The 1930s and 1940s, when this first nancy drew debuted, were a time when girls who liked to read were ready for something more than the normthose books. First published on the 28th of april, 1930, this was to be the book that launched an entire industry of nancy drew novels. Nancy aged to 18, drove a blue convertible, gained a surrogate mother in the form of her housekeeper, hannah, and became, arguably, more docile. This edition is the revised one, changing the age of nancy drew from 16 to 18 years old. The question of who wrote the nancy drew books was a mystery for many years. The first 34 nancy drew books in the original texts published from 1930 to 1956 contain 25 chapters and around 210 to 225 pages each. Now a lot more confident in both style and tone, the authors behind this series had a far better handling of the direction it. To date, more than 70 million copies of the nancy drew books have been sold. More information about this seller contact this seller 5. Wirt benson, who wrote 23 of the first 30 books17, 1125, and 30. Ive been a mystery lover since i hid behind the lincoln logs in mrs. Other writers who have adapted the carolyn keene moniker include leslie mcfarlane, james duncan lawrence, walter karig, and nancy axelrod. Nancy drew mystery stories book series thriftbooks. Please practice handwashing and social distancing, and check out our resources for adapting to these times.
Written under the pseudonym carolyn keene, readers met the plucky young heroine nancy drew for the first time. Which nancy drew mystery title should i read first. Her books were written in the 1930s by edward stratemeyer, founder of the stratemeyer syndicate. Nancy drew is the protagonist of several series of childrens mystery novels, written under the house name of carolyn keene. Carolyn keene is a pen name used by a variety of authors for the classic nancy drew mystery series. However, the nancy we know today is not the same nancy readers first fell in love with. The first author to use the pseudonym was mildred wirt benson, who wrote 23 of the original 30 books.
Nancy drew mysteries a lot of cozy mystery lovers started here. She would go on to write 23 of the first 30 nancy drew books volumes 17, 1125 and 30. The first three nancy drew books, the secret of the old clock, the hidden staircase, and the bungalow mystery, were published on april. In fact, im sure thats where i learned to love mysteries. The series ran from 1927 to 2005 and comprises 190 volumes, although some consider only the first 58 volumes of this series to be part of the hardy boys canon. Nancy drew mystery stories original and revised text books. Nancy drew clue book mystery mayhem collection books 14. Mildred wirt benson july 10, 1905may 28, 2002 was the original carolyn keene, and eventually wrote 23 of the. In the 1960s there was a major revision of the earlier mystery books, which were quite dated. Jul 02, 2018 the threepage outline stratemeyer wrote for the first nancy drew book, the secret of the old clock, set a tone for his new protagonist, whom he described as an uptodate american girl at her. Nancy s first mystery, the secret of the old clock, was written in the 1930s. Nancy drew became a hit and by 1934 was outselling boys series like the hardy boys and tom swift.
Aug 22, 2014 actually, more than a dozen authors have written nancy drew books, all going by carolyn keene. The main characters of this mystery, classics story are. Heres a look at such towering franchises as nancy drew, the hardy boys, and the boxcar children. The real mystery of nancy drew is how such a fictional character could.
She is the main character in a series of chapter books called nancy drew mystery stories. The longestrunning series of books to feature the hardy boys is the hardy boys mystery stories, sometimes also called the hardy boys mysteries. It was the last of three books in the breeder set trilogy, released in 1930, to testmarket the series. Stratemeyer pioneered the technique of bookpackaging whereby a series of books was written by a team of freelance writers. The mystery of the hardy boys and the invisible authors. Jenkins third grade classroom so i could finish my first nancy drew, undisturbed. These books are yellow spine books like the 1962 to 1968 yellow spine books. Although edward stratemeyer created the characters and synopsis for the first few nancy drew books, he did not write them himself, and the actual writers agreed not to reveal their names. The secret syndicate behind nancy drew jstor daily. Nancy has blond hair and drives a smart blue roadster. Order of carolyn keene books carolyn keene is the house name of authors who wrote childrens novels, including all of the various the nancy drew series as well as the dana girls and river heights series. Nancy drew is a fictional character, a sleuth in an american mystery series created by publisher edward stratemeyer as the female counterpart to his hardy boys series.
