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Nancy Drew Mystery Stories #21
Alice et le clavecin
Nancy searches for clues to missing music manuscripts in love letters written by a deceased soldier. This soldier’s elderly father and young daughter are sole survivors of a once prominent family. The Marches, inhabitants of a run-down family estate, are facing financial ruin. The old man believes some of his son’s music is being sold and played on the radio. Nancy, Bess and George go to the estate to investigate. In the meantime, a client of Nancy’s father turns to her to examine a competing company he believes is using his patented production methods illegally. As Bess and George prepare for an important Emerson College dance, they are bothered that Ned has not asked Nancy! He frequently seems be in the company of a snobbish socialite! Nancy investigates both mysteries, ponders her friendship with Ned and discovers hidden songs in the spooky attic. Clues lead her to a music plagiarist and a chemist with a stolen formula. Nancy learns that both are the same dangerous criminal!
250 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1944
169 people are currently reading
3855 people want to read
About the author
Carolyn Keene
1,091 books3,899 followersCarolyn Keene is a writer pen name that was used by many different people- both men and women- over the years. The company that was the creator of the Nancy Drew series, the Stratemeyer Syndicate, hired a variety of writers. For Nancy Drew, the writers used the pseudonym Carolyn Keene to assure anonymity of the creator.
Edna and Harriet Stratemeyer inherited the company from their father Edward Stratemeyer. Edna contributed 10 plot outlines before passing the reins to her sister Harriet. It was Mildred Benson (aka: Mildred A. Wirt), who breathed such a feisty spirit into Nancy's character. Mildred wrote 23 of the original 30 Nancy Drew Mystery Stories®, including the first three. It was her characterization that helped make Nancy an instant hit. The Stratemeyer Syndicate's devotion to the series over the years under the reins of Harriet Stratemeyer Adams helped to keep the series alive and on store shelves for each succeeding generation of girls and boys. In 1959, Harriet, along with several writers, began a 25-year project to revise the earlier Carolyn Keene novels. The Nancy Drew books were condensed, racial stereotypes were removed, and the language was updated. In a few cases, outdated plots were completely rewritten.
Other writers of Nancy Drew volumes include Harriet herself, she wrote most of the series after Mildred quit writing for the Syndicate and in 1959 began a revision of the first 34 texts. The role of the writer of "Carolyn Keene" passed temporarily to Walter Karig who wrote three novels during the Great Depression. Also contributing to Nancy Drew's prolific existence were Leslie McFarlane, James Duncan Lawrence, Nancy Axelrod, Priscilla Doll, Charles Strong, Alma Sasse, Wilhelmina Rankin, George Waller Jr., and Margaret Scherf.
Edna and Harriet Stratemeyer inherited the company from their father Edward Stratemeyer. Edna contributed 10 plot outlines before passing the reins to her sister Harriet. It was Mildred Benson (aka: Mildred A. Wirt), who breathed such a feisty spirit into Nancy's character. Mildred wrote 23 of the original 30 Nancy Drew Mystery Stories®, including the first three. It was her characterization that helped make Nancy an instant hit. The Stratemeyer Syndicate's devotion to the series over the years under the reins of Harriet Stratemeyer Adams helped to keep the series alive and on store shelves for each succeeding generation of girls and boys. In 1959, Harriet, along with several writers, began a 25-year project to revise the earlier Carolyn Keene novels. The Nancy Drew books were condensed, racial stereotypes were removed, and the language was updated. In a few cases, outdated plots were completely rewritten.
Other writers of Nancy Drew volumes include Harriet herself, she wrote most of the series after Mildred quit writing for the Syndicate and in 1959 began a revision of the first 34 texts. The role of the writer of "Carolyn Keene" passed temporarily to Walter Karig who wrote three novels during the Great Depression. Also contributing to Nancy Drew's prolific existence were Leslie McFarlane, James Duncan Lawrence, Nancy Axelrod, Priscilla Doll, Charles Strong, Alma Sasse, Wilhelmina Rankin, George Waller Jr., and Margaret Scherf.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 289 reviews
December 7, 2020
I remembered many of the suspenseful elements of this one and it is just as creepy now as it was back then. The skeleton arm swinging towards you, the creepy-crawly spiders, and the spooky attic all make for shivery delight as you read along to see how fearless Nancy will keep calm and carry on in solving the mystery.
January 19, 2019
Yellowed musty pages, musty as an old attic; my book is 73 years old. I read it when I was a young girl, remembering only that Nancy Drew was in the attic and there was a black widow spider. Later on I connected it to a real story of the time that my 16 year old brother and I at age 12, began to explore the boarded up cellar at our home. It must have been the window that was boarded up. After taking off the boards, he poked his head in and then when he backed it out a black widow spider was climbing down its thin sticky thread, and had he not pulled his head out at that time, it would have landed right on his head. And then he asked me if I would go into the cellar to explore and to bring things out. And I did. I was brave.
And then my brother added to my story after reading this: He wanted to kill the black widow spiders, so he took some .22 short shells, pulled out the bullets, took a lit candle and dripped wax into them. He then placed them in the refrigerator, and when the wax hardened, he loaded his rifle, taped a flashlight to the barrow so he could see the spiders and went back to the cellar. After placing the rifle inside the cellar, a black widow spider began crawling down its thread, almost landing on the rifle. He gave up that idea but came up with another. He lit a stink bomb and put it down in the cellar, or was I the one to go down into the cellar with it? I forgot to ask. I remember the stink bomb well for the fumes chased the spiders into the house, and for a while we were very busy killing spiders.
There was shelving in that cellar that went went up to the ceiling, and on those shelves were old canning jars. One day I pulled out the shelving, and the room above it, the bathroom, began to pull away from the house. My mom was not too happy. You see the house was built without a bathroom. The original owners had an outhouse. That add-on bathroom was not added on too well, and they just expected that shelving to hold that add-on in place, and for many years it had.
Nancy Drew has her own scary moments in this book as she explores the attic of an old man’s home, looking for his son’s music sheets. One music sheet had already been stolen and was already being played on the radio. She needs to find the others before the thief finds them all. Instead, she finds black widows and kills them. She finds secret rooms and goes looking for clues in a factory where she finds more black widows. I thought, no wonder all I remember about this book was a black widow, but it is so much more than that because she has quite a a few adventures.
What fun to explore an old attic. How I wish that I had had them to explore, but every time Nancy goes up into that old attic and finds things, I am right along side of her.
Note: Copyright, 1944. My name is printed in the book. How strange to look back and see how you use to print. The two Es in my name looked like a U, and the B in my name, an H. And two other names are in the book, Sally Dunsecon? The last part of the name is too faded to tell. And then there is the name, Beir.
When I see that I had kept that book all these years, I think of other things that I wish I had kept. Some mothers keep their children's school work; I wish mine had. I wish I had the painting of a blue bird that the teacher asked my mom to come and look at. The teacher praised it. I was 7 years old at the time. Then I had high school art work, and a story that my teacher read to the class and asked if he could keep. And college term papers. When you are young you don't think of keeping things, but when you get older, I am 75 now, you wish you could see them again. I hope mothers and kids will read this and keep things, even if they are not important to them now.
