Overdue Podcast – "Sit Me Baby One More Time" Ep 06: Hello, Mallory (The Baby-sitters Club #14)

Date: December 26, 2025
Hosts: Andrew and Craig
Book Discussed: Hello, Mallory by Ann M. Martin (The Baby-sitters Club #14)

Episode Overview

This episode of Overdue continues Craig and Andrew’s Baby-sitters Club mini-series, diving into Book 14, Hello, Mallory. In this installment, the hosts leap ahead in the series timeline to focus on Mallory Pike’s journey to join the BSC, her friendship with new character Jesse, and the nuanced handling of race, exclusion, and growing up. The conversation balances nostalgia, critical analysis, and humor, while exploring how Ann M. Martin constructed longer arcs and tackled difficult subjects in an iconic children’s series.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Why Skip Ahead to Book 14?

• The hosts wanted to cover introductions for as many core club members as possible, requiring a jump from Book 5 to 14.
• Craig highlights this is "our first jump" in the series and notes that ghostwriters haven't yet taken over, maintaining continuity and tone.
  • [04:26] Craig: "We read five books...established our five main characters...these books have kind of been like, okay, now we're gonna go through each person again."
• Andrew emphasizes they’re still in the “original Anna Martin era.”
  • [04:47] Andrew: “Time dilation has not explicitly begun yet."

2. Quick Recap: What the Hosts Skipped

• They briefly summarize the intervening books (Books 6–13), discussing key events (Christy’s mom’s wedding, Claudia’s grandma’s stroke, Stacy’s “boy crazy” beach vacation, the club’s evolving structure, and Logan’s introduction).
  • [06:31] Craig: "I do want to do a quick rundown of what books we are skipping..."

3. The Babysitters’ Club Time Loop

• The hosts discuss the infamous BSC time dilation: while the girls experience 8th grade, 13 years worth of stories happen.
  • [13:02] Craig (referencing online fan ZOR3): "Between real world years of 1987 and 2000, these girls attend 8th grade 13 distinct times..."
• The parallels with The Simpsons and other long-running properties’ shifting “timelines” are debated, leading to playful exasperation:
  • [14:17] Andrew: "It's weird...characters are always the same age, but then the time that they grew up in keeps moving forward.”

4. Book & Character Details: Introduction to Mallory

• Mallory Pike is the oldest of eight children, wears glasses, and aspires to join the BSC.
  • [24:19] Craig: "Hi, I'm Mallory. I'm the oldest of eight. I wear glasses..."
• Her introduction is contrasted with previous character intros; she enters a group that’s older, cliquish, and has established rituals.

5. Mallory’s Tough Entry to the Club

• The BSC puts Mallory through a comically unfair “entrance exam” after a trial babysitting run, including esoteric questions about infant development and first aid.
  • [36:02] Craig: "What is the difference between creeping and crawling? ... Which one is first?"
  • [36:49] Andrew: "You take it off when the doctor says to take it off!" [regarding the “tourniquet" test question]
• Mallory fails, highlighting both the exclusivity of the club and the cruelty of middle school social life.
  • [37:03] Andrew: "I know they don't know any of this stuff...She loses some respect for them in this moment."
  • [37:20] Craig: "Well, and anger...she blows up and says I don't even want to be part of your club and leaves. Very sad for her."

6. Introducing Jesse Ramsey & Addressing Race

• Mallory befriends Jesse, the only Black student in her class, newly moved into Stacy’s old house.
• The book addresses racism in the town directly—subtle, structural, and peer-based.
  • [20:33] Craig: "Just Ann M. Martin being like, you know, this town's racist as all get out."
  • [21:03] Andrew: "As somebody who did go to like an almost entirely white high school where there was like one black kid...None of the little white kids know how to handle that."
• There’s a nuanced discussion around the casual, silent racism Jesse's family encounters, contrasted with moments of evolving solidarity and support.
  • [34:09] Andrew: "This is the first time I have been extended this simple act of kindness and respect since we moved into this white, white neighborhood..."

7. Sitters United / Kids Incorporated: Rival Babysitting Club

• After the BSC rejection, Mallory and Jesse start their own babysitting venture, humorously likened to a "startup seeking acquisition."
  • [39:43] Craig: "Which name do you prefer? Sitters United or Kids Incorporated?"
  • [40:16] Andrew: “I prefer the more socialist of the two options...but they go with Kids Incorporated.”
• Their club’s primary business comes from family acquaintances, paralleling earlier BSC business-building stories.

