She cries easily. She is so sensitive. Not that Kristy is insensitive; but she's tough-skinned, and Mary Anne is not. Still, Mary Anne is a survivor. Her life hasn't been exactly easy. Her mom died when Mary Anne was little and, after that, Mary Anne was raised by her very strict father. Mr. Spier loves his daughter, that's for sure, but he overprotected her and treated her like a baby. Only recently was Mary Anne allowed to wear her hair long (instead of in braids) and to choose her own clothes (which are slowly becoming trendier and less little-girl-like). It's practically a miracle that she has a steady boyfriend, Logan Bruno. But she does. They've been going out for quite awhile now (except for the time when they were going through The Big Separation). Logan is a really great guy. He's sweet, and he's very understanding of Mary Anne. He's also an associate member of the BSC. Honest. He's a terrific baby-sitter, so we call on him at those times when a job comes in that the rest of us can't take. (Or we call on Shannon Kilbourne.

    She's our other associate member; she lives across the street from Kristy.) You will never guess what happened to Mary Anne Spier earlier this year. Her dad finally remarried, so Mary Anne wound up with a stepmother, a stepbrother, and a stepsister. Here's the unbelievable part. Her stepsister is Dawn Schafer, Mary Anne's other best friend. Can you imagine having a best friend who becomes your stepsister?

    This is the story. In the middle of seventh grade, Dawn moved to Stoneybrook with her mother and her brother Jeff after her parents got divorced. They moved clear across the country from California, where Dawn and Jeff had been born, since their mother had been born here in Stoneybrook. Dawn and Mary Anne became friends right away, and soon Dawn joined the Baby-sitters Club. Around the same time Mr. Spier began going out with Mrs. Schafer and poof! They got married. The next thing we knew, Mary Anne, her dad, and her kitten Tigger had moved into Dawn's house (it's bigger than the one Mary Anne had lived in), and Mary Anne and Dawn had become stepsisters. Whew. You never know what's around the corner.