Read again August 1, 2017
And then my brother added to my story after reading this: He wanted to kill the black widow spiders, so he took some .22 short shells, pulled out the bullets, took a lit candle and dripped wax into them. He then placed them in the refrigerator, and when the wax hardened, he loaded his rifle, taped a flashlight to the barrow so he could see the spiders and went back to the cellar. After placing the rifle inside the cellar, a black widow spider began crawling down its thread, almost landing on the rifle. He gave up that idea but came up with another. He lit a stink bomb and put it down in the cellar, or was I the one to go down into the cellar with it? I forgot to ask. I remember the stink bomb well for the fumes chased the spiders into the house, and for a while we were very busy killing spiders.
There was shelving in that cellar that went went up to the ceiling, and on those shelves were old canning jars. One day I pulled out the shelving, and the room above it, the bathroom, began to pull away from the house. My mom was not too happy. You see the house was built without a bathroom. The original owners had an outhouse. That add-on bathroom was not added on too well, and they just expected that shelving to hold that add-on in place, and for many years it had.
Nancy Drew has her own scary moments in this book as she explores the attic of an old man’s home, looking for his son’s music sheets. One music sheet had already been stolen and was already being played on the radio. She needs to find the others before the thief finds them all. Instead, she finds black widows and kills them. She finds secret rooms and goes looking for clues in a factory where she finds more black widows. I thought, no wonder all I remember about this book was a black widow, but it is so much more than that because she has quite a a few adventures.
What fun to explore an old attic. How I wish that I had had them to explore, but every time Nancy goes up into that old attic and finds things, I am right along side of her.
Note: Copyright, 1944. My name is printed in the book. How strange to look back and see how you use to print. The two Es in my name looked like a U, and the B in my name, an H. And two other names are in the book, Sally Dunsecon? The last part of the name is too faded to tell. And then there is the name, Beir.
When I see that I had kept that book all these years, I think of other things that I wish I had kept. Some mothers keep their children's school work; I wish mine had. I wish I had the painting of a blue bird that the teacher asked my mom to come and look at. The teacher praised it. I was 7 years old at the time. Then I had high school art work, and a story that my teacher read to the class and asked if he could keep. And college term papers. When you are young you don't think of keeping things, but when you get older, I am 75 now, you wish you could see them again. I hope mothers and kids will read this and keep things, even if they are not important to them now.
Read again August 1, 2017
July 5, 2013
When I was about 10 or 11, my mother signed me up for a book of the month club. Every month, I received two Nancy Drew or two Hardy Boys books. Every month, they were both read in a week and I was asking when the next book would be there!
I thank my mother for recognizing and encouraging my love of reading.
I thank my mother for recognizing and encouraging my love of reading.
November 24, 2019
As I read the first chapter, I immediately noticed that there was something unique about the opening premise of this particular Nancy Drew Mystery.
Generally speaking, the source of Nancy’s sleuthing assignments are the parts her father, the famed attorney Carson Drew doesn’t have the time to tackle himself. He might find himself arranging for an extended business trip, or he’s just picked up a larger, more demanding case that demands his full attention. In essence, he tends to ask for his daughter’s help when he is simply unable to tackle it himself.
But in the opening pages of chapter one we soon learn that this case is different.
We find Carson and Nancy talking over breakfast at the dining room table in the Drew home. Over the discussion turns to a case the attorney recently pick up, this prompts him to produce a packet of letters which are tied together with a blue ribbon, (the ribbon itself caused me to guess that the letters were of a personal nature, probably not business correspondence). Carson asks his daughter to examine the love letters for clues, but not because he doesn’t have the time, but for another reason:
“’This task isn’t exactly to my liking. I understand these are love letters, and – ‘
Nancy smiled as he rather clumsily tried to loosen the knot in the ribbon that bound the letters, she offered to do it for him, and he looked relieved.
‘Please tell me more about the case,” she begged, ‘Maybe I can help you with it.’
‘I believe you can,’ her father replied, his eyes twinkling. ‘I’d say this is more your kind of mystery than mine, Nancy.”
That was unique! Carson was passing on a mystery to his daughter because he was uncomfortable with the subject matter, and was clearly advocating that she, because of the subject matter, would do a much better job than he!
I thought that this was an important signal that the writer intended to signal. That being that Nancy would be much more empowered to take on much more “ownership” of this case than the one’s she was assigned in past stories.
The next paragraph actually outlines this when the narrator mentions that Carson was proud of his eighteen-year-old daughter who had gained a reputation for her talent with solving mysteries, and that the two of them had grown closer since the death of Mrs. Drew. They’d become closer as father and daughter and had come to rely on each other more and more as Nancy grew to become a very able young woman.
I suspected that this would mean that Nancy’s role in the mystery would be much more her own, her father only offering his support on the peripheral of the action.
Back to the story’s unfolding action, the packet of love letters had been dropped off at Drew’s office earlier that day while he was out. Apparently, they were delivered by an elderly man named Philip March who left them with the receptionist, requesting that Mr. Drew examine them for clues to the location of a number of original, unpublished musical scores written by his son and most likely hidden away. He asked the receptionist if he could possibly stop by Mr. Drew’s home later, which was arranged.
As the two examine the letters, the doorbell rings and Philip March is at the door to explain things further. It turns out that Philip’s son, Philip March Jr., (nickname Fipp), was a young lieutenant who tragically lost his life in a routine military training mission four years before. Fipp was also a talented musician and songwriter. In the years before his passing, he’d written a series of love letters to his young wife Connie that might contain “coded” clues as to the location of a number of his musical scores that he’d left behind at home when he was on assignment. Philip Sr. confirmed that he was aware of the fact that his son and daughter-in-law enjoyed playing guessing games, and that these letters, aside from their romantic content, may well also contain coded clues as to the location of the precious musical creations. The elderly man also guessed that Connie never did find the compositions, and to add to the difficulty, she herself tragically died just a short time ago.
Mr. March goes on to explain to Carson and Nancy that he himself was a longtime widower, and now that his son and daughter-in-law were passed, he was alone, except for his six-year-old granddaughter Susan, (the daughter of Fipp and Connie). He goes on to explain, with a heavy heart, that he now finds himself in a difficult situation. His retirement income is very meager, too small in fact for him to provide a proper home and housekeeper to allow his granddaughter to live with him. It is for this reason, above all others, that Philip desires to get to the bottom of the location of the mysterious lost musical compositions his son wrote. He explains, with a father’s pride, how his son used to play his songs in front of the family, and how exquisite they were! He was planning to publish his work after his military service was complete.
Mr. March tells Drew and Nancy that if the scores were found, published, then became commercially successful, he would be able to provide for his granddaughter and fix up his older home.
The mention of the home itself prompts Nancy to inquire which River Heights area house was his. Philip tells her that it’s a two-hundred-year-old mansion that was once the celebrated home of the once influential and wealthy March family. But now, he tells them, the house is in a state of disrepair after many years of neglect forced by his lack of funds.
The idea of a storied old mansion, and the search for lost music scores piques Nancy’s interest for such an intriguing sleuthing adventure!
And if that wasn’t compelling enough, right there in the first chapter, as Mr. March leaves the Drew home, he’s hit by a flying rock that causes him to slump down onto the sidewalk. Carson and Nancy are shocked by this violence and scoop up the man while keeping their eye on a fleeing figure, trying to get any clue as to the identity. They carry the injured man to their sofa, then summon the doctor who arrives a short time later, examines the elderly man and declares that he requires bed rest and good food. Philip, somewhat revived, not wishing to burden the Drews, tries to rise and make his way home, but Nancy will hear none of it. She offers to care for the man as he convalesces, she also prepares and delivers meals to him.
