California Diaries
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A spin-off of Ann M. Martin's, The Baby-Sitters Club. All 15 books are written as first-person journals. The pretense of the Diaries is that they are a school project. All students at their school must keep a journal; the contents and method are up to them. (Which is why Maggie's books are written in a Type Writer Font - she uses her computer.)
The first, main conflict comes up when the 8th graders are merged with the high school. They went from being the "leaders" to the youngest kid in the 5-grade school. This series covers more mature themes than the original - alcohol, eating disorders, cancer, runaways, etc.
Dawn, a member of The Baby-Sitters Club from Connecticut, returned to California to live with her father, step-mother, and brother. Upon her arrival, she reunited with old friends, and they tried to revive the West Coast version of the club - The We Love Kids Club. She spends the majority of the series trying to be the glue that keeps the group together, and to balance her desire to live in two states at once.
Sunny is Dawn's best friend in California. Her mother is dying of cancer, and her father works all the time to try and cover up his pain. He owns a book store. Her negative attitude, coupled with her outlandish fashion sense, are all attempts to get the attention she needs from her parents.
Maggie's father is obsessed with his job as a studio executive, and pushes her to have a 5-year plan. She copes with the stress by developing an eating disorder. Throughout the series, her biggest struggle comes from trying to assert herself.
Amalia is Maggie's best friend, and probably the most affected by her sickness. She fears a Junior at their school, James, who has been stalking her since she broke off their relationship.
Ducky is the token boy in this series. He is a sophomore, and his four best friends are the girls above. His old friends, Jay and Alex have drifted away. One is intereted in girls, and the other has suicidal tendencies. His parents travel for months at a time, so he lives alone with his irresponsible, older brother.
