Rereading My Childhood by Amy A. Cowan

Amy A. Cowan is rediscovering the books of her childhood and writing about them on the way: The Baby-Sitters Club, Goosebumps, and Fear Street.

See her website for everything she's doing at Mind Full of Marbles or follow her on Twitter at @amyacowan.

For updates on Rereading My Childhood, follow @RereadMyChildhd on Twitter.

For updates for the newest entries only on WordPress, follow @mindfullofmrbls.

For everything, follow me at @amyacowan.

Season 1

1: The Baby-Sitters Club #1: Kristy's Great Idea

2: The Baby-Sitters Club #2: Claudia and the Phantom Phone Calls

3: Goosebumps: Monster Blood

4: The Baby-Sitters Club #7: Claudia and Mean Janine

5: The Baby-Sitters Club #3: The Truth About Stacey

6: The Baby-Sitters Club #4: Mary Anne Saves the Day

7: Goosebumps: A Shocker on Shock Street

8: The Baby-Sitters Club #5: Dawn and the Impossible Three

9: The Baby-Sitters Club #6: Kristy's Big Day

10: Fear Street Sagas #1: A New Fear

11: Fear Street Sagas #2: House of Whispers

12: Fear Street Sagas #3: Forbidden Secrets

13: Goosebumps: The Haunted Mask

14: Fear Street: Halloween Party

15: The Baby-Sitters Club #22: Jessi Ramsey, Pet-Sitter

16: The Baby-Sitters Club #8: Boy-Crazy Stacey

17: Goosebumps: The Blob That Ate Everyone

18: The Baby-Sitters Club #9: The Ghost at Dawn's House

The Baby-Sitters Club by Ann M. Martin

Rereading My Childhood by Amy A. Cowan
TitlePodcastMediumWattpadWordPress
Super Special #3: Baby-sitters' Winter Vacation    
#29: Mallory and the Mystery Diary    
#28: Welcome Back, Stacey!    
#27: Jessi and the Superbrat    
#26: Claudia and the Sad Good-bye2021/12/302022/01/062022/01/272022/02/10
#25: Mary Anne and the Search for Tigger2021/12/022021/12/042021/12/232022/01/06
Super Special #2: Baby-Sitters' Summer Vacation2022/06/162022/06/302022/07/212022/08/04
#24: Kristy and the Mother's Day Surprise2022/05/052022/05/192022/06/092022/06/23
#23: Dawn on the Coast2022/05/192022/06/022022/06/232022/07/07
#22: Jessi Ramsey, Pet-SitterPodcastMedium2021/12/052022/01/05
#21: Mallory and the Trouble With TwinsPodcast - Coming SoonMediumWattpadWordPress
#20: Kristy and the Walking DisasterMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
#19: Claudia and the Bad JokeMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
#18: Stacey's MistakeMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
#17: Mary Anne's Bad Luck MysteryMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
#16: Jessi's Secret LanguageMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
#15: Little Miss Stoneybrook . . . And DawnMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
#14: Hello, MalloryMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
#13: Good-bye Stacey, Good-byeMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
Super Special #1: Baby-Sitters on Board!MediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
#12: Claudia and the New GirlMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
#11: Kristy and the SnobsMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
#10: Logan Likes Mary Anne!MediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
The Baby-Sitters Club NotebookMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
#9: The Ghost at Dawn's HousePodcastMediumWattpadWordPress

