Scan barcode
mcsquared's review against another edition
2.0
Didn't finish, so much backstory that I lost interest.
hawthornm's review
5.0
A great exploration of the history of the popular girl detective novels and the women who wrote them. I learned a couple of surprising things -- that Nancy Drew was far and away the most popular of the Stratmeyer Syndicate's kid book series, blowing away the Hardy Boys by a mile. I was also surprised to learn how much the Syndicate actually contributed to the novels. I was always under the impression that the ghostwriters, like Mildred Wirt Benson, got a raw deal because they wrote all the books but never got credit. But in reality the writing was more of a collaboration between the Syndicate (which was primarily Harriet Stratemeyer Adams) who created all the characters and wrote detailed plots; and the ghostwriters, who filled in the details and dialog. That's kinda cool -- I'm terrible at working out a plot, but I can write great scenes and dialog.
expendablemudge's review
4.0
2019 UPDATE The long-awaited TV adaptation has tapped a newcomer to play Nancy Drew! Exciting news, since the CW is the logical home for a drama based on her career.
Rating: 4* of five
The Publisher Says: A plucky "titian-haired" sleuth solved her first mystery in 1930. Eighty million books later, Nancy Drew has survived the Depression, World War II, and the Sixties (when she was taken up with a vengeance by women's libbers) to enter the pantheon of American girlhood. As beloved by girls today as she was by their grandmothers, Nancy Drew has both inspired and reflected the changes in her readers' lives. Now, in a narrative with all the vivid energy and page-turning pace of Nancy's adventures, Melanie Rehak solves an enduring literary mystery:
Who created Nancy Drew? And how did she go from pulp heroine to icon?
The brainchild of children's book mogul Edward Stratemeyer, Nancy was brought to life by two women: Mildred Wirt Benson, a pioneering journalist from Iowa, and Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, a well-bred wife and mother who took over as CEO of the pioneering Stratemeyer Syndicate after her father died. In a century-spanning story Rehak traces their roles--and Nancy's--in forging the modern American woman. With ebullience, wit, and a wealth of little-known source material, Rehak celebrates our unstoppable girl detective.
My Review: When I was about nine, I went through a Hardy Boys phase. My mother, who went from buying Oldsmobile-priced cocktail dresses at Henri Bendel and Chevrolet-priced suits at Bonwit Teller to working three jobs to support us, never said no when it came to buying me a book. So I read my way through the catalog, and looked around for more. Mama somewhat diffidently pointed out the Nancy Drew books. I asked if she solved crimes. “Yes, and drives a blue roadster,” said the wily old girl, and I had another school year's reading at a quarter a book. (Used. We most often bought used...Mama said the words didn't wear out and who cared about the cover anyway?)
Ever after, I've had a “thing” for All-American boys and girls who just damn well do it for themselves. From such acorns....
Mystery-reading pleasure was a given. Mother and sister were big consumers of the genre. I got my own books, and they were not mysteries, but good heavens a boy can't survive on a book a week! I mean really! So I read their mysteries. I checked mysteries out of the liberry. I read all the Hardy Boys (always preferred Joe to Frank, Iola be hanged) and Nancy Drew (what a maroon Ned Nickerson was!) a couple times each. They lost their luster about the time I found good SF.
But do you ever forget that first kiss? I know I haven't. Nancy, Frank, and Joe...oh my how I treasured their orderly world. No one behaved badly (my narcissistic parents were astonishingly insensitive and ill-mannered in their divorcing) without consequences, and crimes were punished. I liked that a lot! And I still do.
Melanie Rehak apparently did, too. She set out to tell the story, public since the 1970s at least, of the origins of Nancy Drew, Girl Sleuth. All the ookie bleccchhhy part about families in conflict over Smothers-Brothers-y “dad always liked you best” and “I sit here with mom and you swan about” and so on; all the fish-out-of-water growing up of a major tomboy with a ginormous brain, in a rinky dink dink little wide spot in the road, leading to Iowa State and college degree in the 1920s; all the nasty mean greedy behind-the-scenes moneygrubbing everyone seems to have thought nothing of.
It's as good as a novel. It's as much fun as a Nancy Drew story to unravel. It's not perfect, but it's got a lot of story and it tells the story concisely, yet without leaving annoying holes or piling numbing crap all over the reader.
The focus is on Nancy, her “father” Edward Stratemeyer, her “mother” Midred Wirt, and wicked stepmother Harriet Stratemeyer Adams. That's enough for a 600pp doorstopper, let me assure you! Author Rehak got out her laser, finely cut and carefully etched the truly important bits from these three peoples' lives and then soldered and electroplated the whole thing into a lovely, solid bracelet shaped like Nancy Drew.
