Stuck in Stoneybrook: A Baby-Sitters Club Podcast

We are happy to be joined by guests Marisa Crawford and Megan Milks, the editors of the fantastic new anthology We are the Baby-sitters Club! We dish on 1990s girl culture, Logan makes a comeback thanks to Megan’s thoughtful insights, and we try to decide what the heck IS a California girl (other than all three of your hosts)? Mikhail Gorbachev also makes an appearance. Obviously. Because anything goes in a Super Special.

Mallory is newly “poor” and the mean girls of Stoneybrook aren’t having it. Emily teaches us some important stuff about the welfare state (or the one we SHOULD have) and Esme is tired of Mr. Pike’s bullshit almost before it starts. Anne dishes EVEN MORE on “I Love Lucy” and we discuss beef between Hall and Oates vis-a-vis “We are the World.”

It’s been ONE YEAR since our debut Stuck in Stoneybrook episode! You guys have stuck—see what we did there?—with us through arguably one of the toughest years in recent history. But now we have many vaccines, a new president, AND a second season of The Baby-Sitters Club on Netflix is on the way. So this episode is dedicated to you, dear listener. We’re answering all the burning questions you’ve been wondering about, so get ready for a fun show! But we will leave you with one last question: “Are you crying?”

Breaking news: Bart is still hot! (Should we make this shirt?) We really enjoyed discussing this one—we delve into Cokie Mason’s mean girl motivation, whether Bart’s “moves” are realistic, what H.W. Bush press conference did Kristy tune into, and the first computer shows up in Stoneybrook, CT! If only the BSC hung around long enough to discover AIM. Plus, another BSC Big 5!

We are joined by the author and activist Kate Schatz to try to make heads or tails of this completely bizarre and molto problematic book. Topics include the writing process (or lack thereof?) of ghostwriter Mary Lou Kennedy, what specific kind of predator is Travis, and a dramatic reading of Zach the toxic misogynist defending ‘Merica. Most importantly—what hard rock was Travis listening to?

Hey y'all! Anne & Esme joined Jody & Alison on the Blume Saloon this past week! We both voraciously consumed Judy Blume back in the day (at basically the same rate as we read the BSC!). We were thrilled to join them for their wrap-up episode about "Starring Sally J. Freedman As Herself." We discuss animal sex, Jane Russell, and competitive twirling, among other things. It's a Judy Blume book club!

Jessi’s gets her legwarmers in a twist over the new Ramsey Family caregiver, Aunt Cecilia Dictator. Emily just has two “tiny” topics to cover: domestic labor and respectability politics. NBD. Meanwhile, Anne’s obsession with culturally weird, but significant foods continues as she teaches us about Tang. Poor Aunt Cecilia. Maybe she should join Nannie’s bowling league.

Dawn crumbles, Claudia excels, Anne relates, Jeff saves the day. Also we discuss what is and isn’t believable, fun little gender asides, which candy bars would be best/worst on a deserted island, and why this is our favorite Super Special so far. Sit right back and you’ll hear a tale!

Ronald Hennessey, wherefore art thou? We continue our series on indigenous erasure in Stoneybrook, as Emily links our love of property ownership with “ancient burial ground” ghost/horror tropes. We discuss in-groups and superordinate goals as a way to bring people together, and then get lost in a pop culture nugget-fest. Oh yeah—and there is a mystery involved…ish.

“Not enough boys” is more like it! Emily rants about public pools, Esme revels in Sea City, and Anne has a thing or two to say about Mary Anne’s “unrealistically mature” ice cream flavor preferences. We discuss crushes and how bummed we are that MA didn’t dump Logan, and also have some friendly Pike criticism. This also marks the first time your hosts play “Candy Store.” It’s as riveting as it sounds.