A review by pixieauthoress
Claudia and the Genius of Elm Street by Ann M. Martin

5.0

It's been a while since I found a BSC book that I didn't read as a child, and I was happy to discover that I enjoyed this book reading it for the first time as an adult. Claudia, who although being a lovely girl and a gifted artist isn't school-smart, gets a babysitting job for a child genius whose parents parade her from one event to the next to win awards and gain fame. She finds this difficult not only because Rosie, her charge, makes her feel stupid in comparion, but also because they fail to bond because Rosie spends all of her time practicing for auditions. Eventually, as Claud and Rosie get to know each other better, they bond and Rosie reveals that she hates all of the performance she has to do and wishes she could do more fun things, like art. I know that people often complain that the BSC seem to save the day a lot and discover things about their charges that parents don't notice, but in this case I think it's realistic - it's natural that Rosie opens up to Claudia as they become close. In the end, Rosie cuts back on her activities and feels much happier. The subplot fitted in nicely, for once, as Claud was having an art show and Rosie gets to join in. I also felt that the portrayal of overbearing stage-parents and the lack of glamour in being a famous kid was interesting to read about and probably a reality-kick for any child reading it and wanting to be as famous and talented as Rosie. All in all, an excellent and fairly early BSC book. 10/10