Even if you've never read one of these books, THIS book is a very good read, and an intriguing side window onto American culture in the mid-20th century.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
Rating: 4* of five
The Publisher Says: A plucky "titian-haired" sleuth solved her first mystery in 1930. Eighty million books later, Nancy Drew has survived the Depression, World War II, and the Sixties (when she was taken up with a vengeance by women's libbers) to enter the pantheon of American girlhood. As beloved by girls today as she was by their grandmothers, Nancy Drew has both inspired and reflected the changes in her readers' lives. Now, in a narrative with all the vivid energy and page-turning pace of Nancy's adventures, Melanie Rehak solves an enduring literary mystery:
Who created Nancy Drew? And how did she go from pulp heroine to icon?
The brainchild of children's book mogul Edward Stratemeyer, Nancy was brought to life by two women: Mildred Wirt Benson, a pioneering journalist from Iowa, and Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, a well-bred wife and mother who took over as CEO of the pioneering Stratemeyer Syndicate after her father died. In a century-spanning story Rehak traces their roles--and Nancy's--in forging the modern American woman. With ebullience, wit, and a wealth of little-known source material, Rehak celebrates our unstoppable girl detective.
My Review: When I was about nine, I went through a Hardy Boys phase. My mother, who went from buying Oldsmobile-priced cocktail dresses at Henri Bendel and Chevrolet-priced suits at Bonwit Teller to working three jobs to support us, never said no when it came to buying me a book. So I read my way through the catalog, and looked around for more. Mama somewhat diffidently pointed out the Nancy Drew books. I asked if she solved crimes. “Yes, and drives a blue roadster,” said the wily old girl, and I had another school year's reading at a quarter a book. (Used. We most often bought used...Mama said the words didn't wear out and who cared about the cover anyway?)
Ever after, I've had a “thing” for All-American boys and girls who just damn well do it for themselves. From such acorns....
Mystery-reading pleasure was a given. Mother and sister were big consumers of the genre. I got my own books, and they were not mysteries, but good heavens a boy can't survive on a book a week! I mean really! So I read their mysteries. I checked mysteries out of the liberry. I read all the Hardy Boys (always preferred Joe to Frank, Iola be hanged) and Nancy Drew (what a maroon Ned Nickerson was!) a couple times each. They lost their luster about the time I found good SF.
But do you ever forget that first kiss? I know I haven't. Nancy, Frank, and Joe...oh my how I treasured their orderly world. No one behaved badly (my narcissistic parents were astonishingly insensitive and ill-mannered in their divorcing) without consequences, and crimes were punished. I liked that a lot! And I still do.
Melanie Rehak apparently did, too. She set out to tell the story, public since the 1970s at least, of the origins of Nancy Drew, Girl Sleuth. All the ookie bleccchhhy part about families in conflict over Smothers-Brothers-y “dad always liked you best” and “I sit here with mom and you swan about” and so on; all the fish-out-of-water growing up of a major tomboy with a ginormous brain, in a rinky dink dink little wide spot in the road, leading to Iowa State and college degree in the 1920s; all the nasty mean greedy behind-the-scenes moneygrubbing everyone seems to have thought nothing of.
It's as good as a novel. It's as much fun as a Nancy Drew story to unravel. It's not perfect, but it's got a lot of story and it tells the story concisely, yet without leaving annoying holes or piling numbing crap all over the reader.
The focus is on Nancy, her “father” Edward Stratemeyer, her “mother” Midred Wirt, and wicked stepmother Harriet Stratemeyer Adams. That's enough for a 600pp doorstopper, let me assure you! Author Rehak got out her laser, finely cut and carefully etched the truly important bits from these three peoples' lives and then soldered and electroplated the whole thing into a lovely, solid bracelet shaped like Nancy Drew.
Even if you've never read one of these books, THIS book is a very good read, and an intriguing side window onto American culture in the mid-20th century.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.
librarianelizabeth's review
5.0
This was a fun, breezy read, full of information about the Nancy Drew writing process (GASP! Carolyn Keene didn't exist!) and about the history of the time.
reynoldsreads's review against another edition
informative
lighthearted
slow-paced
3.5
It was honestly not that long ago when I found out that Carolyn Keene was a pseudonym and not a real person, a disappointing discovery to say the least. But there were some remarkable women behind the creation of the famous girl detective: namely Mildred Augustine and Harriet Stratemeyer. Bold, adventurous, and independent, but not without their flaws, these two more than anyone else were responsible for the success of the series.