Nancy also decides that if the man has soft music playing, it might help him pass the time more pleasantly. She places her radio in his room and soon after Philip calls out to her that she should come into the room. He excitedly announces that the song he just heard was one he recognized as his son’s work:
“That song has been stolen!” He cries out.
“You must find the thief!” He demands.
With that, Nancy jumps headlong into the case with the kind of fervor and tenacity that I love about her character.
What follows is an incredible tie between this story and one of trade secrets being stolen from a textiles manufacturing firm.
But one of my favorite aspects of this story was the adventure that Nancy had as she investigated the old March mansion which was rather interestingly named “Pleasant Hedges.”
The explanation of the old place’s intrigue was best described by the Scottish novelist Robert Louis Stevenson when he said:
“Some places speak distinctly. Certain dark gardens cry aloud for a murder; certain old houses demand to be haunted; certain coasts are set apart of shipwreck.”
In this story, “Pleasant Hedges” definitely qualified under Stevenson’s qualifier as a place that, “spoke distinctly.”
“The Secret in the Old Attic,” was a mystery story triumph!
Aside from the wonderful storytelling, I’d be remiss if I omitted my love of the cover designs of the Nancy Drew series. The design of this particular cover is the one I like the most. My understanding is that this is the second era of Nancy Drew cover art, created by a painter named Rudi Nappi. Here is how the Wikipedia article outlines the development of the cover art of this iconic book:
“Collectors of the series seem to greatly enjoy the original art by Russell H. Tandy, which depicts Nancy among highly Gothic elements, by candlelight, in the old attic. In 1962, Rudy Nappi gave Nancy a modern flip hairstyle and changed the color to red, and altered her shirtwaist wrap dress to a generic red sailor-style dress for the cover art. In 1970, Nappi updated his art, employing a shadowy apple green color motif and Gothic elements, including the skeletal hand, to showcase Nancy, looking very much like Barbara Eden in a coat front shift, with a candle This cover plays heavily on the spooky elements popular during the 'Dark Shadows' era.”
I absolutely love Nappi’s exquisite design of this cover!
A five-star reading experience all around.
Generally speaking, the source of Nancy’s sleuthing assignments are the parts her father, the famed attorney Carson Drew doesn’t have the time to tackle himself. He might find himself arranging for an extended business trip, or he’s just picked up a larger, more demanding case that demands his full attention. In essence, he tends to ask for his daughter’s help when he is simply unable to tackle it himself.
But in the opening pages of chapter one we soon learn that this case is different.
We find Carson and Nancy talking over breakfast at the dining room table in the Drew home. Over the discussion turns to a case the attorney recently pick up, this prompts him to produce a packet of letters which are tied together with a blue ribbon, (the ribbon itself caused me to guess that the letters were of a personal nature, probably not business correspondence). Carson asks his daughter to examine the love letters for clues, but not because he doesn’t have the time, but for another reason:
“’This task isn’t exactly to my liking. I understand these are love letters, and – ‘
Nancy smiled as he rather clumsily tried to loosen the knot in the ribbon that bound the letters, she offered to do it for him, and he looked relieved.
‘Please tell me more about the case,” she begged, ‘Maybe I can help you with it.’
‘I believe you can,’ her father replied, his eyes twinkling. ‘I’d say this is more your kind of mystery than mine, Nancy.”
That was unique! Carson was passing on a mystery to his daughter because he was uncomfortable with the subject matter, and was clearly advocating that she, because of the subject matter, would do a much better job than he!
I thought that this was an important signal that the writer intended to signal. That being that Nancy would be much more empowered to take on much more “ownership” of this case than the one’s she was assigned in past stories.
The next paragraph actually outlines this when the narrator mentions that Carson was proud of his eighteen-year-old daughter who had gained a reputation for her talent with solving mysteries, and that the two of them had grown closer since the death of Mrs. Drew. They’d become closer as father and daughter and had come to rely on each other more and more as Nancy grew to become a very able young woman.
I suspected that this would mean that Nancy’s role in the mystery would be much more her own, her father only offering his support on the peripheral of the action.
Back to the story’s unfolding action, the packet of love letters had been dropped off at Drew’s office earlier that day while he was out. Apparently, they were delivered by an elderly man named Philip March who left them with the receptionist, requesting that Mr. Drew examine them for clues to the location of a number of original, unpublished musical scores written by his son and most likely hidden away. He asked the receptionist if he could possibly stop by Mr. Drew’s home later, which was arranged.
As the two examine the letters, the doorbell rings and Philip March is at the door to explain things further. It turns out that Philip’s son, Philip March Jr., (nickname Fipp), was a young lieutenant who tragically lost his life in a routine military training mission four years before. Fipp was also a talented musician and songwriter. In the years before his passing, he’d written a series of love letters to his young wife Connie that might contain “coded” clues as to the location of a number of his musical scores that he’d left behind at home when he was on assignment. Philip Sr. confirmed that he was aware of the fact that his son and daughter-in-law enjoyed playing guessing games, and that these letters, aside from their romantic content, may well also contain coded clues as to the location of the precious musical creations. The elderly man also guessed that Connie never did find the compositions, and to add to the difficulty, she herself tragically died just a short time ago.
Mr. March goes on to explain to Carson and Nancy that he himself was a longtime widower, and now that his son and daughter-in-law were passed, he was alone, except for his six-year-old granddaughter Susan, (the daughter of Fipp and Connie). He goes on to explain, with a heavy heart, that he now finds himself in a difficult situation. His retirement income is very meager, too small in fact for him to provide a proper home and housekeeper to allow his granddaughter to live with him. It is for this reason, above all others, that Philip desires to get to the bottom of the location of the mysterious lost musical compositions his son wrote. He explains, with a father’s pride, how his son used to play his songs in front of the family, and how exquisite they were! He was planning to publish his work after his military service was complete.
Mr. March tells Drew and Nancy that if the scores were found, published, then became commercially successful, he would be able to provide for his granddaughter and fix up his older home.
The mention of the home itself prompts Nancy to inquire which River Heights area house was his. Philip tells her that it’s a two-hundred-year-old mansion that was once the celebrated home of the once influential and wealthy March family. But now, he tells them, the house is in a state of disrepair after many years of neglect forced by his lack of funds.
The idea of a storied old mansion, and the search for lost music scores piques Nancy’s interest for such an intriguing sleuthing adventure!
And if that wasn’t compelling enough, right there in the first chapter, as Mr. March leaves the Drew home, he’s hit by a flying rock that causes him to slump down onto the sidewalk. Carson and Nancy are shocked by this violence and scoop up the man while keeping their eye on a fleeing figure, trying to get any clue as to the identity. They carry the injured man to their sofa, then summon the doctor who arrives a short time later, examines the elderly man and declares that he requires bed rest and good food. Philip, somewhat revived, not wishing to burden the Drews, tries to rise and make his way home, but Nancy will hear none of it. She offers to care for the man as he convalesces, she also prepares and delivers meals to him.
Nancy also decides that if the man has soft music playing, it might help him pass the time more pleasantly. She places her radio in his room and soon after Philip calls out to her that she should come into the room. He excitedly announces that the song he just heard was one he recognized as his son’s work:
“That song has been stolen!” He cries out.
“You must find the thief!” He demands.
