Caitlin's Reviews > The Worst Thing About My Sister

This review is spoiler-free.

I decided to buy a bunch of Wilson's books for the inevitable lockdown, since I was feeling pangs of nostalgia for the stories from her I didn't have the fortune to read as a child.

The worst thing about my sister... Well, I can definitely see how this could be one of her most relatable tales! Marty and Melissa establish themselves almost immediately as being complete opposites to one another, and Wilson makes the most of the near-constant conflict between the two. Marty is eccentric to the core, a young girl who's still happiest to carry out big adventures with her rag-tag bunch of toy animals as well as her own personal power fantasy, Mighty Mart. On the other end of the scale is her sister Melissa, a complete 'girly-girl' (who are often played for the antagonist in these novels, now that I think about it...) who's all-to-eager to throw herself into fashion and interior design and everything else associated with being sophisticated and oh, so very grown up.

If I had read this book as a kid, I'm sure I would have adored it. My sister and I were almost exactly the same!

Why did I give it three stars, then, if I admit how much I would have, could have loved it? Well... Children can agree that all the worst things are about Melissa, but as I continue read more of Wilson's novels from an adult perspective.. I find that more and more of the conflicts really stem from the disappointing behaviour of the adults. The girls' mother, for example. Oh, how I wish I could have words with her. The invalidation of Marty's passions and imaginative strength, solely because she doesn't quite understand it. Forcing the poor girl into a situation she hated, one that caused her to be bullied all the more by her peers at school, all so she could drum up more business for her fledging sewing enterprise. Undermining the upset and discomfort dear Marty was going through at school, just because it 'wasn't mean enough'?

Adults in the World of Wilson, here's some advice: If a child is pushed to aggressive or drastic behaviour, and they have never shown this behaviour before, and if they and other children tell you that it's because they've been bullied... Maybe, I don't know, treat the bullying with the seriousness it DESERVES instead of making them feel there's no support or better way to stand up for themselves? All of this behaviour could very well tell children that their opinions don't matter, that they don't deserve to be treated well because they don't fit in, and that they just need to take bullying because it 'builds character'.

I don't necessarily fault Jacqueline Wilson for this, though. She strives to be relatable to children, and what's more relatable than not being heard by the adults in your life? I just wish more adults related to and understood it, too.