Nancy Drew!
The teenaged sleuth first appeared in April 1930 with the release of The Secret of the Old Clock, the first book in the long-running series (above, a photo of a recent reproduction of the original cover). Nancy was the creation of Edward Stratemeyer, founder of the Stratemeyer Syndicate publishing organization. The series eventually extended to more than a hundred titles, ghostwritten by a number of authors over the years, and all published under the collective pseudonym of Carolyn Keene.
As a pre- and young teen, I was crazy about Nancy Drew. I'm really not sure how many of the books I've read, but I know it must be dozens. I loved them all, but my favorite was always the second book in the series, The Hidden Staircase. The photo above, is a shot of a reproduction of the original cover from 1930, with artwork by Russell H. Tandy. But the cover I remember is from a slightly later edition (artwork by Bill Gillies):
Secret panels, mysterious disappearances, underground tunnels, and Nancy running around a spooky old mansion armed with flashlight and revolver - how could I not love it?
I haven't read any of the books produced after the early 1960s, but they're still being cranked out. And Nancy is keeping up with the latest trends. One book from 2003 is titled Werewolf in a Winter Wonderland, and 2010 saw the publication of Nancy Drew: Vampire Slayer. That last one is apparently a graphic novel - what did I say about Nancy and the latest trends?
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I never read any of the Nancy Drew books, but I did read almost all of the Bobbsey Twins books.
ReplyDeleteOh wow! NEAT POST! I haven't thought about Nancy Drew for eons! I must have read lots of them, too, and I know they're still around, updated. I'll have to take a look at some of the newer ones to see if I'd recommend them to any of my students.
ReplyDeleteLeslie
abcw team
My girlfriend and I read them all...that was in the late 40's and early 50's.
ReplyDeleteI was never without a Nancy Drew book within reach! Loved them. Thought about those books recently when I bought a series of Hardy Boys books for a young grandson. When I have a granddaughter.... :) Good post!
ReplyDeleteFantastic! I loved Nancy Drew! I was an avid fan and ended up writing my own mysteries as a hobby! Hadn't thought about this series in a long time! Thanks for the memories! Terrific post for the N Day! Enjoy the rest of your week!!
ReplyDeleteSylvia
ABC Team
never read Nancy Drew; I think it's the gender thing.
ReplyDeleteROG, ABC Wednesday team
I have always loved reading ND series and thought I had read them all !! Let me try getting these new ones.. Nice blog and good info.. Thnx
ReplyDeleteNice 'n Neat!
ReplyDeleteRetired Navy for N, hope you can come by and comment. Thank you!
I was also crazy about Nancy Drew. When I gave my books to my daughters, they didn't have the same reaction :-(
ReplyDelete