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Post by Kylie90210 on Oct 28, 2012 22:16:49 GMT -5
One thing I noticed is city living (loft/apartment) vs. suburban living (house). Maxie's 7 family members all lived in 3 bedrooms. I know that's not uncommon for NYC but it just stuck out to me. Curious... If you had a big family, don't you think you'd move out of the City?
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Post by virgoscorpio on Oct 29, 2012 1:24:37 GMT -5
^ I guess it just depends on the individual/couple/family's individual choice. Some people prefer the city, I guess.
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Post by Honeybee on Dec 23, 2012 4:08:45 GMT -5
So, I re-read this again. Just got finish. I was curious, if Stanmark Hotel was real. It's not. Theirs a jewelery store name Stanmark next to a hotel. I thought, be cool, if I ever visited New York. That, I could stayed at Stanmark Hotel. Saying to myself. Karen Brewer stayed at this hotel. (I know, she really didn't.) This time, I felt like I was in New York, at Christmas time. I took my time of reading it. Sometimes, I can read Karen's book in one day or two days. But, if it's one of my favorite books from Little Sister. I take my time of reading it. The Christmas book: Karen is telling her mom, Seth, herself & Andrew went to a bookstore to see Mr. Arthur McBain the author. Well, after the Author sign the book. Karen's mom told her the price. ($14.95 for hardcover.) Karen didn't mention, if her parents paid the book for her. They just left the bookstore. Did they paid for it or left the book there? They went to Madison Ave. Looking at other stores, before they went inside a gift shop. We came to a hardware store, a drug store, and a tiny grocery store. "Monkey breath," said Andrew.
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Post by booboobrewer on Dec 23, 2012 13:34:17 GMT -5
I thought it was the Stanhope they stayed at, but you're right, it's Stanmark. I guess I thought Stanhope because there is, or was, a Stanhope in NYC!
Karen mentions looking at two books before the trip, "This Is New York" and "Christmastime in New York City," those are both real. TINY is a cute book, and I always wanted to find the Christmastime one by Roxie Munro.
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supprazz
Sitting For The Newtons
Posts: 2,106
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Post by supprazz on Dec 24, 2012 6:10:53 GMT -5
I can't find a review for Christmastime in NYC, those both sound like good books.
I'm surprised Home Alone 2 Lost In New York wasn't referenced in this book to my knowledge, since the movie came out about a year before this book was published and was a smash. Since then, I wanted to go to NYC for Christmas and still feel I've missed out by not reading this book cause I could not find it.
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Post by virgoscorpio on Dec 24, 2012 14:28:03 GMT -5
This thread being bumped up actually inspired me to read this again last night. One thing that stuck out for me this time was on the first few pages where Karen talks about "snow walks at dark". It reminded me of traveling with my Nana and Popa and sister in the car to go look at all of the spectacular Christmas lights/homes in the city. One neighbourhood even had all the reindeer -- a couple on each house -- spreading throughout the area with Santa at the helm.
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Post by zoar3 on Sept 17, 2014 9:37:31 GMT -5
I read this last night to help cool off. I loved that Lisa took Karen and Andrew to the library in Stoneybrook to get a book about NY at Christmas. It was nice to see her interacting in an extra/different way with the kids. Also so sweet when Seth shared a book also about Christmas and NY form his childhood, This is NY. Wish he had shared a related memory of reading it with his parents or maybe going to NY as a little boy. The Christmas show Karen and family saw with Maxie and her family and getting to meet some of Maxie's family, was cool, too. I admit to not being too big a Maxie fan from Pen Pal but did like her in this one. Loved the sound of the windows at Lord and Taylor's that were decorated with town wintry and Christmas scenes--a house with decorations kids skating, even a puppy Sounded very cool and reminded me a little of Small World and also in a Bobbsey Twins book there was a fictitious boat ride that took riders past every day town scenes including a school playground with kids playing, I thought of that here too. I did Google Guys and Dolls, the musical Karen and her family saw and am not quite sure why Lisa and Seth took their two young kids to see that but maybe in Stoneybrook the version is different like I believe 16 candles was? I am editing because I forgot to say that I learned from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guys_and_Dolls That someone named Frank Loesser wrote the music. I wonder if he was related to Wendy from Jessi and the Bad Baby-sitter? All the shopping did tire me out, though finding souvenirs can be fun and so looking for a special gift for someone can for sure be meaningful, too. I can understand Karen wanting to find something special for Nancy and Hannie and it was nice to read Lisa bought Hannie's mom a Christmas gift of I think wind chimes. There was that connection between BSC family and client/friend parents. Karen was very kind to donate her money at the end, too. I think I said this somewhere else, so funny when Andrew said "home again, home again jiggety jig," when they get back to the little house. I really have come to love Andrew and so good to get to know him a little better in the LS books.
