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holtfan's review
5.0
100% nostalgia rating
Kris's recent read of the first Nancy Drew book left me itching to return to the world of teen sleuths that I loved so much as a kid. And while I read Nancy Drew books, my true love was (and will ever be) the Hardy Boys.
I only had book #4 on hand but I figured, why not? I expected to mock the story senseless (and I sort of have been in my status updates...) But what I didn't expect was the giant wave of nostalgia that hit me as I read.
I can't really express how many Hardy Boys books I read growing up. I devoured the original series. And every one of the Hardy Boys Classified books. And the The Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers. And every Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys team up. And the graphic novels. And, well, everything in between.
I wrote Hardy Boys fan fiction. I daydreamed about joining American Teens Against Crime.
Frank Hardy was one of my first book crushes and always my favorite. (Until I turned 17 and fell hard for Shaun Cassidy who plays Joe in the TV show.)
And just...for a lonely bookworm, they were my pals and Bayport my playground.
So while I found plenty to mock in this novel, particularly with how irresponsible all the adults are and useless the womenfolk, in some ways it felt like coming home.
Home to Frank and Joe and Chet and Biff and Tony and Callie and Iola. Home to Aunt Gertrude and Mr. and Mrs. Hardy. Home to non-stop action and crazy, hair brained schemes that shouldn't work. Home to villains who monologue their entire evil plan so everything ties up nicely. Home to motorcycles and motorboats (and someday a bullet proof van which I wanted with all my 12-year-old soul. You can keep the A-Team van. Give me the gray Hardy Boys van) and all the other gadgets. Home to food. Mrs. Hardy and Aunt Gertrude's only real role is to constantly supply these boys with fried chicken dinners and picnic baskets full of descriptive food.
Wholesome, ridiculous, familiar, and fun.
And the language! So vintage! No wonder I had such a weird vocabulary growing up.
Kris's recent read of the first Nancy Drew book left me itching to return to the world of teen sleuths that I loved so much as a kid. And while I read Nancy Drew books, my true love was (and will ever be) the Hardy Boys.
I only had book #4 on hand but I figured, why not? I expected to mock the story senseless (and I sort of have been in my status updates...) But what I didn't expect was the giant wave of nostalgia that hit me as I read.
I can't really express how many Hardy Boys books I read growing up. I devoured the original series. And every one of the Hardy Boys Classified books. And the The Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers. And every Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys team up. And the graphic novels. And, well, everything in between.
I wrote Hardy Boys fan fiction. I daydreamed about joining American Teens Against Crime.
Frank Hardy was one of my first book crushes and always my favorite. (Until I turned 17 and fell hard for Shaun Cassidy who plays Joe in the TV show.)
And just...for a lonely bookworm, they were my pals and Bayport my playground.
So while I found plenty to mock in this novel, particularly with how irresponsible all the adults are and useless the womenfolk, in some ways it felt like coming home.
Home to Frank and Joe and Chet and Biff and Tony and Callie and Iola. Home to Aunt Gertrude and Mr. and Mrs. Hardy. Home to non-stop action and crazy, hair brained schemes that shouldn't work. Home to villains who monologue their entire evil plan so everything ties up nicely. Home to motorcycles and motorboats (and someday a bullet proof van which I wanted with all my 12-year-old soul. You can keep the A-Team van. Give me the gray Hardy Boys van) and all the other gadgets. Home to food. Mrs. Hardy and Aunt Gertrude's only real role is to constantly supply these boys with fried chicken dinners and picnic baskets full of descriptive food.
Wholesome, ridiculous, familiar, and fun.
And the language! So vintage! No wonder I had such a weird vocabulary growing up.
bdplume's review
4.0
Really, even when I was young and reading these all the time, no one used the word "chum." Except fishermen.
manwithanagenda's review
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
'The Missing Chums' is the fourth book of the Hardy Boys mysteries and the first released after the simultaneous launch of the first three in 1927. This is a marketing move still used by publishers for some juvenile series. I've also always loved how incredibly outdated the title of this one is, revise THAT Harriet Strathmeyer. Ha.
I never read the revised version of this, likely because of that silly title, but I can imagine this would have been drastically altered after seeing how our boys behave in this round. They put themselves in a great deal of danger, blithely discount the proper authorities until the case is wrapped up in a neat bow, and show a lack of respect to their long-suffering Aunt Gertrude.
I forgot to mention that this title is also the introduction of good ol' Aunt Gertrude, an often tiresome relation, but one who offers a great deal of color to the series and a much needed tonic to the blissful perfection of the rest of the Hardy family.
The mystery here is that shortly after a strange encounter on the waters while testing out Biff Hooper new speedboat (every teen boy in Bayport gets a motorcycle and a speedboat it seems), Chet Morton and Biff go missing! Could they have been lost in that sudden storm, or is it something else? As most of Bayport assumes our two supporting characters are dead, the Hardy Boys refuse to give up, especially when they connect the boys' disappearance with a high profile case Fenton Hardy is working on.
A trip to a snake infested island caps off a so-so mystery, but a good adventure story. Much like in 'The Secret of the Old Mill' I couldn't find anything objectionable enough to merit revision.
Hardy Boys
Next: 'Hunting for Hidden Gold'
Previous: 'The Secret of the Old Mill'
I never read the revised version of this, likely because of that silly title, but I can imagine this would have been drastically altered after seeing how our boys behave in this round. They put themselves in a great deal of danger, blithely discount the proper authorities until the case is wrapped up in a neat bow, and show a lack of respect to their long-suffering Aunt Gertrude.
I forgot to mention that this title is also the introduction of good ol' Aunt Gertrude, an often tiresome relation, but one who offers a great deal of color to the series and a much needed tonic to the blissful perfection of the rest of the Hardy family.
The mystery here is that shortly after a strange encounter on the waters while testing out Biff Hooper new speedboat (every teen boy in Bayport gets a motorcycle and a speedboat it seems), Chet Morton and Biff go missing! Could they have been lost in that sudden storm, or is it something else? As most of Bayport assumes our two supporting characters are dead, the Hardy Boys refuse to give up, especially when they connect the boys' disappearance with a high profile case Fenton Hardy is working on.
A trip to a snake infested island caps off a so-so mystery, but a good adventure story. Much like in 'The Secret of the Old Mill' I couldn't find anything objectionable enough to merit revision.
Hardy Boys
Next: 'Hunting for Hidden Gold'
Previous: 'The Secret of the Old Mill'
cheekimonkey's review
4.0
I read all the Hardy Boys my grammy had, and some of her Nancy Drew books while my mom and I were staying at her house in New Hampshire. It was over the summer between 3rd and 4th grade (so each of these will be marked as read in July 1989). As an adult, I don't remember much about them other than I was unable to put each book down until I finished it. Even in 1989, this was still a fantastic series. As an frequent reader of YA, I'm tempted to pick one of these up again to see if it holds up.
cheekimonkey's review against another edition
4.0
I read all the Hardy Boys my grammy had, and some of her Nancy Drew books while my mom and I were staying at her house in New Hampshire. It was over the summer between 3rd and 4th grade (so each of these will be marked as read in July 1989). As an adult, I don't remember much about them other than I was unable to put each book down until I finished it. Even in 1989, this was still a fantastic series. As an frequent reader of YA, I'm tempted to pick one of these up again to see if it holds up.
mae0524's review against another edition
4.0
another amazing story, the innocence is such an amazing belief that I wish the rest of the world could still believe in it
storyfabric's review against another edition
4.0
I laughed so hard at this book as a kid! The characters all seemed so real, and I wanted to be friends with them all!