Mildred wrote 23 of the original 30 nancy drew mystery stories. Girl detective replaced the longrunning nancy drew mysteries series, which began in 1930. The first edition of the novel was published in, and was written by carolyn keene. Even the newest, like the flying saucer mystery, have carolyn keene listed as author, though carolyn keene was pen name for a group of writers who are long since gone. The bungalow mystery is the third volume in the nancy drew mystery stories series written under the pseudonym carolyn keene. Now a lot more confident in both style and tone, the authors behind this series had a far better handling of the direction it was headed in and where it was going. Introducing the character for the first time, it setup the world and the environment she was going to be residing within for the many books to come. The secret of the old clock, the hidden staircase, the bungalow mystery, the mystery at the lilac inn, the secret at shadow ranch, and the secret of red gate farm. Alice leonhardt, who wrote nancy drew books for megabooks, never. The character was created by edward stratemeyer, head of the stratemeyer syndicate, which produced not only nancy drew, but also the hardy boys, tom swift, the bobbsey twins, the rover boys and more series. Girl detective took over, with nancy narrating her adventures in the first person. The adventurous writer who brought nancy drew to life. To date, more than 70 million copies of the nancy drew books.
First minstrel book printing september, 2000, stated. On april 28, 1930, the first book in the nancy drew mystery stories, the secret of the old clock, was published. The book contained seven short stories in which nancy drew crosses over to solve mysteries with the hardy boys. The original author of the nancy drew mystery books, now at age 96, is still writing now a weekly column about everyday life and older folks for the blade newspaper. Eightyfive years have passed since readers first encountered both the hardy boys and their. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of and is available in hardcover format. A new book was written for each of the girl detective and clue crew series, both of which deal with a mystery on a movie set. Nancy began as a 16 yearold high school grad, but was later. There is a large amount of confusion among buyers of nancy drew books. Incidentally, stratemeyers secretary, harriet otis smith, worked closely with him and later with harriet and edna, and helped to develop the series. See the complete nancy drew mystery stories series book list in order, box sets or omnibus. Nancy drew, girl detective replaced the longrunning nancy drew mysteries series. Wirt benson, and changed by harriet adams, edwards daughter. Eightyfive years have passed since readers first encountered both the hardy boys and their teendetective counterpart, nancy drew, yet new books continue to be released several times a year.
The hardy boys, nancy drew, and the secret ghostwriters of. See the complete nancy drew mystery stories series book list in order, box sets or omnibus editions, and companion titles. Dec 25, 2018 if you are reading the current, revised texts, any is fine. Nancy drew mystery stories nancy drew mystery stories hardcover carolyn keene readerlink. The nancy drew mystery stories book series by multiple authors includes books the secret of the old clock, the hidden staircase, the bungalow mystery, and several more. The first was to ask his publishers to lower the price of his books from. The first writings in the nancy drew mystery stories were written by mildred a.
A second method is to find the online listings of actual nancy drew collectors. Carolyn keene and the mystery of the real nancy drew author. This page has been created in an attempt to set the record straight about which books are available in the original text edition. This new series is written in first person narration, from nancys point of view. First published on april 28, 1930, it was written by ghostwriter mildred wirt benson. Stratemeyers daughters, harriet stratemeyer adams and edna stratemeyer squier, took over writing the nancy drew outlines after the first three books, following their fathers death in 1930. Top 10 nancy drew books best book recommendations, best. The stolen show, volume 18 nancy drew diaries by carolyn keene paperback. For these books, the volume number is missing from the spine, and the back cover is completely blank. The first six books are packaged together in a collectible box set with an updated design. Nancy drew, fictional teenage amateur detective in an extended series of mystery books written by carolyn keene a collective pseudonym, used by edward stratemeyer and, among many others, by his daughter harriet s. The books are ghostwritten by a number of authors and published under the collective pseudonym carolyn keene. The notsohidden racism of nancy drew electric literature. Get cozy and expand your home library with a large online selection of books at.