With that, Nancy jumps headlong into the case with the kind of fervor and tenacity that I love about her character.
What follows is an incredible tie between this story and one of trade secrets being stolen from a textiles manufacturing firm.
But one of my favorite aspects of this story was the adventure that Nancy had as she investigated the old March mansion which was rather interestingly named “Pleasant Hedges.”
The explanation of the old place’s intrigue was best described by the Scottish novelist Robert Louis Stevenson when he said:
“Some places speak distinctly. Certain dark gardens cry aloud for a murder; certain old houses demand to be haunted; certain coasts are set apart of shipwreck.”
In this story, “Pleasant Hedges” definitely qualified under Stevenson’s qualifier as a place that, “spoke distinctly.”
“The Secret in the Old Attic,” was a mystery story triumph!
Aside from the wonderful storytelling, I’d be remiss if I omitted my love of the cover designs of the Nancy Drew series. The design of this particular cover is the one I like the most. My understanding is that this is the second era of Nancy Drew cover art, created by a painter named Rudi Nappi. Here is how the Wikipedia article outlines the development of the cover art of this iconic book:
“Collectors of the series seem to greatly enjoy the original art by Russell H. Tandy, which depicts Nancy among highly Gothic elements, by candlelight, in the old attic. In 1962, Rudy Nappi gave Nancy a modern flip hairstyle and changed the color to red, and altered her shirtwaist wrap dress to a generic red sailor-style dress for the cover art. In 1970, Nappi updated his art, employing a shadowy apple green color motif and Gothic elements, including the skeletal hand, to showcase Nancy, looking very much like Barbara Eden in a coat front shift, with a candle This cover plays heavily on the spooky elements popular during the 'Dark Shadows' era.”
I absolutely love Nappi’s exquisite design of this cover!
A five-star reading experience all around.
May 3, 2018
Our story begins with Nancy and her attorney father receiving a stack of letters, which may be important clues to a new case that Mr. Drew has been asked to take on. However, they decline to read these "love letters" because they might possibly be of a private nature.
Next, an old man arrives, the very same man whose deceased son wrote those letters. Not only is the son dead, but his wife, the recipient of those letters, is also dead. Naturally, as soon as they married (but before they died of course), they had a daughter, who was left with no other guardian but the feeble old man. The family used to be wealthy, and the son had a great musical talent.
Here are some problems:
Despite the young man's amazing talent, he
(A) Never published his music but instead stuffed the written compositions into various crevices in the decrepit family mansion.
(B) Never performed his music, but instead joined the armed forces, and thus he was killed during a "routine training mission." This wasn't even active duty! We have a squandered life and squandered talent on our hands. Ugh!
Next: now that the old man has a young girl to look after, and no source of income, he spends half a decade selling valuable family heirlooms in his house, because his son would be heartbroken to know that his father would seek "charity" or assistance.
To keep things even more interesting, as soon as the old man relates this sadness to Nancy and her father, he meets an incident right outside their house! "As he stepped outside, a rock came whizzing through the air toward him. It struck Mr. March on the head and he slumped to the flagstone walk."
Gee, it's like the community suddenly realized: Hey! That man is thinking about asking for charity! Get him!
Of course Nancy assists and gets the man's life back in order; she solves the case and secures a proper inheritance for the man's granddaughter.
Added bonus: a look behind the scenes of the music industry! Since Mr. March's son wrote "very fine" music, "the kind of up-to-date music you young people like," naturally, some thugs have hatched an elaborate plan to steal the sheet music from the old mansion and instantly put it on the radio. But don't worry! Nancy and her gal pals track down the music thief. They simply go to hotels and ask if he's there. The hotel desk attendant helpfully informs them that they have the man's pseudonym, and she informs them of his actual name. Now that's customer service!
What a world Nancy lives in!
Next, an old man arrives, the very same man whose deceased son wrote those letters. Not only is the son dead, but his wife, the recipient of those letters, is also dead. Naturally, as soon as they married (but before they died of course), they had a daughter, who was left with no other guardian but the feeble old man. The family used to be wealthy, and the son had a great musical talent.
Here are some problems:
Despite the young man's amazing talent, he
(A) Never published his music but instead stuffed the written compositions into various crevices in the decrepit family mansion.
(B) Never performed his music, but instead joined the armed forces, and thus he was killed during a "routine training mission." This wasn't even active duty! We have a squandered life and squandered talent on our hands. Ugh!
Next: now that the old man has a young girl to look after, and no source of income, he spends half a decade selling valuable family heirlooms in his house, because his son would be heartbroken to know that his father would seek "charity" or assistance.
To keep things even more interesting, as soon as the old man relates this sadness to Nancy and her father, he meets an incident right outside their house! "As he stepped outside, a rock came whizzing through the air toward him. It struck Mr. March on the head and he slumped to the flagstone walk."
Gee, it's like the community suddenly realized: Hey! That man is thinking about asking for charity! Get him!
Of course Nancy assists and gets the man's life back in order; she solves the case and secures a proper inheritance for the man's granddaughter.
Added bonus: a look behind the scenes of the music industry! Since Mr. March's son wrote "very fine" music, "the kind of up-to-date music you young people like," naturally, some thugs have hatched an elaborate plan to steal the sheet music from the old mansion and instantly put it on the radio. But don't worry! Nancy and her gal pals track down the music thief. They simply go to hotels and ask if he's there. The hotel desk attendant helpfully informs them that they have the man's pseudonym, and she informs them of his actual name. Now that's customer service!
What a world Nancy lives in!
November 6, 2012
This is an excellent novel by Mildred A. Wirt in 1944, unrecognized as its author for years. Unless pertaining to computers or freedom, I disregard remarks about a story feeling outdated. It would be silly to expect literature or films to accommodate 2012 (and all the years my review gets read). A story is current when it’s composed. People shouldn’t penalize era of origin in feedback.
A man in a declining mansion he can’t afford, is raising his Granddaughter, Susan. Her Dad Philip March, a deceased soldier and composer, identified hidden sheet music for his late wife in coded letters. Publishing the songs would bring money Susan and her Grandpa desperately need but some were located and stolen. This sub-plot is weak because one cannot pose as a musician and bring music notes to a radio station, airing a finished product in a week! That's my sole critique: suggesting sheet music is an instant commodity, as accessible and valuable as stealing a key or social insurance number. However if we take the rest as is, this is a compelling mystery.
Nancy cons a disliked peer, sneaks into a high security factory, and works on codes. I am always excited by secret compartments and rooms. They are ample here, to heart's content! Nancy's Dad, who is a lawyer, has tremendous respect for her by utilizing her investigative talents on difficult cases. It was also extremely brave for a 20 year-old to glean information from a family she dislikes and to sneak into a rival laboratory after hours. Like “Harry Potter”, don't be dissuaded by the target demographic. I maintain that the most enthralling, suspense-raising mysteries, are those that involve anything except 'a dead body'! Most fiction siphons their plots from a murder. Secrets and clues are far more original and gripping!
A man in a declining mansion he can’t afford, is raising his Granddaughter, Susan. Her Dad Philip March, a deceased soldier and composer, identified hidden sheet music for his late wife in coded letters. Publishing the songs would bring money Susan and her Grandpa desperately need but some were located and stolen. This sub-plot is weak because one cannot pose as a musician and bring music notes to a radio station, airing a finished product in a week! That's my sole critique: suggesting sheet music is an instant commodity, as accessible and valuable as stealing a key or social insurance number. However if we take the rest as is, this is a compelling mystery.