8. BSC Faces a Labor Shortage—Mallory’s Redemption

• The core BSC realizes (in part due to their own overwork and positive feedback from families) that they judged Mallory unfairly and need new members.
  • [45:00] Craig: "They've got their, they've got their like, second string members on the case..."
  • [45:48] Andrew: "We just, we just need more bodies to throw at this problem. We're so successful, we need to expand."
• When the BSC move to acquire Mallory and Jesse's new club, Mallory demands Jesse be admitted as well—for reasons of friendship and fairness.
  • [48:03] Craig: "Mallory has declared in her own head, oh, we are best friends now...she is not gonna leave her best friend behind."
• There’s an honest reckoning with race dynamics; Christy asserts:
  • [49:38] Andrew: "If anybody is like this, then I don't want to babysit for them either."

9. Style, Recurring Themes & Series Structure

• The hosts note the series formula and patterns—each book focusing on a different character’s issue and a specific family or new social wrinkle.
  • [52:15] Andrew: "You feel the like, this is a thing that's been going for a bit now...You know all these little kids...It's a slightly different vibe to the rhythms of this as a thing that's been repeated a dozen times already."
• Shifts in character focus (from the original five to Mallory/Jesse) and narrative constraints (single perspective; diary devices) are discussed as both strengths and limits.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the confused chronology:
  [13:02] Craig: "We're jumping onto the perpetual 8th grade that the entire rest of the series takes place in."
• On BSC's exclusivity:
  [28:33] Craig: "I spent most of this book very frustrated by the four girls in the club."
• On Ann M. Martin’s treatment of Mallory:
  [22:29] Craig: "I think the general consensus is that Anna Martin never liked Mallory for some reason, it makes her life miserable until she finally just leaves Stony Brook for boarding school."
• On racism in Stony Brook:
  [21:03] Andrew: "...It is very, like, it's just, it's...None of the little white kids know how to handle that because they have no context for it."
• On competition:
  [41:22] Andrew: "There is a weird, you know, they take a very like 90s Bill Gates like approach to competition, which is if you can't like run them out of the business, then you have to acquire."
• On club unity:
  [50:28] Craig: "The Three Musketeers rule applies. Like, if they won't hire Jesse, then they can't hire any of us."

Important Timestamps

• 03:01 – Spoiler warning and intro to the episode.
• 04:26–07:41 – Rationale for skipping to Book 14, and a rapid summary of skipped books.
• 13:02–15:26 – Discussion of the BSC’s cyclical time and “13 years of 8th grade.”
• 24:19–28:13 – Mallory’s introduction, family details, and awkward first club meeting.
• 29:32–31:36 – Mallory meets Jesse, discusses race and friendship.
• 36:02–37:20 – The infamous BSC written babysitting test and its fallout.
• 39:43–41:03 – Launching rival club, “Sitters United” vs. “Kids Incorporated.”
• 45:00–46:52 – BSC’s labor shortage and reconsideration of Mallory.
• 48:03–49:43 – Mallory demands Jesse be included if she rejoins the club; overt discussions of race.
• 52:15–54:52 – Reflection on series formula, shifting character focus, and narrative maturity.
• 57:58–58:41 – Humorous sign-off in Mallory’s voice.

Tone & Style

Craig and Andrew balance affectionate ribbing, grown-up analysis, and sincere engagement with the book’s themes. The banter is gently nostalgic, wry, and occasionally self-deprecating, but grounded in respect for the breadth and complexity of the series—especially how Hello, Mallory handles exclusion and racism for a young audience.

Listen If You Want To:

• Hear a lively, nitty-gritty breakdown of Hello, Mallory, from plot to publishing timelines to sociological nuance.
• Understand why Mallory and Jesse’s introduction shifted the BSC universe.
• Enjoy a thoughtful, modern perspective on 80s/90s children’s lit and its legacy.
• Laugh at podcast hosts hurled into “13 years of eighth grade” chaos.

Next episode: Book 16, Jesse’s Secret Language (skipping Little Miss Stoneybrook and Dawn).

Closing line:
[57:58] Andrew (in-character): “Spectacles, eyeglasses, bifocals, trifocals. No matter what you call them. Glasses are glasses and I have to wear them. Hello, I'm Mallory Pike.”