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1.44k reviews for:
THE SECRET OF THE OLD CLOCK. Nancy Drew Mystery Stories No. 1.
Carolyn Keene, Carolyn Keene
3.75 AVERAGE
1.44k reviews for:
THE SECRET OF THE OLD CLOCK. Nancy Drew Mystery Stories No. 1.
Carolyn Keene, Carolyn Keene
3.75 AVERAGE
I have so much nostalgia for Nancy Drew and the many, many books she occupies. As a kid, I scoured my local library shelves for the girl detective in all her iterations. I watched the 2007 movie during a sick day in elementary school. My third grade teacher once left a big bag of Nancy Drew books on my desk, and I read every one.
But the classic originals with their yellow spines were always a tough sell for me, and apparently that hasn’t changed in my adulthood. While I can appreciate that “The Secret of the Old Clock” started it all, I have far less appreciation for the dated language, 2D characters, and predictable plot.
I love that Nancy Drew is capable, resourceful, intelligent and resilient; I love knowing that, in the 1930s, little girls could read about a woman with the skills and determination to right wrongs and save herself. At the same time, Nancy is so wonderfully perfect and the plot is so laughably convenient. Nancy is beautiful, popular, and selfless. Her every good deed is rewarded with a clue practically falling into her lap. She runs into just the right people at just the right times to hear just the right conversations. In one scene, she changes a tire for no other reason than to show the reader that she can change a tire. And the people she meets along the way are, of course, suffering saints who deserve better fortune.
Conversely, the bad guys are ugly, selfish, and greedy. Their only personality traits are pettiness and vanity. And the moral of the story is, overwhelmingly, “Good guys get rewarded and bad guys get punished.”
Other notes: the police, for some reason, don’t mind letting an 18-year-old lead their pursuit of three thieves??? Was that normal in the 1930s??? I could also go my whole life without ever again hearing the phrase “The young sleuth.” (“The young sleuth did this…” “The young sleuth went here…” Nancy. Her name is Nancy.)
Part of me wouldn’t mind reading another classic Nancy Drew book, if only to see characters like Bess, George, and Ned. But maybe I’d be better off revisiting other Nancy Drew series to get my dose of nostalgia.
But the classic originals with their yellow spines were always a tough sell for me, and apparently that hasn’t changed in my adulthood. While I can appreciate that “The Secret of the Old Clock” started it all, I have far less appreciation for the dated language, 2D characters, and predictable plot.
I love that Nancy Drew is capable, resourceful, intelligent and resilient; I love knowing that, in the 1930s, little girls could read about a woman with the skills and determination to right wrongs and save herself. At the same time, Nancy is so wonderfully perfect and the plot is so laughably convenient. Nancy is beautiful, popular, and selfless. Her every good deed is rewarded with a clue practically falling into her lap. She runs into just the right people at just the right times to hear just the right conversations. In one scene, she changes a tire for no other reason than to show the reader that she can change a tire. And the people she meets along the way are, of course, suffering saints who deserve better fortune.
Conversely, the bad guys are ugly, selfish, and greedy. Their only personality traits are pettiness and vanity. And the moral of the story is, overwhelmingly, “Good guys get rewarded and bad guys get punished.”
Other notes: the police, for some reason, don’t mind letting an 18-year-old lead their pursuit of three thieves??? Was that normal in the 1930s??? I could also go my whole life without ever again hearing the phrase “The young sleuth.” (“The young sleuth did this…” “The young sleuth went here…” Nancy. Her name is Nancy.)
Part of me wouldn’t mind reading another classic Nancy Drew book, if only to see characters like Bess, George, and Ned. But maybe I’d be better off revisiting other Nancy Drew series to get my dose of nostalgia.
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Absolutely delightful as an audiobook. Music to make the story suspenseful. Laura Linney read the audiobook.
Very, very wholesome.
Many others would probably have loved it, but it wasn't quite my style.
Many others would probably have loved it, but it wasn't quite my style.
I have a lot of nostalgia for Nancy Drew. I credit these books with my love of reading and mystery. A little ridiculous at times and the writing's not the best ever, but still engaging and it is surprising how independent Nancy is allowed to be in 1930.
I read this with my daughter (age 9) and she really liked it. I really should rate it higher but it was kind of hard to keep my mouth shut about the ridiculously perfect waspiness of everything. And finally even my daughter grew tired of “the young sleuth” phrase to describe Nancy. We might try book 2, but she’s having fun with the first Hardy Boys book so maybe we’ll go there instead.
I've started playing the old Nancy Drew computer games (that I played often as a kid) and decided to read the novels some of the games are based on. Obviously this is a kid's book-- and an old one -- but still brought back a lot of childhood memories. :)
3.5 stars
This was fun to revisit! I read the whole Nancy Drew series as a kid and reading this again brought lots of great memories back.
The Secret of the Old Clock is the definition of a cozy mystery and likely started the trend in the first place. It was really enjoyable to read again!
I hope to continue reading this series off and on over the next few years. It's nostalgic to revisit books that you've read as a child.
This was fun to revisit! I read the whole Nancy Drew series as a kid and reading this again brought lots of great memories back.
The Secret of the Old Clock is the definition of a cozy mystery and likely started the trend in the first place. It was really enjoyable to read again!
I hope to continue reading this series off and on over the next few years. It's nostalgic to revisit books that you've read as a child.
The story moves along quickly, and I actually found it hard to put down even though I remembered what happened part way through the book. If you or your children like a good old mystery, then you can’t go past a Nancy Drew book.
Read my full review at
https://thebookbubble.com/2021/02/sleuthing-and-mystery-month/
Read my full review at
https://thebookbubble.com/2021/02/sleuthing-and-mystery-month/
It was SO fun to re-read this as an adult. I was a little bit concerned that reading this from an adult point of view would ruin it, but nostalgia quickly took over and I was sucked in. These books were really ahead of their time and it was fun to revisit a character that I adored so much as a child.