Betsy Was a Junior facts for kids
Betsy Was a Junior is a book from 1947. It is the seventh story in the popular Betsy-Tacy series by Maud Hart Lovelace. This book follows the main character, Betsy Ray, during her junior year of high school, which is usually the eleventh grade.
What is Betsy Was a Junior about?
The story begins with Betsy's good friend, Thelma (Tib) Muller, coming back to Deep Valley. Tib had been living in Milwaukee, Wisconsin for a while. At the same time, Betsy's older sister, Julia, leaves home to go to the University of Minnesota for college. Julia dreams of becoming a musician. She is more interested in starting her music career and joining a college sorority than in her schoolwork.
Friends, School, and Choices
Betsy hears all about college life from Julia. This makes Betsy and her best friends, Tacy and Tib, excited. They decide to start their own social club, like a sorority, at their high school. Five other girls join them.
However, Betsy soon finds that being part of this club takes up a lot of her time. It distracts her from her school studies. Also, other students at school start to feel left out. This causes problems, and Betsy's group loses their usual important roles in school activities. Betsy also realizes that being in an exclusive club means she cannot be friends with everyone she wants to.
Julia also changes her mind about sororities. She faces some social issues at college. By April, both Betsy and Julia decide that being in a sorority is not for them. Betsy wants to have a wider circle of friends. Julia wants to travel and seriously begin her music training.
Learning About Friendships
This book also continues a theme from the previous book, Betsy in Spite of Herself. Tib has reunited with Betsy and Tacy. She is back in a school with both boys and girls. At first, Tib is very interested in her friends' advice on how to attract boys. This advice suggests she should pretend to be less smart or knowledgeable than she really is. But as the story goes on, the book shows that pretending to be someone you are not is silly. It is not satisfying and does not make you happy. It teaches that it is best to be true to yourself.