Nancy cons a disliked peer, sneaks into a high security factory, and works on codes. I am always excited by secret compartments and rooms. They are ample here, to heart's content! Nancy's Dad, who is a lawyer, has tremendous respect for her by utilizing her investigative talents on difficult cases. It was also extremely brave for a 20 year-old to glean information from a family she dislikes and to sneak into a rival laboratory after hours. Like “Harry Potter”, don't be dissuaded by the target demographic. I maintain that the most enthralling, suspense-raising mysteries, are those that involve anything except 'a dead body'! Most fiction siphons their plots from a murder. Secrets and clues are far more original and gripping!
January 12, 2018
3.5 stars
This gets an extra half star just for the following passage alone:
"By this time Mr. Drew had reached River Heights. Bess thought that she and George ought to go home, and were driven to their respective houses.
'If you and your father have a job to do, ' said Ned, 'perhaps I should go too. '
'Oh please stay!' Nancy urged.
Mr. Drew added, 'I believe we'll need an extra man before the night's over! One with strong muscles!' "
The day my dad tells my boyfriend that he has strong muscles will be the day!
This gets an extra half star just for the following passage alone:
"By this time Mr. Drew had reached River Heights. Bess thought that she and George ought to go home, and were driven to their respective houses.
'If you and your father have a job to do, ' said Ned, 'perhaps I should go too. '
'Oh please stay!' Nancy urged.
Mr. Drew added, 'I believe we'll need an extra man before the night's over! One with strong muscles!' "
The day my dad tells my boyfriend that he has strong muscles will be the day!
June 6, 2023
I really enjoyed this one! As usual, two mysteries intertwine in the most implausible of ways, and it’s amazing.
Nancy is also a pianist and can sight-read music for both piano and singing. At 18, she’s already more accomplished than adults twice, thrice her age. Is there anything Nancy can’t do? I don’t know, I haven’t figured that out yet.
Oh. And Ned saves the day!
Overall, this was a fun mystery! Secret rooms, deadly spiders, a sinister bad guy who gave me the creeps, music, and Ill-tempered dudes. Makes for the perfect story.
Nancy is also a pianist and can sight-read music for both piano and singing. At 18, she’s already more accomplished than adults twice, thrice her age. Is there anything Nancy can’t do? I don’t know, I haven’t figured that out yet.
Oh. And Ned saves the day!
Overall, this was a fun mystery! Secret rooms, deadly spiders, a sinister bad guy who gave me the creeps, music, and Ill-tempered dudes. Makes for the perfect story.
June 2, 2015
Little Susan's parents have died and she's left in the care of her Grandfather, Phillip March. Having not enough finances to support her, he desperately needs the help of Nancy Drew to find some musical manuscripts hidden in his homestead/very creepy house by his late son.
This was definitely one of Nancy's more intense mysteries. While hunting for the manuscripts, she finds a literal skeleton in the closet, gets captured and tied up, and is threatened by Black Widow spiders. And that is only like half of it.
So, the pace was definitely great and I liked how the story was constantly moving forward. It's been a while since I've read a Nancy Drew story so I couldn't remember much about her. I found her kind of annoying this time. She gets excited for everything and uses a lot of exclamation points. And not to mention that she talks to herself all the time! When she was hiding in a bush, waiting for a suspect to walk by, she would be constantly taking to herself and I'm just like 'No wonder you keep getting caught!'
Besides that little thing, the story was enjoyable and a page turner. And Ned was in this one, yay!
This was definitely one of Nancy's more intense mysteries. While hunting for the manuscripts, she finds a literal skeleton in the closet, gets captured and tied up, and is threatened by Black Widow spiders. And that is only like half of it.
So, the pace was definitely great and I liked how the story was constantly moving forward. It's been a while since I've read a Nancy Drew story so I couldn't remember much about her. I found her kind of annoying this time. She gets excited for everything and uses a lot of exclamation points. And not to mention that she talks to herself all the time! When she was hiding in a bush, waiting for a suspect to walk by, she would be constantly taking to herself and I'm just like 'No wonder you keep getting caught!'
Besides that little thing, the story was enjoyable and a page turner. And Ned was in this one, yay!
August 27, 2009
I am giving this review through the eyes of me as a child. I couldn't get enough of these books. My library of Nancy Drew books was massive in my bedroom when I was a pre-teen. I had every one of them that was in print at the time. I use to read through them in just a matter of hours.
I believe that Carolyn Keene handed me my love for reading, any imagination I may have, and my passion for writing as well. She was my childhood superhero, the only "celebrity" that I honored who was a woman.
I won't do a review on all of the Nancy Drew Mysteries that I have read because there are just too many of them. However, I can honestly say that I remember some of them down to very minute details and feelings.
These books were one of the greatest works of art for me as I was becoming literate and gaining expression.
What a wonderful thing for a child.
It's very strange how none of my own children ever took to them.
I believe that Carolyn Keene handed me my love for reading, any imagination I may have, and my passion for writing as well. She was my childhood superhero, the only "celebrity" that I honored who was a woman.
I won't do a review on all of the Nancy Drew Mysteries that I have read because there are just too many of them. However, I can honestly say that I remember some of them down to very minute details and feelings.
These books were one of the greatest works of art for me as I was becoming literate and gaining expression.
What a wonderful thing for a child.
It's very strange how none of my own children ever took to them.
January 25, 2019
Title: The Secret in the Old Attic
Author: Carolyn Keene
Series: Nancy Drew, #21
Format: ebook
Length: 263 pages (iPhone)
Synopsis: Nancy searches for clues to missing music manuscripts in love letters written by a deceased soldier. This soldier’s elderly father and young daughter are sole survivors of a once prominent family. The Marches, inhabitants of a run-down family estate, are facing financial ruin. The old man believes some of his son’s music is being sold and played on the radio. Nancy, Bess and George go to the estate to investigate. In the meantime, a client of Nancy’s father turns to her to examine a competing company he believes is using his patented production methods illegally. As Bess and George prepare for an important Emerson College dance, they are bothered that Ned has not asked Nancy! He frequently seems be in the company of a snobbish socialite! Nancy investigates both mysteries, ponders her friendship with Ned and discovers hidden songs in the spooky attic. Clues lead her to a music plagiarist and a chemist with a stolen formula. Nancy learns that both are the same dangerous criminal!
Mini-review: This was a good Nancy Drew book, filled with the right amount of spookiness that reminded me why I fell in love with the series when I was a kid, reading The Hidden Staircase. I still don’t understand why Effie’s important, she’s a nuisance more than anything.
Fan Cast:
Nancy Drew - Katherine McNamara
Carson Drew - Paul Rudd
Bess Marvin - Abigail Breslin
George Fayne - Brianna Hildebrand
Ellie Schneider - Allie Grant
Hannah Gruen - Mary Steenbergen
Ned Nickerson - Ansel Elgort
Philip March - Michael Douglas
Diane Dight - Anne Winters
Bushy Trott - Ben Savage
Lawrence Dight - Matt Leblanc
Author: Carolyn Keene
Series: Nancy Drew, #21
Format: ebook
Length: 263 pages (iPhone)
Synopsis: Nancy searches for clues to missing music manuscripts in love letters written by a deceased soldier. This soldier’s elderly father and young daughter are sole survivors of a once prominent family. The Marches, inhabitants of a run-down family estate, are facing financial ruin. The old man believes some of his son’s music is being sold and played on the radio. Nancy, Bess and George go to the estate to investigate. In the meantime, a client of Nancy’s father turns to her to examine a competing company he believes is using his patented production methods illegally. As Bess and George prepare for an important Emerson College dance, they are bothered that Ned has not asked Nancy! He frequently seems be in the company of a snobbish socialite! Nancy investigates both mysteries, ponders her friendship with Ned and discovers hidden songs in the spooky attic. Clues lead her to a music plagiarist and a chemist with a stolen formula. Nancy learns that both are the same dangerous criminal!
