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69 reviews for:
The Yellow House Mystery: The Boxcar Children Mysteries #3
Gertrude Chandler Warner, Phyllis Newman
3.72 AVERAGE
69 reviews for:
The Yellow House Mystery: The Boxcar Children Mysteries #3
Gertrude Chandler Warner, Phyllis Newman
3.72 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I haven't read a Boxcar book, since I was a child! I loved this series as a child and read them as fast as a new one came out! Interesting to read it from an adult perspective. Ok, so the writing is not stellar, but it was never intended to be "fine literature". They were written with the purpose of giving children easy to read adventures and introduce them to wonderful, wholesome characters. Mission accomplished as I dreamed of living with them in their boxcar and help solve the mysteries, as I read the stories! I think they would still capture children's attention today, providing a journey to "the olden days" and most of all they teach really good character qualities such as truthfulness, independence, reliability, kindness, and helpfulness, to name just a few. So fun to take an hour to escape back to a fond childhood memory!
*** Warning: This review contains spoilers! ***
Well, I appreciated the fact that in this book, the author explicitly stated the ages of three out of the four children. So far, each book tells of a new summer adventure, and the children seem to age accordingly.
For the first time, there is a true mystery in that there is a missing person case to be solved. Luckily, the decades-old crime scene was left untouched, and the whole Alden family investigates, finds clues, and works together to solve the mystery.
The children again are put in a position of having to be resourceful, this time on a canoe / camping trip. Since they actually don't know much about canoeing or camping in the wilderness, cousin Joe takes charge of the trip, and his new wife Alice joins them as well.
I didn't really enjoy this book quite so much as the others I've read so far, and I'm not sure why. The canoe / camping trip was pretty exciting, in theory, but for some reason, I was kind of bored when actually reading about it.
Also, the resolution of the whole mystery seemed a bit too easy, and at the same time, too convoluted. I liked that the kids discovered an important clue in the yellow house that the police missed years ago, but in the end, it seemed like that clue shouldn't even have been necessary. The clue led the family to a particular hiking trail in Maine, and along the way, they asked whoever they ran into whether or not they knew anything about Bill McGregor. But inexplicably, when they met Jim at the end of the trail, they neglected to ask him about Bill. If they had, they would have found out right away that "people used to say that little house was Bill McGregor's place. Then one day Dave Hunter came to Old Village and said it was his." Dave Hunter would have been the obvious person to follow up with. And if "people" knew that Bill McGregor owned that house in Maine - surely Mrs. McGregor must have known about it and could have directed the investigation there - then the original police searching for Bill, regardless of what was or was not found in the house on Surprise Island, should have investigated the house in Maine, where they would have learned about Dave Hunter!
Well, I appreciated the fact that in this book, the author explicitly stated the ages of three out of the four children. So far, each book tells of a new summer adventure, and the children seem to age accordingly.
For the first time, there is a true mystery in that there is a missing person case to be solved. Luckily, the decades-old crime scene was left untouched, and the whole Alden family investigates, finds clues, and works together to solve the mystery.
The children again are put in a position of having to be resourceful, this time on a canoe / camping trip. Since they actually don't know much about canoeing or camping in the wilderness, cousin Joe takes charge of the trip, and his new wife Alice joins them as well.
I didn't really enjoy this book quite so much as the others I've read so far, and I'm not sure why. The canoe / camping trip was pretty exciting, in theory, but for some reason, I was kind of bored when actually reading about it.
Also, the resolution of the whole mystery seemed a bit too easy, and at the same time, too convoluted. I liked that the kids discovered an important clue in the yellow house that the police missed years ago, but in the end, it seemed like that clue shouldn't even have been necessary. The clue led the family to a particular hiking trail in Maine, and along the way, they asked whoever they ran into whether or not they knew anything about Bill McGregor. But inexplicably, when they met Jim at the end of the trail, they neglected to ask him about Bill. If they had, they would have found out right away that "people used to say that little house was Bill McGregor's place. Then one day Dave Hunter came to Old Village and said it was his." Dave Hunter would have been the obvious person to follow up with. And if "people" knew that Bill McGregor owned that house in Maine - surely Mrs. McGregor must have known about it and could have directed the investigation there - then the original police searching for Bill, regardless of what was or was not found in the house on Surprise Island, should have investigated the house in Maine, where they would have learned about Dave Hunter!
It has probably been about 20 years since I read one of these books. I will probably always have a soft spot for them, since they were among my favorite books of childhood. However, I didn't realize how terrible the dialogue was. Benny is pretty annoying, but seems to be the smartest of the four Boxcar Children. Most of the camping/canoeing trip was a waste of time. And that bear scene seemed very unrealistic.
It was decades ago when I first read The Boxcar Children series. I've always remembered them fondly and when I saw a Kindle version of the first twelve books, I bought it and decided to see if I could still see why I liked them so much. After re-reading the first one, I wasn't really sure, but since I had eleven more of them sitting there on my Kindle, I decided to keep going. The second one was better than the first, and the third one was better than that, enough so that I decided to write a review.
I think these are great books to introduce kids to the mystery genre. There are a lot of cliches, and the plots are very simple, but you're not going to start (most) kids out on Sherlock Holmes. The characters aren't deep and developed, but they're still very distinct. Most of them are likeable, and the ones who aren't are only blank, not dislikeable.
Next time my sister's kids come for a visit, I may read some of these to my six-year-old nephew. I think he'll really like Benny.
I think these are great books to introduce kids to the mystery genre. There are a lot of cliches, and the plots are very simple, but you're not going to start (most) kids out on Sherlock Holmes. The characters aren't deep and developed, but they're still very distinct. Most of them are likeable, and the ones who aren't are only blank, not dislikeable.
Next time my sister's kids come for a visit, I may read some of these to my six-year-old nephew. I think he'll really like Benny.
A key component of this nonsense mystery was an Indian girl who exists only to teach basket weaving and lead them to a hermit in the woods via a path only she can see, so yeah, that aged well.
(Seriously, though, how did I read all of these as a kid? They're objectively terrible.)
(Seriously, though, how did I read all of these as a kid? They're objectively terrible.)
Read aloud to my six year old daughter and we both enjoyed it. I liked seeing what is probably the origin of how I like to read for escape and to get that feeling of exploring. My daughter and I both liked the adventure story of canoeing through the lakes of Maine! As an adult, I can of course see how these books are way too simple and the characters and their relationships flawed but they are classics and I’m choosing not to analyze them too closely to preserve the nostalgia!
I made a promise to myself that I would finish series is that I didn't get to finish as a child. And I have to say so far I have very much enjoyed reading these books. I may be a tag dimwitted but even sometimes the mysteries take me by surprise. However in this book I was able to figure it out even before they told me what happened.
in book number three of the boxcar series, the children find themselves yet another mystery. they find a yellow house that they are forbidden to go into because the man who lived there vanished. the boxcar children are on their way to solving the mystery....but when they solve it, can they heal a broken heart?