Way, way back in the day, I loved me some Sweet Valley books like you would not believe. When I was little, my mom worked at a bookstore so I would either sit on the floor by their section reading them (a major bookstore faux pas I know) or I would devour the stripped cover copies my mom would bring home for me.
Once she moved on from the store, I continued to buy them because I was totally enamoured with the twins’ world. I mean, what was not to like?
1) They were sisters and I was an only child.
2) They always had cute boyfriends (Todd Wilkins! Ooh!)
3) They often went on adventures.
As I got older, I progressed from age appropriate series to series, but I ended up stopping sometime in the 7th grade when Sweet Valley University got a little too dull to read anymore*.
Anyway, while the last orginal Sweet Valley book was published in 2003, with the increasing popularity of chick-lit books for teens, Random House seemed to think it was time to revive the twins and in April 0f 2008, reissued the first Sweet Valley High book, Double Love, with updates for a modern teen audience**.
However, unfortunately for everyone’s favourite blonde twins, the books weren’t selling that well and, this month, the reissues were canned after just six books.
On one hand, I can totally understand this since kids are used to stuff like Gossip Girl now (which is supposedly full of sexual intrigue while the sexiest thing that happens in SVH is that Bruce Patman undoes Jessica’s bikini top), but on the other hand, I kind of feel sorry for the books because I grew up with them. Plus, they didn’t even get into the bat$h!t insane territory of Sweet Valley books where the girls were fighting off psychotic dopplegangers and face stealers and werewolves, which seems kind of a shame.
Alas, poor Jessica and Elizabeth, I knew them well*** but now their exploits have been relegated to the bookstore discount bin! Pity.
* I did however read the book in which a barely legal Jessica got married and had the sex (OMG Teh Sex!), and, even though the mention of it was pretty modest, I hid it at the bottom of my book bag for fear of it being discovered and being labelled as a perv.
** Meaning no more references to the girls wearing jumpsuits or going to the roller disco with their friends.
*** Yes, I know this is a misquote of a famous line from Hamlet, but I figured if I was already changing it to reference a teen series, I might as well just go with it. In for a penny, in for a pound.
Ahhh! I had totally forgotten about these! I definitely spend hours devouring these too… I guess you can’t improve on a classic
I used to love those books too! One thing I remember though was that every book started with how Jessica and Elizabeth were both a perfect size 6. Why was it necessary to tell us their clothing size? I bet now they’d have to be a perfect size 0.
Um, just wondering why we have never played my Sweet Valley High Board game??? Now that I know, we must do it during our next gathering!
N – They were a size 4 in the reissues. Six 6 is downright fat now apparently.
erincs- I will play so long as I can be Lila. She was my favourite because she was so sassy.
What? From size 6 to 4? That’s insane! Maybe it’s cause they wore Gap? (where the clothing sizes are wonky).
I read a few Sweet Valley too many – it was somehow easier to convince my mom to buy me Babysitters Club and Saddle Club books. Maybe THAT’s why I never kissed a boy in junior high???
I meant *a few but not too many.
Hmm, on second thought, that’s a bit redundant, isn’t it. Ok I’ll shut up now.
i was totally one of those girls who grew up with Sweet Valley. it broke my heart when the bookstores stopped selling them. No series can ever top the twins who looked similar on the outside with their blonde hair and blue eyes, but were so different on the inside. Jessica liked her pinks and purples (Unicorn club OFFICIAL colour, yo) and Elizabeth liked her greens.
[...] I made to the altar of estrogen growing up was being a pretty avid fan of the Sweet Valley series. I’ve mentioned this before, but I followed those Wakefield twins through thick and thin. Grade School (Sweet Valley Kids), [...]