It was first published on april 28, 1930, and rewritten in 1959 by harriet stratemeyer adams. The early nancy drew is smart, adventurous, flippant, and daring. The best and most popular mystery books and series vulture. I have a number of other hardcover nancy drew books up for sale. The nancy drew starter set is the perfect gift for aspiring detectives, or longtime fans of the series. This new series is written in first person narration, from nancys point of view, and features updated and overhauled versions of the main nancy drew characters. Apr 23, 2019 credit must be given to edward stratemeyer who realized that girls wanted a strong female character of their own.
The main problem in the clue of the dancing puppet is that every night a mysterious puppet comes out and dances in the backyard o. Mystery luminaries continue to crank away, with hollywood keeping a close eye on their output. The hardy boys, frank and joe hardy, are fictional characters who appear in several mystery series for children and teens. The first hardy boys book was published three years before the first nancy drew. Mystery ski jump by carolyn keene, first edition abebooks. The secret of the old clock is the first volume in the nancy drew mystery stories series written under the pseudonym carolyn keene. Oct 04, 2019 when the original series, the nancy drew mystery stories, concluded, nancy drew.
Carolyn keene is the house name of authors who wrote childrens novels, including all of the various the nancy drew series as well as the dana girls and river heights series. Apr 28, 2018 on april 28, 1930, the first book in the nancy drew mystery stories, the secret of the old clock, was published. Nancy drew and the mystery of her enduring relevance the. The characters were created by american writer edward stratemeyer, the founder of book packaging firm stratemeyer syndicate. Jan 30, 2020 nancy drew books, in one form or another, have been popular for more than 70 years. Nancy drew s intelligence, courage, and independence made her a popular role model for many generations of young readers. Carolyn keene and the mystery of the real nancy drew. The originals from 1930 should be read in order as they were written to be read. The first nancy drew is ranked 53rd on the alltime bestselling childrens book list for the united states. The series revolves around the teenagers who are amateur sleuths, solving cases that stumped their adult counterparts. Apr 28, 2020 i was given my first nancy drew book by my neighbor, when i was either eight or nine years old. Though several people wrote nancy drew books over the years, the two who.
Interior has name written on endpaper otherwise clean. Series book values collapsed in late 2008 and have never recovered. The adventurous writer who brought nancy drew to life arts. The newer nancy drew books, written well past those good ones, are not in the same league because the authors are different. This is the very first book, introducing the popular character of nancy drew. The house name was created by the stratemeyer syndicate the same group responsible for the hardy boys, tom swift, the rover boys, the bobbsey twins and more and is most associated with mildred a. One sure way to tell is to ask every seller whether the book has 25 chapters.
The first six nancy drew books, in original editions just as you remember them, are available in a collectible slipcase. The first nancy drew book was written in about 19291930. Third in the series, this was originally published in 1930 as the follow up to the last nancy drew mystery, carrying directly on with more from the teenage sleuth. May 30, 2002 mildred wirt benson, who wrote 23 of the first 30 nancy drew novels those spinechilling tales of the fearless teenage sleuth who motored about in a blue roadster solving crimes died on. The book nancy drew and the clue of the dancing puppet, with 177 pages, written in 1990 by carolyn keen is intended for older kids from ages ten to fourteen. Nancy drew is that kind of series, each book ostensibly written by carolyn keene but really the work of a team of ghostwriters and editors churning out novel after novel about the exploits of a smart, brave and attractive adolescent girl named nancy drew who solves mysteries as an amateur sleuth. Mildred wirt benson, who wrote the text of 23 of the first 25 nancy drew books under the direction of edward stratemeyer, was still an active newspaper columnist when she died in may of 2002 at the age of 96.
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