#1: Kristy's Great Idea

The Baby-Sitters Club #1: Kristy's Great Idea

#2: Claudia and the Phantom Phone Calls

The Baby-Sitters Club #2: Claudia and the Phantom Phone Calls

#3: The Truth About Stacey

The Baby-Sitters Club #3: The Truth About Stacey by Ann M. Martin

#4: Mary Anne Saves the Day

The Baby-Sitters Club #4: Mary Anne Saves the Day by Ann M. Martin

#5: Dawn and the Impossible Three

The Baby-Sitters Club #5: Dawn and the Impossible Three by Ann M. Martin

#6: Kristy's Big Day

The Baby-Sitters Club #6: Kristy's Big Day by Ann M. Martin

#7: Claudia and Mean Janine

The Baby-Sitters Club #7: Claudia and Mean Janine

#8: Boy-Crazy Stacey

The Baby-Sitters Club #8: Boy-Crazy Stacey by Ann M. Martin

33+33+33+32
1-33; 34-66; 67-99; 100-131

Super Specials

5+5+5+5

Mysteries

9+9+9+9
1-9; 10-18; 19-27; 28-36

Super Mysteries

1+1+1+1

Special Edition Readers' Requests

1+1+1

Portrait Collections

2+2+2

California Diaries

5+5+5

Friends Forever

4+4+3+3

Other Titles

Goosebumps by R. L. Stine

Rereading My Childhood by Amy A. Cowan
TitlePodcastMediumWattpadWordPress
A Night in Terror Tower2022/01/062022/01/202022/02/102022/02/24
The Blob That Ate EveryonePodcastMedium2021/12/232022/01/20
The Haunted MaskPodcastMediumWattpadWordPress
A Shocker on Shock StreetPodcastMediumWattpadWordPress
Egg Monsters From MarsPodcastMediumWattpadWordPress
Ghost BeachMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
The Scarecrow Walks at MidnightMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
Legend of the Lost LegendMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
Night of the Living DummyMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
Stay Out of the Basement!MediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb2021/12/23MediumWattpadWordPress

Monster Blood

Goosebumps: Monsterblood

16+16+15+15

Fear Street by R. L. Stine

Rereading My Childhood by Amy A. Cowan
TitlePodcastMediumWattpadWordPress
High Tide2022/07/142022/07/282022/08/182022/09/01
Silent Night2021/12/162021/12/222022/01/272022/01/13
Sagas #3: Forbidden SecretsPodcastMediumWattpadWordPress
Sagas #2: House of WhispersPodcastMediumWattpadWordPress
The Mind ReaderMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
Halloween PartyPodcastMediumWattpadWordPress
The New Girl2021/12/09MediumWattpadWordPress
Broken HeartsMediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress
Who Killed the Homecoming Queen?MediumComing SoonWattpadWordPress

Bad Dreams

Fear Street: Bad Dreams

13+13+13+12

Sagas

#1: A New Fear

Fear Street Sagas #1: A New Fear by R. L. Stine

5+5+4+4
1-5; 6-10; 11-14; 15-18

Super Chillers

4+3+3+3

In 2015, my father passed away. My mother couldn’t pay all the bills without assistance, so my partner and I moved in with her. It was a good situation for everyone involved – my mother received help and the new arrangement alleviated our bills. At the same time, Jon’s job situation stabilized due to the new, optimistic Obama economy (we were so happy before the Orange Menace).

For the first time in years, we had disposable income. I was also spending time with my mother browsing thrift stores, a hobby I forgot I enjoyed. At a Savers, I found a stack of my missed childhood – The Baby-Sitters Club by Ann M. Martin. The rush of memories from those years I spent with Kristy, Claudia, Stacy, Jessi, Mallory, Dawn, Abby, and, my favorite, Mary Anne grabbed me. Along with my newfound disposable income, I couldn’t resist. I purchased the whole stack. I had done what any adult does when they have extra money – I bought back my childhood – or more accurately, I bought the childhood I wished I had.

I didn’t own every The Baby-Sitters Club book, but I had a significant collection. I was a part of the fan club. I played that CD-ROM game every day. I begged for a new book each month. I kept a The Baby-Sitters Club diary. I even wrote a letter to Ann M. Martin and received a bookmark and a form letter in return. It was my prized possession.

Unfortunately, there came a time when I wanted to eschew every remnant of my childhood in an attempt to mature. I gave away my collection of The Baby-Sitters Club memorabilia to a friend. I donated my Goosebumps books and I started reading Fear Street.

Now, fifteen odd years later, I scour used bookstores and thrift stores looking for The Baby-Sitters Club, Goosebumps, and Fear Street books.

Now, why do I want to review something I once loved? Why do I want to tear apart the series and authors who made up my childhood and shaped who I am today?

Simple. Exercise and nostalgia.

I want to exercise my writing skills. I want to create a portfolio with work I can be proud of and the only way to do that is to write.

And as for nostalgia – it’s something I don’t revere. Nostalgia is looking back with a skewed sense. It ignores the problems and we end up pining for a time that will never return and wasn’t that great in the first place. I’ve read a few of the early The Baby-Sitters Club books and, frankly, some of them are sub-par. It’s important for me to see that. I believe people need to be reminded that the past wasn’t always perfect.

But there is also a lot of good to be lauded and re-appreciated. The babysitters are surprisingly mature for their ages. In The Baby-Sitters Club #6: Kristy’s Big Day, the BSC start a summer day camp that is surprisingly efficient and organized. They also solve problems in thoughtful ways.

I look forward to rediscovering the crying, laughter, fear, unexpected wisdom as well as the problems in the books that shaped my childhood – The Baby-Sitters Club by Ann M. Martin, and Fear Street and Goosebumps by R. L. Stine. I’m excited to share my childhood with everyone.