The Baby-Sitters Club Is Coming Back to Life in Audiobook Form, Narrated by Elle Fanning

De Elizabeth

For generations coming of age in the ’80s and ’90s, The Baby-Sitters Club was a cornerstone of adolescence. The series, which was created by Ann M. Martin, centered around a group of middle school–age best friends who start a babysitting business in their fictional hometown of Stoneybrook, Connecticut. Over the course of more than 100 books, readers got to know Kristy, Claudia, Stacey, Mary Anne, Dawn, Mallory, and Jessi as well as they did their own best friends, following their lives as they navigated school, relationships, family, and plenty of dramatic adventures. And now, the iconic stories are about to come to life once again in an entirely new way.

Over the course of the three decades since the first book’s publication in 1986, The Baby-Sitters Club was adapted into several other formats: a TV show, a movie, a graphic novel series, an upcoming Netflix reboot, and most recently, an audio experience. All 131 titles are available from Audible as of August 13, with the first five books read by actor Elle Fanning.

Elle told Teen Vogue that she was thrilled to embark on her Baby-Sitters Club journey, having learned of the books’ lasting legacy from friends and family members who grew up with the series. “I was excited about that whole process, reading the books and what they represent,” the Teen Spirit star said, adding that she was honored to bring the stories to life for a younger generation while also connecting with fans of the original series.

<cite class="credit">Courtesy of Audible</cite>
Courtesy of Audible

Writer Ann M. Martin agreed, noting that the series’ universal elements will still hit home for readers in 2019. “One of the reasons the books were so popular...was the timelessness of the themes: friendship, family, home, and school issues. These are themes that still resonate today,” she explained. “Also, the characters demonstrate kindness and inclusion, two things I think young readers need to witness a lot more of today.”

Of course, there are definitely major differences between our current world and the lives of the Stoneybrook babysitters. For Kristy and her friends, getting their own private phone line in their bedroom was the absolute height of technology and communication. “They didn’t have social media growing up…and now we all do,” Elle noted.

Even without Instagram or Snapchat, the members of the Baby-Sitters Club dealt with their fair share of social drama. Who could ever forget the book when Logan first moves to town, and shy, quiet Mary Anne finds herself in “competition” with Cokie and her popular clique, or when Claudia gets a new “cool” friend who tries to convince her to quit the BSC? “There are always girls trying to define who they are, and I think it’s important not to compare yourself to others,” Elle said, noting that the series emphasizes the beauty of embracing one’s individuality. “I think today, you can get caught up in trying to compare yourself to people on Instagram, or people in school. ‘Oh, I want to dress like her,’ or ‘I want to look like her.’ I think it’s important that we teach [young people] that you shouldn’t change yourself for anyone. You have to love yourself for you. That’s something I hope comes across when listening to these books.”

But recording an audiobook — let alone five of them — is no easy feat. Elle described reading an entire book a day, with additional days available for going back and redoing scenes. “You can take breaks whenever you want,” the 21-year-old said of the process, mentioning that it was her first time recording a book for Audible. “There was a lot of tea in the process. I was surprised at…how disciplined it is, to really sit there and read for that long. It is a challenge for yourself, for sure.”

<cite class="credit">Courtesy of Audible</cite>
Courtesy of Audible

For Ann, it was nothing short of amazing to see her stories take on this brand-new medium. “I’m an avid fan of audiobooks,” the author told Teen Vogue. “I listen to them in the car and when I’m taking walks. And since I like storytelling in all forms…I’m thrilled to see the BSC series as audiobooks.”

Part of what makes The Baby-Sitters Club really flourish in audio form is the fact that each book is told from the point of view of a specific character. What’s more, each girl is described in such a way that is uniquely different from the others; it quickly becomes easy to think of yourself as a Dawn or Claudia or Jessi.

“I loved [reading] Kristy,” Elle said. “I loved getting to speak her voice a lot, because she’s very loud and she talks really fast. She’s very outgoing, and that energy was cool to get to speak. I had a great time doing her.” Interestingly enough, Kristy was the very first character that Ann created — and her favorite to write as well. “She was my alter ego, the person I wished I could be,” the author added. “She was modeled after my best friend when I was growing up…who was outgoing, confident, and came up with lots of great ideas.”

Clearly, Ann has had a lot of great ideas as well, demonstrated by the fact that The Baby-Sitters Club’s legacy continues to thrive, decades after it was first created. The author hopes that her spinoff Little Sister series (centered around Kristy’s younger sister Karen) will follow suit, but she is open to anything the future has in the cards for her.

“Everything that has happened with the series — starting with its initial popularity — has taken me by surprise, so I’m grateful for any direction [it] takes,” she explained, adding, “I hear from many adults who read the books when they were younger that they found the stories and characters comfortable and comforting. We can certainly use a bit of comfort in these times that can feel scary and unpredictable.”

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Originally Appeared on Teen Vogue