post by macca on Oct 4, 2006 17:36:16 GMT -5
^ true enough, I guess... but then why didn't we hear about how the elusive Mrs DeWitt "just ran off and left poor Mr DeWitt to raise four children singlehanded" as we constantly heard about Patrick Thomas? Oh yeah, these books were the work of a man-hating feminist ;D
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gabbie
New To Stoneybrook
Posts: 144
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Post by gabbie on Nov 16, 2006 16:48:41 GMT -5
I've just reread this book for the first time in years 1) Jeff is a brat but he is also the most realistic character in the series to my view. I have a brother and he used to act much the same way that Jeff did. 2) Why was Dawn writing to Kristy complaining about Mary-Anne? I mean Kristy is Mary-Anne's best friend.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Nov 16, 2006 18:36:54 GMT -5
This thread is inspiring me to write a fanfic on the Dewitt family and explore the backstory now. Why do I always have to get ideas for fanfics when I'm meant to be studying for exams?
Anyway, if someone could remind me the names and ages of the Barret-Dewitt clan, that would be great, as I can't find my complete guide. And then I'll get started as I procrastinate over actually learning French verbs!
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Post by aln1982 on Nov 16, 2006 20:21:43 GMT -5
I'm doing this from memory, so someone correct me if I'm wrong: Barretts - Buddy 8, Suzi 5, Marnie 2 Dewitts - Lindsey 8, Taylor 5, Madeline 4, Ryan 2 Good luck with your French verbs! Maybe Shannon could help (or Claudia - he he
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Post by sugarmonkey on Dec 30, 2006 14:07:14 GMT -5
64 books later I finally get irritated by how the fights always end. They laugh over something stupid (in this case a bad family portrait). And then they talk it out.
Sharon and Richard should've put their foot down much earlier. I would've been pissed to have my vacation ruined by three brats. I would've insisted we not separate and have two separate vacations. And MA can just stay in the kids room and let the parents get it on. I mean, they hadn't been married for very long, they were still basically newlyweds!
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Post by sotypical42483 on Jan 2, 2007 12:08:05 GMT -5
^ITA. I can't believe how Richard and Sharon allowed them to act on vacation. They let them ruin it!
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Post by hitzpink on Jan 4, 2007 18:45:11 GMT -5
Yeah, I couldn't believe that Richard and Sharon just let the kids ruin the vacation like that! Especially Richard, you'd think he would have especially put his foot down.
Even though Jeff was a total brat in this book, I liked him better than the perfect mini-babysitter Jeff in Island Adventure. He was actually realistic in this book and I liked that. I felt bad for Richard, though. It's not his fault he's not athletic!
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Post by aln1982 on Apr 17, 2007 23:23:19 GMT -5
Haven't reread for a while so will post more after that but just remembered something about this book that always bugged me. Even though I love the part about the Freedom Trail (brings back good memories of when I walked it), I thought it was stupid that MA the "guidebook" didn't know what the Boston Tea Party was. I never thought this made sense, especially since she's supposed to be good in Social Studies. I thought it would have been much better for Jeff to have not known and MA "the guidebook" to have launched into an explanation right from the book. I know the effect they were going for - to slip in some history - but think MA should have answered instead of asking the question.
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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 Apr 18, 2007 15:55:00 GMT -5
Even people who AREN'T good in social studies and history should know what the Boston Tea Party was!
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inge
Junior Sitter
Posts: 767
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Post by inge on Apr 18, 2007 16:16:17 GMT -5
I agree. I'm not even American and I know what it is, and I also knew it when I was in 8th grade.
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wanderingfrog
Sitting For The Arnolds
Official BSC Archivist
Posts: 2,552
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Post by wanderingfrog on Apr 18, 2007 16:25:52 GMT -5
Yeah, I think we've either discussed this before here, or someone mentioned it on the BSC LJ, but that was seriously stupid. I'm not American and I certainly knew what the Boston Tea Party was by the time I was thirteen. I would think it was unrealistic and dumb if Claudia didn't know what it was, let alone Mary Anne, who does well in school and is a walking guidebook every time she's on a trip.
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Post by liss31d on Apr 19, 2007 3:32:28 GMT -5
I'm not American and when I read this I was only 10 I think so I didn't know what the Boston Tea Party was at that point. But I am v v surprised that Mary Anne had no idea what it was. If they wanted to explain it to the reader, just have Jeff not know it. Much more realistic.
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Post by aln1982 on Apr 19, 2007 7:43:14 GMT -5
So glad to hear so many people knowing what the Tea Party was. I really needed to read this last night after getting off the phone with my 10 year old cousin and hearing that her teacher had them "skip" the whole American Revolution section in MI History and she thought the French won the French and Indian War - aagghh. What are they teaching (or not teaching) kids in Social Studies these days Anyway, I think I'm the one who brought this up before because history is such a big deal to me. Other points on this book, I haven't read for a while but want to again soon. I thought Jeff was a real jerk to Richard and that the fighting spoiled what could have been a fun vacation. But at the same time, I can relate as I have spoiled many of my own vacations by arguing and having petty issues with my parents and getting upset about things that just don't matter.
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Post by aln1982 on May 27, 2007 19:24:40 GMT -5
Just realized that I was the last one to post on this one, too, so sorry. I reread, though, and have some different thoughts. Anyway... I was a lot more sympathetic toward MA because I can totally see how she felt like Dawn and Jeff were picking on Richard. I thought he was great – trying to do whatever he could for Jeff and actually quite tolerant. Jeff acted like a spoiled brat, I thought, and MA was just defending her dad. By the end, she had become pouty and difficult, herself, but this was only after putting up with Jeff, who seemed to get Dawn on his side and incite her against Richard, too. I know that Dawn felt she was just sticking up for Jeff, but I didn’t think he deserved it. He was acting like a spoiled brat and being upset about the Pike triplets having new friends wasn’t an excuse, in my opinion. I really disliked Jeff in this one. I can totally relate, though, to a petty family fight making a vacation – or at least some of it – miserable and ruining the fun. I even had this happen one afternoon on my recent trip to Disney. All it takes to get me going if I’m in the right mood is for one of my parents to say something negative, so I can see how things got started and magnified in this book. It is a shame, though, because Boston is such a great place to visit. About MA and the Tea Party, I wonder if she really didn’t know or if she was just trying to change the subject or give her dad something to explain. This would make more sense. I never like Barrett-Dewitt subplots and this one was equally annoying. The only part that I did like was the beginning of the Barrett sitting chapter when Suzi and Marnie were pretending the box was a bus. I used to do this kind of stuff all the time – even had my dad build me a wooden box and put it on wheels and covered it to make a “covered wagon.” I also liked how the Barrett kids liked Franklin so much at the beginning. It almost seems like the Dewitt kids start a lot of the fights. I wonder what they would be like if not around the Barretts. When with the Barretts, I don’t like them. Of course, I don’t really like the Barretts when they are around the Dewitts either.
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