Bad News/Good News (Beacon Street Girls #2) [Paperback]

Annie Bryant (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2004 | Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

Things are a little complicated for the Beacon Street Girls right now...Charlotte's dream is to be a writer. But she doesn't seem to care that The Abigail Adams Junior High opened its newspaper, The Sentinel, to seventh-grade writers. Why? Because she's got a heartbreaking secret and it involves moving...again!

And just when Charlotte really needs her friends, they've got major problems of their own. Maeve has a really great idea for a community service project, "Blanket Brookline with Love." But try as she might, she can't seem to get it off the ground. And the new girl, Isabel Martinez, is creating major tension. Avery and Katani don't like her, but Maeve and Charlotte do. What will this do to the Beacon Street Girls' friendship? Will it ever be the same?

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-8–This series features a multicultural group of junior high girls in Brookline, MA. Charlotte and her widowed father are new in town, and they have lived all over the world. Katani has a flair for design. Korean-born Avery, a no-frills type of girl, in the literal sense of the word, was adopted when she was an infant. Maeve is a drama queen and dreams of stardom. In Bad News/Good News,Charlotte discovers that her father is considering an offer to teach at Oxford in England and she wants to stay put for a while. The episode centers on how the girls come to her rescue, how she learns to deal with her own ambivalent feelings about the move, and how she comes to better understand her father and his grief. A subplot introduces Isabel, who has come to Brookline with her ailing mother. She will become the newest member of the Beacon Street Girls. In Letters, Maeve learns that her parents are separating. Although she struggles with dyslexia, she is certain that she can keep them together if she can just learn to be the "perfect" daughter her mother so desperately wants. She learns some valuable lessons about herself, and about the real meaning–and sometimes real pain–of growing up. The stories are well written and should have broad appeal. If there is a fault at all, it is that the characters are sometimes more mature, self-aware, or articulate than the average seventh grader. Nevertheless, the lessons about loyalty, honesty, friendship, and family are presented in an appealing fashion.–Roxanne Burg, Orange County Public Library, CA
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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 277 pages
• Publisher: B*tween Productions (April 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0974658707
• ISBN-13: 978-0974658704
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #991,492 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I LOVE BEACON STREET GIRLS!!!!!!, September 29, 2006

By 

M. shapiro "tween reader" (NY, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Bad News/Good News (Beacon Street Girls #2) (Paperback)

My mom just brought me these BSG books and they are the best. Everyone should read them. I only read two of them so far but we are going to buy the rest soon. If you are a girl and you like to read you HAVE TO get these books TODAY!!!!!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Postive reading for girls- a Mom's point of view, June 8, 2007

By 

T. Aul - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Bad News/Good News (Beacon Street Girls #2) (Paperback)

I bought this book for my 12 year old daughter. I feel it is a wonderfully written book series for "tween girls." It is very positive- sometimes a bit too positive for real life at times. If reading books like these make girls think about how they treat each other and be kinder to one another, then I say it's a good thing! I am reading the books after my daughter finishes with them. And enjoying chatting with her about the different issues contained in the stories.

At times the story can be a little hokey/unrealistic. The girl's homeroom teacher assigns the students tables to sit at lunch, and has a tablecloth on each table. Charlotte has a klutzy moment and notices her zipper is down. She unknowingly zips the table cloth in her pants, making a huge mess and angering the other girls at the table. The girls start off not liking each other and are told a sleepover might help them to work it out. At the sleepover the girls become best friends. I have never had any of these things happen to me in real life, but it makes for a good story. And brings the girls together. In the stories, aside from the hokiness, the girls have real life problems- lying to their parents, being the new girl, overextending themselves, weight issues, being bullied, parents separating, having an ill parent, etc. I feel the author wraps it all up in a positive but not perfect story book way.

I liked that the girls all represent something different. They are of different ethnic backgrounds, have different issues & problems as well as different personalities & talents. The girls compliment each other very well. The BSG
(Beacon Street Girls) try to protect their friendships and are very supportive of each other. In the books, there are girls who are nasty. The BSG, aren't fond of those girls but are never mean or cruel in return. Hopefully, this will encourage the girls who read them to be kinder to people/ friends than they had been. I can't wait to read the next book!

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I LOVE IT, March 10, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Bad News/Good News (Beacon Street Girls #2) (Paperback)

I started reading this book and I couldn't put it down. I thought that it was so great and true to life. I love the Beacon Street Girls books and I would really suggest reading them.