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Post by Honeybee on Sept 19, 2014 15:08:40 GMT -5
I love reading this book, during the Holidays. I'll be rereading it again this year. Around December.
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Post by booboobrewer on Sept 19, 2014 15:26:12 GMT -5
I think as a kid I enjoyed reading holiday books even in spring/summer because it made me look forward to them--it would make me want to start on my Christmas list, for one. Lol
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Post by Honeybee on Dec 27, 2016 21:15:16 GMT -5
The St. Patrick's cathedral. Did Baby-sitters little sister books ever mention, that Karen and her family went to church or visit a churc?
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Post by booboobrewer on Dec 5, 2021 0:59:20 GMT -5
^i don’t think so.
I was thinking of this book today. As a kid I really wanted Karen’s coat on the cover. Ann must have glided through writing this one since she loves NY.
In her official bio it said she takes (or took) the whole month of December off to prepare for Christmas. Lucky duck!
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Post by m0drnmoonlight on Dec 8, 2021 14:56:44 GMT -5
I grew up in NY and always went to the city during the holidays so I really loved this one. Definitely dated though because FAO Schwarz closed a few years ago (though I believe it's been reopened recently) and just in the past two years or so, Lord and Taylor went bankrupt and all of those are gone now too. A lot of other stores still do fancy windows - Macy's, Saks, Bergdorf Goodman.
I did get Karen's frustration when she was looking for gifts for Hannie and Nancy at FAO Schwarz. That place is expensive!
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Post by sparklymouse on Dec 23, 2021 21:23:31 GMT -5
Karen packed like I do. I had to spend one night in a hotel this month, and I wanted to take the whole house with me. I liked how she justified packing so many dresses because she "spills a lot". I found so many little throwaway lines funny in this one. Karen wondered why there was a coffee maker in the hotel bathroom. Karen told Andrew that the Macy's Santa was probably Santa's chief helper, so Andrew kept addressing him as "Chief". Karen and Maxie's fake French conversation. ("Voosee, vahsee chacha?" "Oh, oui, non, vavoo, beebay." Haha.) Karen said sharing a bed with Andrew was like sleeping with an eggbeater. (I was the same way, Andrew. It's ok.) Karen said she could write cursive better than the author guy because his signature was such a scribble. Andrew's curse word of "monkey breath". Andrew thought Rumpelmayer's was Rumpelstiltskin. Karen's description of the last Santa's bad costume. (Skinny, fake beard, could see his hair under his wig. I always wondered what kids thought when they saw a bad Santa.) Oh, and Andrew's "Home again, home again, jiggety jig" when they got back to Stoneybrook. (Again, I felt the same way when I got home, Andrew. ) I totally felt Karen's growing panic and frustration over the gifts. I actually thought the autographed books were a cool idea even if they had never heard of the author. She essentially had enough money for one. I felt like Lisa should have done her a solid and bought the other one for her. Yes, the donation was a learning experience for the Three Musketeers. However, Hannie knew how much money Karen had to spend down to the last cent. That girl was wanting her gift. Last thing. Andrew sat on someone's lap when Karen and Maxie's families took taxis. That made me wonder, how do people with little kids take taxis in big cities? Like, without car seats and stuff? I've never really thought about that.
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