corduroyspocket ([info]corduroyspocket) wrote in [info]babysittersclub,
@ 2008-04-17 18:22:00
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Entry tags:author: ann m. martin, discussion: books

Ann Strikes Back?
 I was reading the responses to the recent "least favorite book" post and saw the discussion on Mallory Pike, #1 Fan. I've never read that one myself, but I did see Tiff's snark on claudiasroom. this may have been a strange thing to take away from it, but I wonder if the book wasn't Ann's response to the millions of readers who asked her  if Stoneybrook was an actual place/if all the babysitting chapters came from experiences she had as a teenager/if the club members were real people, etc.  I was a lot like Mallory when I was 11 -seems like a lot of people were- so I have a bit of a soft spot for her. To that end, it seems really odd to me that the woman who created "Mallory Pike" allowed the ghostwriter to portray the character in such an unfavorable light. actually, maybe not odd but cruel. Any thoughts?


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[info]otempora541
2008-04-17 11:48 pm UTC (link)
The more and more I think about it, the way the author portrayed is very AMM strikes back, espically some of her behaviour. Perhaps this is why not that many people like the book?

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[info]corduroyspocket
2008-04-19 05:34 pm UTC (link)
yeah, maybe they realized it on a subconscious level, which caused them to dislike the book (but not understand why they felt that way).

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[info]cassandraclue
2008-04-18 12:42 am UTC (link)
Hmm, I've always felt that Mallory hit a little too close to home for Ann, and that's why boarding school was being considered for Mal while they were writing the series from the middle of the series on. It's mentioned in an author's note somewhere in the 70s, i think.

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[info]corduroyspocket
2008-04-19 05:41 pm UTC (link)
I can understand that. that's a difficult time in life, especially if you're trying to come to terms with your sexuality. On that note, has it ever been *confirmed* that AMM is a lesbian, or is that just fans' suppositions?

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[info]borrowedwings
2008-04-19 06:54 pm UTC (link)
I suppose it depends on your definition of confirmed. I can't find an academic source to confirm it, but I have heard from multiple people in the literary field that she has a female partner. I know someone who went to Smith College, AMM's alma mater, and AMM had brought her partner with her (and introduced her as such) when she spoke there.

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[info]catfactory
2008-04-18 04:45 am UTC (link)
I'm positive that the book was in response to fans' questions to Ann. Especially all the parts where Henrietta Hayes just randomly talks about how a book is published, or whatever, and the specific questions Mallory asks about how she got ideas and all that.

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[info]corduroyspocket
2008-04-19 05:48 pm UTC (link)
that's what I can't get, why Ann would have so much venom on that subject. the books were written for elementary-school age kids, and AMM was a teacher before she started writing...I can't believe she forgot that a)little kids tend to forget the answers to questions a few minutes afterwards and b)kids don't listen to each other.

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[info]willothewisps
2008-04-19 07:53 pm UTC (link)
Heh. This made me think of an episode on The Simpsons where Lisa runs into J.K. Rowling and asks her how the series will end. J.K. gets irritated and says, "He grows up and marries you. Is that what you want to hear?"

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