Mini-review: This was a good Nancy Drew book, filled with the right amount of spookiness that reminded me why I fell in love with the series when I was a kid, reading The Hidden Staircase. I still don’t understand why Effie’s important, she’s a nuisance more than anything.
Fan Cast:
Nancy Drew - Katherine McNamara
Carson Drew - Paul Rudd
Bess Marvin - Abigail Breslin
George Fayne - Brianna Hildebrand
Ellie Schneider - Allie Grant
Hannah Gruen - Mary Steenbergen
Ned Nickerson - Ansel Elgort
Philip March - Michael Douglas
Diane Dight - Anne Winters
Bushy Trott - Ben Savage
Lawrence Dight - Matt Leblanc
June 22, 2022
Nancy is asked for help by an old man, Philip March, who believes that his late son has hidden the clue to some money in love letters. Nancy agrees to help and visits Mr March along with Bess and George. She discovers that he lives in an old run-down, spooky mansion with his granddaughter. The mansion forms the background for the adventure, and is a wonderful setting. The attic is a treasure trove, and I enjoyed the scenes of Nancy and her friends rummaging through it.
Other connected mysteries include a stolen formula for silk textiles, in which Carson Drew is trying to gain evidence. Nancy helps in this too since it turns out she has a school connection! And then, there is the stolen music, which have become hits. Who stole them, and how?
I really enjoyed this one. Effie is also featured in this book, which is always enjoyable. Nancy ends up solving all the mysteries and in return, gets a gorgeous yellow gossamer dress. As a child, I craved this dress, lol! And thought it was unfair nobody else got anything similar!
A great ND, overall. And nostalgic as well!
Other connected mysteries include a stolen formula for silk textiles, in which Carson Drew is trying to gain evidence. Nancy helps in this too since it turns out she has a school connection! And then, there is the stolen music, which have become hits. Who stole them, and how?
I really enjoyed this one. Effie is also featured in this book, which is always enjoyable. Nancy ends up solving all the mysteries and in return, gets a gorgeous yellow gossamer dress. As a child, I craved this dress, lol! And thought it was unfair nobody else got anything similar!
A great ND, overall. And nostalgic as well!
May 8, 2020
Nancy #22 has two different mysteries going on, textile secrets having to do with venomous spiders, and recovering lost music compositions! There is also a side love twist that has Ned fans nervous for most of the book, with some shade cast by Mr. Drew (the often absent).
The teapot is set right by the end, of course. The joy is in the ride, as usual. Off to #23.
The teapot is set right by the end, of course. The joy is in the ride, as usual. Off to #23.
July 25, 2010
I read all the Nancy Drew books (and the Hardy Boys) when I was a child, but I will admit that I have read them all again as an adult (a few years ago). The stories are old fashioned, but that's why I like them so much.
May 15, 2023
Another fun read in the series, although not one of my favorites. I really enjoyed the vintage feel of this plot line! Stolen sheet music, records, etc - I think this was the first book that really showcased the fact that it was written in the 40s.
August 28, 2019
This one was better than some others in the series. Guess is was because of the old attic. I mean, really, who isn't a sucker for a spooky old attic and all the treasures it holds??
June 22, 2022
A fairly average Nancy Drew mystery that starts with looking through love letters, and quickly turns more sinister.
September 18, 2011
Nancy Drew returns with yet another page turner to keep you up at night.
January 18, 2024
One of my favorites when I was a girl and still is fifty plus years later.
October 19, 2021
The discussion questions I wrote for this book and my answers to them:
February 6, 2017
Welcome to MY SHIPPER HEART'S DREAM.
Nancy's dad has been asked to help find some hidden sheet music. The music was written by a guy who went to fight in WWII and was killed (although the text bends over backwards to NOT mention WWII, but this one was published in '44). The dead soldier's father, who fought in WWI and is a bit frail, is poor and raising his orphaned granddaughter and needs to sell the music to support said adorable moppet. Where's the music? In the creepy old attic OF COURSE. All the other shit has been sold. The attic is like some kind of antiques bonanza though.
Side plot: Carson has ALSO been asked to prove that Mr. Dight's plant stole a special silk formula from his client's plant, via a nefarious sadist named Bushy Trott (worst drag name or WORST DRAG NAME?). Dude has a thing for black widow spiders, and he's like 1% less creepy about them than Jean Marsh in The Culex Experiment.
Plot 3: There's a fun dance coming up at Emerson and NED HASN'T INVITED NANCY. CODE RED. CLEARLY SOME SHIT IS GOING DOWN. Nancy is unaware that some NEFARIOUS BITCH stole a telegram right off her front porch (CLEARLY SAID NED-VITATION). Seriously EVERYONE in fuckin River Heights is like "What, Ned didn't invite you? WTF?" Because it's clear to everyone that deep in his heart, Ned has a shrine to Nancy and there's a candle lit there 24/7. Some asshat named Horace Lally keeps gettin all up on Nancy's jock trying to get her to agree to attend with him and she's like IT'S NED OR NO ONE SO JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP but she's too polite for that.
So, this one is all about a creepy skeleton and SPIDERS and finding secret places to hide shit, etc. Okay also Bess being super casually racist while they're touring the "old slave quarters" at the house in question. Oh holy shit. So racist. (Racist for 1944? I don't think so.)
The resolution to THE BEST SUBPLOT IN THE HISTORY OF THE MYSTERY STORIES: after Nancy has FUCKING POISON-FUME-INDUCED ANXIETY DREAMS WHERE NED SAVES HER LIFE (as a parachutist? Maybe he was drafted and served in that way?), after she just HAPPENS TO put the clue-containing packet of love letters next to the SMILING PHOTO OF NED ON HER BEDSIDE TABLE, and considers moving it because HE BROKE HER HEART BY INVITING ANOTHER GIRL TO THE DANCE, Ned FUCKING SAVES HER FROM A TARANTULA (which she thinks is poisonous but it likely isn't shut up she fucking SWOONS IN HIS ARMS) and he's like THANK GOD I SAVED YOU CAUSE I SERIOUSLY NEED TO GET ON ONE KNEE AND PROPOSE SOON (I projected that last part) and he's like "that bitch Diane said you were out of town and practically invited herself to go with me and fuck that noise, YOU ATTEND WITH ME, MY QUEEN" and Nancy just smiles and is like "fuck yeah I do." The best part is Nancy lying to herself about how hurt and sad she is when HOLY SHIT GIRL, she is so fucking upset about Ned going to the dance with someone else. For... reasons. Involving Ned being HER special friend so ALL Y'ALL JUST GET YOUR HANDS OFF HIM.
So, yes. Good times.