Tracing Nancy’s evolution and her relationship with the feminist movement throughout history, this book chronicles the rollercoaster journey that made the girl sleuth the icon she is today for multiple generations of women and young girls.
raehink's review
4.0
Who knew the back story would be as intriguing as any of Nancy's mysteries...
Melanie Rehak tells the story of the Stratemeyer Syndicate with its corps of writers. She focuses particularly on the Nancy Drew novelists (especially Mildred Wirt) and the politics going on behind the scenes.
Nancy Drew was like the perfect storm. Her character was created at just the right time in social history -- between the wars when societal mores and the traditional roles of men and women were changing. Her persona fit well with women's issues of the day -- suffrage, motherhood versus careers, female independence, etc -- not to mention that detective stories were all the rage.
The novels hit the stores just as books were becoming more affordable and children were evolving into a specific group of readers that publishers could cater to. I also found it interesting, in light of the tremendous impact fiction has on our culture today, that series fiction was considered unworthy of any thinking reader's time.
Nancy Drew had such an impact on my tween years -- probably more so than any other fictional character. It was delightful to let this author skillfully unfold Drew's story and pay homage to the women who made her such a significant fictional figure in contemporary culture.
A fun read.
Melanie Rehak tells the story of the Stratemeyer Syndicate with its corps of writers. She focuses particularly on the Nancy Drew novelists (especially Mildred Wirt) and the politics going on behind the scenes.
Nancy Drew was like the perfect storm. Her character was created at just the right time in social history -- between the wars when societal mores and the traditional roles of men and women were changing. Her persona fit well with women's issues of the day -- suffrage, motherhood versus careers, female independence, etc -- not to mention that detective stories were all the rage.
The novels hit the stores just as books were becoming more affordable and children were evolving into a specific group of readers that publishers could cater to. I also found it interesting, in light of the tremendous impact fiction has on our culture today, that series fiction was considered unworthy of any thinking reader's time.
Nancy Drew had such an impact on my tween years -- probably more so than any other fictional character. It was delightful to let this author skillfully unfold Drew's story and pay homage to the women who made her such a significant fictional figure in contemporary culture.
A fun read.
thebookteaseblog's review
3.0
I'm majorly indebted to @emileereadsbooks for coordinating this month's readalong of Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and the Women Who Created Her by Melanie Rehak. I've had this book on my TBR pile since I picked it up on a whim last year, and I'm so glad I got to read and discuss it with the #NancyDrewBookCrew! Like most women, my relationship with Nancy Drew goes waaaay back. I vividly remember the excitement of receiving a box of yellow hardcovers sent to me by my godmother in New Jersey (home of the Stratemeyer Syndicate - the birthplace of Nancy Drew!) I was a voracious reader, and while I couldn't tell you now what the plots of those mysteries were, I know I loved Nancy for the same reasons I loved Meg (A Wrinkle in Time), Aly (Trickster's Choice), and Elizabeth (The Royal Diaries) - because they were smart, independent, and like me, they were more interested in adventures than dolls. ⠀
⠀
Girl Sleuth explores the birth of Nancy Drew, and follows her journey from dime store novel to pop culture sensation. It details the lives of Harriet Stratemeyer Adams and Mildred Wert Benson, two women who, in spite of extraordinary obstacles and a contentious working relationship, were responsible for bringing Nancy Drew into the world. This book delves into the ways that Nancy Drew evolved because of, or in spite of, what was happening in the world - be it the Depression, World Wars, the Civil Rights Movement, or the Women's Liberation movement - and how this evolution allowed her to remain relevant to generation after generation of women. In many ways, Nancy's evolution mirrored that of her non-fictional counterparts. I particularly loved the journey of Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, whose father forbade her getting a job after college, and who would go on to become CEO of her father's company after his death. This biography is well researched and delivers what it promises - insight into not just Nancy Drew, but the women and the world that helped shape her into the character we know today. ⠀
⠀
Girl Sleuth explores the birth of Nancy Drew, and follows her journey from dime store novel to pop culture sensation. It details the lives of Harriet Stratemeyer Adams and Mildred Wert Benson, two women who, in spite of extraordinary obstacles and a contentious working relationship, were responsible for bringing Nancy Drew into the world. This book delves into the ways that Nancy Drew evolved because of, or in spite of, what was happening in the world - be it the Depression, World Wars, the Civil Rights Movement, or the Women's Liberation movement - and how this evolution allowed her to remain relevant to generation after generation of women. In many ways, Nancy's evolution mirrored that of her non-fictional counterparts. I particularly loved the journey of Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, whose father forbade her getting a job after college, and who would go on to become CEO of her father's company after his death. This biography is well researched and delivers what it promises - insight into not just Nancy Drew, but the women and the world that helped shape her into the character we know today. ⠀
threadpanda's review
4.0
Melanie Rehak's nonfiction book Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and the Women Who Created Her is an in-depth look at the people behind the wonderful series of Nancy Drew books. Rehak traces the development of the Stratemeyer Syndicate, a collection of ghostwriters presided over by Edward Stratemeyer, and covers the "battle" between Harriet Stratemeyer and Mildred Wirt Benson.
