When I was about 9, I picked up Kristy's Great Idea and fell in love with The Baby-Sitters Club. And with it went my perceptions of How Teens Should Act. For starters:
-I thought that it was totally normal for 13-year-olds to go on rather sophisticated dates to French restaurants. It took me until I was 18 and in high school before I found out that that wasn't the case. (Why, yes, I didn't date anyone until college! HOW did you know?) I was like "Sooo....you don't go to places with a prixe frixe meal?" And my friends were all "Uh, ever hear of Chili's?"
-Also, that 13-year-olds were in long-term relationships. Because that's normal. Did I mention I didn't date until college? Because I think that bears repeating.
-I was scared.to.death of getting diabeeetuuus after reading about Stacy, ESPECIALLY the one where she ends up in the hospital. Remember that? Now, obviously, because I'm one of the Olds, I read these books before teh Internetz, when we couldn't just Google our symptoms and scare ourselves silly. So, I had read all of these books, and every time I was just a bit thirsty, I was convinced "ZOMG, I have diabetes!" and that I'd be hospitalized by morning. That hasn't happened yet, thankfully.
-Kids in junior high can be entrusted to take care of a zillion kids. Bonus points if the kids have a variety of developmental issues.
-Ever notice that all of these girls could waltz around NYC on their own, even if they've never been to NYC before? Yeah, I couldn't believe that, either, especially as my own parents would barely let me jog around the park by myself, let alone navigate my way in a big, strange city.
-Those Super Specials were all about the hook-ups, weren't they? I was so disappointed to go on family vacations, because I was always convinced that I'd meet a ton of people. That never happened.
-Rich = cool. Also, there is no need to explain how someone got so stinkin' rich in the first place. How DID Watson Brewer get all of that money?! And why didn't anyone ever ask Kristy how he got so rich? These girls were as nosey as all hell, so I'm surprised no one ever just came out and asked her, or better yet, snooped through his personal stuff during a sleepover. I don't think it's ever mentioned what, exactly, he does, so I will propose that he was the Don of the Stoneybrook branch of the Mafia.
I think that's about it. I liked the books, but I definitely had a skewed verison of reality for a looong time after that.