Nancy's dad has been asked to help find some hidden sheet music. The music was written by a guy who went to fight in WWII and was killed (although the text bends over backwards to NOT mention WWII, but this one was published in '44). The dead soldier's father, who fought in WWI and is a bit frail, is poor and raising his orphaned granddaughter and needs to sell the music to support said adorable moppet. Where's the music? In the creepy old attic OF COURSE. All the other shit has been sold. The attic is like some kind of antiques bonanza though.
Side plot: Carson has ALSO been asked to prove that Mr. Dight's plant stole a special silk formula from his client's plant, via a nefarious sadist named Bushy Trott (worst drag name or WORST DRAG NAME?). Dude has a thing for black widow spiders, and he's like 1% less creepy about them than Jean Marsh in The Culex Experiment.
Plot 3: There's a fun dance coming up at Emerson and NED HASN'T INVITED NANCY. CODE RED. CLEARLY SOME SHIT IS GOING DOWN. Nancy is unaware that some NEFARIOUS BITCH stole a telegram right off her front porch (CLEARLY SAID NED-VITATION). Seriously EVERYONE in fuckin River Heights is like "What, Ned didn't invite you? WTF?" Because it's clear to everyone that deep in his heart, Ned has a shrine to Nancy and there's a candle lit there 24/7. Some asshat named Horace Lally keeps gettin all up on Nancy's jock trying to get her to agree to attend with him and she's like IT'S NED OR NO ONE SO JUST SHUT THE FUCK UP but she's too polite for that.
So, this one is all about a creepy skeleton and SPIDERS and finding secret places to hide shit, etc. Okay also Bess being super casually racist while they're touring the "old slave quarters" at the house in question. Oh holy shit. So racist. (Racist for 1944? I don't think so.)
The resolution to THE BEST SUBPLOT IN THE HISTORY OF THE MYSTERY STORIES: after Nancy has FUCKING POISON-FUME-INDUCED ANXIETY DREAMS WHERE NED SAVES HER LIFE (as a parachutist? Maybe he was drafted and served in that way?), after she just HAPPENS TO put the clue-containing packet of love letters next to the SMILING PHOTO OF NED ON HER BEDSIDE TABLE, and considers moving it because HE BROKE HER HEART BY INVITING ANOTHER GIRL TO THE DANCE, Ned FUCKING SAVES HER FROM A TARANTULA (which she thinks is poisonous but it likely isn't shut up she fucking SWOONS IN HIS ARMS) and he's like THANK GOD I SAVED YOU CAUSE I SERIOUSLY NEED TO GET ON ONE KNEE AND PROPOSE SOON (I projected that last part) and he's like "that bitch Diane said you were out of town and practically invited herself to go with me and fuck that noise, YOU ATTEND WITH ME, MY QUEEN" and Nancy just smiles and is like "fuck yeah I do." The best part is Nancy lying to herself about how hurt and sad she is when HOLY SHIT GIRL, she is so fucking upset about Ned going to the dance with someone else. For... reasons. Involving Ned being HER special friend so ALL Y'ALL JUST GET YOUR HANDS OFF HIM.
So, yes. Good times.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 31, 2023
Once again Nancy and her father Carson Drew are pursuing two cases that dovetail into one. Carson Drew has been asked Mr. Booker to help him prove that Horace Dight has stolen his top-secret silk formula. He suspects a supposed "top" scientist named Bushy Trott (I ask you--who on earth is going to believe that a "top" scientist goes by the name Bushy) of having worked for him temporarily with the sole purpose of discovering his secrets--but he has no proof. Carson has had Trott followed for quite some time with no result.
Since he is busy with the Booker case, he asks Nancy to help him with another client Philip March. Mr. March is trying to find music that his son left behind when he was killed in World War II. He's sure the music is hidden somewhere in their family mansion, but has been unable to find it. He's also sure that if found, the music will bring in a good income that will help him raise his orphaned granddaughter Susan. Clues to the hidden music are supposed to be found in his son's love letters to his wife (now also deceased). Nancy's treasure hunt soon turns into an effort to prove theft when Mr. March begins hearing some of his son's songs on the radio--under someone else's name! As she investigates, she begins to suspect that Trott has something to do with the stolen music as well. But how to prove it? Nancy, Bess, and George wind up staying at the March estate in order to hunt for clues.
This was one of my favorites when I was young--easily making the top ten. I loved the spooky mansion setting and the treasure hunt aspect and the hidden room. And I didn't mind the coincidences that allowed Nancy's mystery to tie in with her father's. I thought Effie (the maid that Nancy brings in to help Mr. March in the house when Susan gets the measles) was hilarious...seeing ghosts and bad guys everywhere. It was a lot of fun to revisit this one and while I recognize the odd coincidences that happen they didn't detract from fun one bit.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block.
Since he is busy with the Booker case, he asks Nancy to help him with another client Philip March. Mr. March is trying to find music that his son left behind when he was killed in World War II. He's sure the music is hidden somewhere in their family mansion, but has been unable to find it. He's also sure that if found, the music will bring in a good income that will help him raise his orphaned granddaughter Susan. Clues to the hidden music are supposed to be found in his son's love letters to his wife (now also deceased). Nancy's treasure hunt soon turns into an effort to prove theft when Mr. March begins hearing some of his son's songs on the radio--under someone else's name! As she investigates, she begins to suspect that Trott has something to do with the stolen music as well. But how to prove it? Nancy, Bess, and George wind up staying at the March estate in order to hunt for clues.
This was one of my favorites when I was young--easily making the top ten. I loved the spooky mansion setting and the treasure hunt aspect and the hidden room. And I didn't mind the coincidences that allowed Nancy's mystery to tie in with her father's. I thought Effie (the maid that Nancy brings in to help Mr. March in the house when Susan gets the measles) was hilarious...seeing ghosts and bad guys everywhere. It was a lot of fun to revisit this one and while I recognize the odd coincidences that happen they didn't detract from fun one bit.
First posted on my blog My Reader's Block.
September 30, 2012
Yes, I've read 21 of the Nancy Drew books over the past year.This story involves some stolen music and silk manufacturing and luckily for Nancy and her father, they intersect so that Nancy solves not one but two mysteries for the price of one.
Fipp March was a composer until he was killed in the army, but he hid music in his boyhood home to take care of his family. Unfortunately, no one knows where and everyone but his father and his little daughter are still alive. The elder March needs to find the music so he can take care of his granddaughter. But before the music can be found by the rightful heirs, it's stolen and produced.
Nancy solves this mystery pretty much on her own. I read the updated version - from 1971. The original book written in the early 40s. According to my research, the revision takes out a mention of the stone wing of the March mansion as being the slave quarters, and Bess's comment about mammies singing and pica ninnies dancing. There are some other slight changes - such as Mr. March originally collapses of undernourishment instead being hit in the head with a rock. Susan runs away in the original instead of getting sick.
The biggest change is the missing 5 chapters - the evil Diane Dight convinces the gullible Ned Nickerson to take her to the Emerson College dance. Apparently Nancy is to busy and never has time to appreciate Ned. These chapters are missing in the revised book. Ned makes a brief appearance at the end of the book - just in time to save Nancy from a Black Widow spider.
I didn't get to read the original, but I'd like too. It would be nice to see Nancy more human - most of the time she's too perfect.
Fipp March was a composer until he was killed in the army, but he hid music in his boyhood home to take care of his family. Unfortunately, no one knows where and everyone but his father and his little daughter are still alive. The elder March needs to find the music so he can take care of his granddaughter. But before the music can be found by the rightful heirs, it's stolen and produced.