I wasn't really sure what to expect from this book when I picked it up, but having read many of the Nancy Drew Files books when I was younger and loving the character, I really wanted to read it. I really enjoyed this book. More than a character study of Nancy Drew (who made detecting look awesome before Veronica Mars was ever thought of), it was a study of the people behind the character. It begins with Edward Stratemeyer, mastermind behind Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, the Bobbsey Twins, and a number of other series books that you might be familiar with, but also encapsulates the general feelings of the times in which these books were created (the first Nancy Drew was published in the depths of the Depression in 1930). It's a wonderful look at the history and culture surrounding the world of juvenile literature from the late 1800s to the present.
I wasn't really sure what to expect from this book when I picked it up, but having read many of the Nancy Drew Files books when I was younger and loving the character, I really wanted to read it. I really enjoyed this book. More than a character study of Nancy Drew (who made detecting look awesome before Veronica Mars was ever thought of), it was a study of the people behind the character. It begins with Edward Stratemeyer, mastermind behind Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, the Bobbsey Twins, and a number of other series books that you might be familiar with, but also encapsulates the general feelings of the times in which these books were created (the first Nancy Drew was published in the depths of the Depression in 1930). It's a wonderful look at the history and culture surrounding the world of juvenile literature from the late 1800s to the present.
alarra's review
2.0
Picked this up cheap at the Book Basement on Saturday (part of a 12 book buying binge, hee). Into the first chapter at the moment, kind of interesting to see Nancy regarded as a feminist icon, always thought it a little odd in retrospect. Interested to see what insights, if any, the author has on this issue.
It was really more of a decently paced biography of the two women who had the most say over how Nancy was drawn through the original series. I found it frustratingly 'surface' - we are told of tensions between Harriet Stratmeyer and Mildred Wirt over the language and actions of Nancy, how Mildred wanted to make her more ballsy and authoritative while Harriet wanted her a bit more feminine, kind of reflective of the two women themselves, but there's no critique of either woman's life. Both were uncommonly active in the workplace that was male-dominated, and yet managed full lives of looking after husbands and children and families; I wanted more depth in these areas, like how did their husbands feel about these tenacious women? We're told they were excellent mothers *and* workers, but we're not shown evidence of the former.
I know the book is focussed on the development of the Nancy Drew empire, and it retells the progressive history well with an eye for the changes in society happening around it, but at the same time if you want to draw parallels between Nancy and the women who shaped her in supporting the view that Nancy is a feminist icon, then there should be more explicit evidence that a) these women can be seen in comparison to each other and to Nancy, and b) that Nancy, and these two women in extension, actually deserve the title of feminist icon!
It was really more of a decently paced biography of the two women who had the most say over how Nancy was drawn through the original series. I found it frustratingly 'surface' - we are told of tensions between Harriet Stratmeyer and Mildred Wirt over the language and actions of Nancy, how Mildred wanted to make her more ballsy and authoritative while Harriet wanted her a bit more feminine, kind of reflective of the two women themselves, but there's no critique of either woman's life. Both were uncommonly active in the workplace that was male-dominated, and yet managed full lives of looking after husbands and children and families; I wanted more depth in these areas, like how did their husbands feel about these tenacious women? We're told they were excellent mothers *and* workers, but we're not shown evidence of the former.
I know the book is focussed on the development of the Nancy Drew empire, and it retells the progressive history well with an eye for the changes in society happening around it, but at the same time if you want to draw parallels between Nancy and the women who shaped her in supporting the view that Nancy is a feminist icon, then there should be more explicit evidence that a) these women can be seen in comparison to each other and to Nancy, and b) that Nancy, and these two women in extension, actually deserve the title of feminist icon!