Scan barcode
A review by finesilkflower
Claudia and Mean Janine by Ann M. Martin, Raina Telgemeier
5.0
An excellent adaptation of a classic Baby-sitters Club book (originally #7, [b:Claudia and Mean Janine|48866|Claudia and Mean Janine (The Baby-Sitters Club, #7)|Ann M. Martin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1219219784l/48866._SX50_.jpg|47840]). This is one of the more emotional books, as Claudia's beloved grandmother, Mimi, has a stroke. The family emergency exacerbates sibling strife between Claudia and her older sister, Janine. The comic brings out all the emotion of Claudia's family storyline, as well as the humor of the baby-sitting interludes in which the rest of the club conducts a summer play group.
This is the last of Raina Telgemeier's Baby-sitters Club graphic novels; it would be nearly 10 years before Gale Galligan took up the mantle to make four more. Having read more of Raina's work, including her sibling rivalry rook [b:Sisters|18225810|Sisters|Raina Telgemeier|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1411022689l/18225810._SX50_.jpg|24902370], I understand why she related personally to this story, and why she rearranged the chronology to make it work in her quartet. It's also a strong, emotional story to end on.
Stray Observations
Scenes of Kristy and Dawn bonding in Dawn's barn are sourced from another book, [b:Dawn and the Impossible Three|233719|Dawn and the Impossible Three (The Baby-Sitters Club, #5)|Ann M. Martin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1390193163l/233719._SX50_.jpg|226353]. I guess this makes sense since this is now the first book after Dawn joins the club, but it's sort of weird to have a whole scene from Dawn's and/or Kristy's point of view in Claudia's book. Usually there's no scenes for which the main narrator isn't present except for "club notebook" interludes. The graphic novels do make the series a bit more movie-like and less intensely first-person, but there is still a very clear point-of-view to each one, which this scene - while nice - breaks a bit. (It also leaves Gale Galligan in a bit of a pickle when she goes to make the [b:Dawn and the Impossible Three|34381526|Dawn and the Impossible Three|Gale Galligan|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1505566948l/34381526._SX50_.jpg|55469893] comic, but as I mentioned, that was not on the horizon when this book was written.)
There's a nice little epilogue added onto the end where the sitters celebrate their first anniversary with a commemorative photo, and suggest ongoing continuity. It's not from the books but it's a nice way to leave the club, given that this was meant to be the last graphic novel. There's also a cute little text bit at the end that explains the process of making the art.
Most of the dialogue is straight out of the original book, although some elements have been modernized or changed. (Janine's computer classes are updated to being about web development, specifically HTML and PHP. This makes me pretty tickled as an HTML and PHP developer.) Notably, Janine is a little meaner! In the original I was constantly struck by how not-mean she was, considering the title, and that was one of my problems with the book. In the comic, she does snap at one point and call Claudia dumb. I think it's realistic for her to snap under pressure (as all of the family members do at some point or another), and her being actually kind of mean makes Claudia's difficulty getting along with her more sympathetic.
This is the last of Raina Telgemeier's Baby-sitters Club graphic novels; it would be nearly 10 years before Gale Galligan took up the mantle to make four more. Having read more of Raina's work, including her sibling rivalry rook [b:Sisters|18225810|Sisters|Raina Telgemeier|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1411022689l/18225810._SX50_.jpg|24902370], I understand why she related personally to this story, and why she rearranged the chronology to make it work in her quartet. It's also a strong, emotional story to end on.
Stray Observations
Scenes of Kristy and Dawn bonding in Dawn's barn are sourced from another book, [b:Dawn and the Impossible Three|233719|Dawn and the Impossible Three (The Baby-Sitters Club, #5)|Ann M. Martin|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1390193163l/233719._SX50_.jpg|226353]. I guess this makes sense since this is now the first book after Dawn joins the club, but it's sort of weird to have a whole scene from Dawn's and/or Kristy's point of view in Claudia's book. Usually there's no scenes for which the main narrator isn't present except for "club notebook" interludes. The graphic novels do make the series a bit more movie-like and less intensely first-person, but there is still a very clear point-of-view to each one, which this scene - while nice - breaks a bit. (It also leaves Gale Galligan in a bit of a pickle when she goes to make the [b:Dawn and the Impossible Three|34381526|Dawn and the Impossible Three|Gale Galligan|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1505566948l/34381526._SX50_.jpg|55469893] comic, but as I mentioned, that was not on the horizon when this book was written.)
There's a nice little epilogue added onto the end where the sitters celebrate their first anniversary with a commemorative photo, and suggest ongoing continuity. It's not from the books but it's a nice way to leave the club, given that this was meant to be the last graphic novel. There's also a cute little text bit at the end that explains the process of making the art.
Most of the dialogue is straight out of the original book, although some elements have been modernized or changed. (Janine's computer classes are updated to being about web development, specifically HTML and PHP. This makes me pretty tickled as an HTML and PHP developer.) Notably, Janine is a little meaner! In the original I was constantly struck by how not-mean she was, considering the title, and that was one of my problems with the book. In the comic, she does snap at one point and call Claudia dumb. I think it's realistic for her to snap under pressure (as all of the family members do at some point or another), and her being actually kind of mean makes Claudia's difficulty getting along with her more sympathetic.