Nancy solves this mystery pretty much on her own. I read the updated version - from 1971. The original book written in the early 40s. According to my research, the revision takes out a mention of the stone wing of the March mansion as being the slave quarters, and Bess's comment about mammies singing and pica ninnies dancing. There are some other slight changes - such as Mr. March originally collapses of undernourishment instead being hit in the head with a rock. Susan runs away in the original instead of getting sick.
The biggest change is the missing 5 chapters - the evil Diane Dight convinces the gullible Ned Nickerson to take her to the Emerson College dance. Apparently Nancy is to busy and never has time to appreciate Ned. These chapters are missing in the revised book. Ned makes a brief appearance at the end of the book - just in time to save Nancy from a Black Widow spider.
I didn't get to read the original, but I'd like too. It would be nice to see Nancy more human - most of the time she's too perfect.
December 29, 2018
Nancy is asked by her father to help him solve two separate mysteries. The first involves missing music that Mr. Philip March desperately wants found so he can use the money from their sell to raise his orphaned granddaughter, Susan. The music was originally composed by his son, who was a soldier and died in action. Nancy believes the clue to finding the missing music lies in the family attic. The second mystery involves a possible case of corporate espionage. Mr. Drew’s client, Mr. Booker, believes his former employer, Mr. Trott, was asked by a rival company to spy on his factory and obtain a secret formula that is used to manufacture clothes.
Nancy works this case alone for the most part. Bess and George do appear and help Nancy out a bit. But they didn’t play as active a role as they usually do. Ned appears briefly, to rescue Nancy in the nick of time. The other boys, Burt and Dave don’t appear at all, though they are mentioned in one scene. It was a nice change of pace. One I liked.
This story was easy to follow. The pacing was fairly quick. Although the denouement was a bit over the top. It all seemed too convenient. I enjoyed this mystery though. It didn’t have me laughing like the one before, but it had heart.
You know, I can’t help but admire Nancy’s relentless determination. She pushes through her fears to solve her case.
Nancy works this case alone for the most part. Bess and George do appear and help Nancy out a bit. But they didn’t play as active a role as they usually do. Ned appears briefly, to rescue Nancy in the nick of time. The other boys, Burt and Dave don’t appear at all, though they are mentioned in one scene. It was a nice change of pace. One I liked.
This story was easy to follow. The pacing was fairly quick. Although the denouement was a bit over the top. It all seemed too convenient. I enjoyed this mystery though. It didn’t have me laughing like the one before, but it had heart.
You know, I can’t help but admire Nancy’s relentless determination. She pushes through her fears to solve her case.
June 30, 2019
3 1/2 stars. A scary attic filled with cob-webs, old chests, a skeleton and a black-widow spider. No wonder I remember this one as being creepy. This is a good story with plenty of action, but not every chapter ends with her being in deadly peril. It is also more tight than some stories. Nancy's a bit involved with her father's case, but that does not share nearly as much time in the book as looking for the songs (though she runs into a lot of danger when she is investigating for her dad).
Effie provided some comic relief. She reminds me Cora Appel in the Dana Girls. However, she's not a type of character that often shows up in this series. I wonder if the character was used as a mechanism for Nancy to stay at the house as often as she did. But trying to help Mr. March when he was overwhelmed with carrying for his granddaughter should have been enough reason for the writer to get Nancy there for a number of nights.
I also wonder why bother having Ned show up for just the end. Nancy was doing fine on her own and her father provided all the extra muscle she really needed. It seemed like Ned has to show up in the story so I'll give him a cameo at the end to say he was there.
In spite of these comments I really did enjoy the book and think it is one of my favorites of the series.
Effie provided some comic relief. She reminds me Cora Appel in the Dana Girls. However, she's not a type of character that often shows up in this series. I wonder if the character was used as a mechanism for Nancy to stay at the house as often as she did. But trying to help Mr. March when he was overwhelmed with carrying for his granddaughter should have been enough reason for the writer to get Nancy there for a number of nights.
I also wonder why bother having Ned show up for just the end. Nancy was doing fine on her own and her father provided all the extra muscle she really needed. It seemed like Ned has to show up in the story so I'll give him a cameo at the end to say he was there.
In spite of these comments I really did enjoy the book and think it is one of my favorites of the series.
January 13, 2024
3 stars. So I put off reading this one at night because it looked a bit creepy. I ended up thankful I read this in broad daylight. It's not extremely creepy, actually, despite the horrid cover. It was an interesting mystery surrounding lost music that was being stolen and sold, and a dear old man with a granddaughter and no money; and a company whose secret mixture was also being stolen. I really liked the characters (except Effie; ugh, that girl drives me batty). And the plot was cool. But... I am scared silly of spiders. Especially BLACK WIDOWS, which have always been my bugbears. Soooo black widow spiders running round isn't my idea of comfort... And then the “climax” was just very triggering for me. So I didn't really enjoy this one and I won't be rereading it, most likely. It wasn't bad or very creepy; it just played on too many of my fears.
TRIGGERS:
TRIGGERS:
October 4, 2020
Nancy's kind heart and incessant attraction to mystery leads her to help Mr. March, an elderly gentleman whose deceased son, a composer, left clues to songs he'd written. After his death, his hopes were for the proceeds to enable his father to care for his wife and daughter. Clues in old love letters, a secret attic, and mysterious happenings plague Nancy, her friends (cousins Bess and George), Hannah's young and nervous friend, Effie (a maid Nancy calls in to help both Mr. March and his granddaughter). As usual, there's another mystery that ends up being connected to this one, involving stolen chemical processes at a manufacturing factory. There's real danger involved as Nancy is threatened and trapped and (spoiler alert), the ever devoted Ned comes to the rescue. It's kind of funny how obviously crazy about Nancy he is and it makes me wonder if she's as smitten with him!
January 3, 2016
Nancy Drew is my all time favorite detective book character, and one of my all time favorite book characters of all time. Nancy Drew is a classic in my family. My family and I read them together so often. I often watch the black and white movies, and watch the 1970s TV show, but reading the original books by Carolyn Keene is fun for all the family. When my mom reads aloud, she sometimes adds some funny sentences, not silly non-sense sentences, but she adds something that seems like something that the characters would almost say themselves. They are mysteries, but they don't have a twist to the ending. Nancy gets into some hot water at times, (if you ever read all the series you'll understand how this is rather funny), but she soon gets out of it.
February 25, 2016
Den här var lite annorlunda mot andra Kitty-böcker jag har läst i avseendet att man i den här boken får veta saker som inte Kitty vet om. Till exempel när en tjuv såg henne (men hon inte tjuven) så fick man veta vad tjuven i den stunden tänkte - utan att avslöja vem det var, såklart.
Jag tror inte att jag har stött på ordet "fängelsekund" tidigare. Älskar gamla översatta böcker, de har ett helt annat språk en de modernare.
Jag tror inte att jag har stött på ordet "fängelsekund" tidigare. Älskar gamla översatta böcker, de har ett helt annat språk en de modernare.
October 15, 2013
I enjoyed this quick mystery and read it in one go this evening. Lots of fun gothic touches - a haunted house, a skeleton hand, mysterious rooms and attics. Loads of good fun before Hallowe'en and definitely not a taxing experience! Nancy's bravery made her a great role model for kids in the 40's and for years afterwards.
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