|
|
||
Any fan of the Nancy Drew books will enjoy this tale of her origin, history and the background of America at the time the books were written Date published: 11/27/2005
By PEGGY CARLSON One of my happiest childhood memories is sitting in front of the bookshelves in my grandmother's living room, trying to decide which of my mother's or uncle's old Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys books to read. Years later I watched my daughter on Christmas morning, perched on her new pink and purple bicycle, kickstand down, reading a Nancy Drew book. Thus I eagerly took the opportunity to review "Girl Sleuth" by Melanie Rehak. The cover, made to look tattered and illustrated with a vintage drawing of Nancy and her magnifying glass, had me feeling nostalgic before I even read a word. Rehak tells the interwoven stories of Edward Stratemeyer, the literary father of Nancy Drew; the famous Stratemeyer Syndicate; and Harriet Stratemeyer Adams and Mildred Wirt Benson, the two women responsible for writing nearly all the Nancy Drew books under the name of Carolyn Keene. Rehak has packed a lot of material into this book. She describes the incredible imagination of Edward Stratemeyer, who created countless children's series books, including stories of the Rover Boys, Bobbsey Twins, Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys, Dana Girls, Motor Girls, Bomba the Jungle Boy, Tom Swift, Ruth Fielding, Honey Bunch, Happy Hollisters, Ted Scott Flying Stories and many others. Rehak tracks and explains the machinations of the Stratemeyer Syndicate, whereby Stratemeyer roughed out a bare outline of a story, then farmed out the actual writing to an author who was paid a flat fee for the work, but received no future royalties. Shortly before his death in 1930, Stratemeyer dreamed up a storyline and several plots about a girl detective from River Heights who drove a sporty blue roadster, a gift from her adoring father. Her name was Stella Strong. The publishers at Grosset & Dunlap opted for a name change, and Nancy Drew made her debut April 28, 1930, just days before Stratemeyer died.
1. Be respectful. No personal attacks.
|
|
|||||||||||||
