Missing Millie Benson: The Secret Case of the Nancy Drew Ghostwriter and Journalist

by Julie K. Rubini

“Missing Millie Benson is as lively and compelling as a Nancy Drew Mystery Story. For anyone who loves Nancy, getting to know the woman who first brought her to life in this wonderful biography is not just a treat but a necessity—an inspiration to young writers and sleuths alike!” —Melanie Rehak, author of Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and the Women Who Created Her

Growing up in Ladora, Iowa, Mildred “Millie” Benson had ample time to develop her imagination, sense of adventure, and independence. Millie left her small hometown to attend the University of Iowa, where she became the first person to earn a master’s degree from the school of journalism. While still a graduate student, Millie began writing for the Stratemeyer Syndicate, which published the phenomenally popular Hardy Boys series, among many others. Soon, Edward Stratemeyer tapped Millie for a new series starring amateur sleuth Nancy Drew, a young, independent woman not unlike Millie herself. The syndicate paid its writers a flat fee for their work and published the books under pseudonyms. Under the pen name Carolyn Keene, Millie went on to write twenty-three of the first thirty books of the Nancy Drew Mystery Stories. In all, Millie wrote more than a hundred novels for young people under her own name and under pseudonyms.

Millie was also a journalist for the Toledo (Ohio) Times and The Blade. At the age of sixty-two she obtained her pilot’s license and combined her love of aviation with her passion for writing, sharing her travels and adventures with readers.

Follow the clues throughout Missing Millie to solve the mysteries of this ghostwriter, journalist, and adventurer.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, Childrens, History, Books About Books

136 pages, Hardcover

First published September 15, 2015

About the author

Julie K. Rubini is the founder of Claire’s Day, a children’s book festival in honor of her late daughter. She is the author of the upcoming biography for young readers, Eye to Eye: Sports Journalist Christine Brennan. Julie has also written Virginia Hamilton: America's Storyteller, Missing Millie Benson: The Secret Case of the Nancy Drew Ghostwriter and Journalist and Hidden Ohio. But most of all, she cherishes her roles as wife to Brad and mother to daughter Kyle and son Ian.

Reviews

[Jessaka · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Real Carolyn Keene and the First Brownie Ever Made, Recipe Included


I found my first Nancy Drew book, The Secret in the Attic, in the hall closet where my mother kept her books. Like the attic in this book, my mother’s hall

closet had black widow spiders. Not really. I knew it had been my older sister’s because the name Alice Young was written in it, and Alice Young had been her friend in Shandon, CA, where we had lived in 1949. I must have been 16 at the time, because we lived in our new home as my mother had just remarried. My sister was also married and had left home in 1954, so the book became mine, and I still have it, even though it is ratty.

I had thought that Carolyn Keene was the author of Nancy Drew. That’s what the book said. No one knew then who Carolyn Keene was. No one cared. Years later, I learned that Mildred Wirt was the writer of the series, or at least the first writer, and had written 23 out of the first 30 books in the Nancy Drew series. She had also written some of the Dana Sisters.

I wanted to know more about the Dana Sisters series, so, I looked it up on Wikipedia since it was not in this book. Leslie McFarlane, who had written the first 25 books of The Hardy Boys series was asked to write, The Dana Sisters. He hated the series, and only wrote the first 4. The first one, By the Light of the Study Lamp, has always been my favorite in that series, not that I have read them all. So the job of writing was put into Mildred Wirt’s hands, but she hated the series too. Mildred had written 5 through 16, and Harriet Adams took over the job, not that there hadn’t been other ghostwriters from time to time. It seems there were.

There are 30 Dana Sisters books in the first series and 19 in the second series. I have no idea what they mean by first and second series. Strange. The series went out of print in 1979. It is said that this happened because Leslie McFarlane and Mildred Wirt had not put their hearts into the series, so teens didn’t like them. I, myself, grew tired of it because they had a nemesis by the name of Lettie Briggs who always got her nose into their detective work, tossing in monkey wrenches. She was kind of like Harriet Adams, and I say this, because Mildred really didn’t care for her. Others said that that the books didn’t do well because the girls lived in a boarding school and so there were two stories going on at the same time, which they felt that teens didn’t like. Plus, boarding school stories were getting old. I loved the boarding school addition to this seriers. It sounded like an interesting life. My mom had been in a boarding school for a while, but I don’t recall if she liked it or not.

When I learned who wrote these series years ago, I realized that I preferred Mildre Wirt’s writing to that of the other ghostwriters, but then there were a few books written by her that I hated, like, The Mystery of the Brass Bound Trunk. No story there, I thought. And I didn’t like The Secret at Shadow Ranch or the Secret of Red Gate Farm. Still Leslie McFarlane was a great writer for The Hardy Boys and, as I said, I liked his first book in The Dana Sisters series.

This book also doesn’t talk about the editing of The Nancy Drew and Dana Sisters books in 1959 when they re-worked the stories, took out any racial remarks, and who knows what else. I had read one re-edited book and hated it. It is one thing to take out racial remarks, but yet another when you mess with the original story, making it worse, unrecognizable, well... I bet Harriet had her hands in that, threw in a monkey wrench. I own all of the older ones and maybe a few past 1959 because of this editing. I find the racial comments to be few, but still not appreciated.

Back to Mildred. She was awarded a Master of Arts from the school of Journalism and was the first person to accomplish this feat. After college she landed a job as a journalist at a newspaper. While working for them, she saw an ad in the paper for a writer of a new teenage mystery series that the Stratemeyer syndicate desired to produce. She answered the ad and was hired but continued to work for the newspaper.

Edward Stratemeyer would create an outline of a book he wished her to write, would then mail it to her, and get back a book in 4 to 5 weeks. There were no royalties, no name recognition, only $125 per book. She had to keep her identity a secret.

The Stratemeyer Syndicate was a book packaging business that matched up writers with the books they were creating through ghostwriters. Edward had created a long list of children’s books: The Rover Boys, Bobbsey Twins, Motor Boys, Motor Girls, Nancy Drew Mysteries, Dana Sisters, The Happy Hollisters, Tom Swift, Jr., The Hardy Boys, and a long list of other books that I have never heard of before.

Edward Stratemeyer had died from pneumonia shortly after the Nancy Drew series had been created. He was only to see the first 4 or 5 books published. His daughters, Harriet and Edna, took over the business, and Harriet took over his role of sending out outlines for the various series, even creating the Dana Sisters. These books were then sent to Grosset & Dunlap to be published.

It was now 1980 and Nancy Drew sales were plummeting. Stratemeyer blamed Grosset & Dunlap for not doing a good job of advertising. Maybe, like me, they didn’t like the new screwed up series. So Stratemeyer fired them and hired a new publisher, Simon & Shuster. This led to a court battle, because unlike what I just said, they wanted to keep the contract. Even though they thought it stunk, I think.

Harriet got up on the stand and claimed that she had written all of the Nancy Drew series. Sounds just like what Lettie Briggs would have done. Grosset had found Mildred Wirt Benson, and when she got up on the stand, Harriet was shocked because she thought that she had died. She literally fell out of her chair. This was the first time America would learn who had actually written Nancy Drew. Stratemeyer won the case, but at least Mildred Wirt Benson had been proven to be the original writer of the series.

Snippets:

Mildred’s father was a doctor.

Her first husband worked for the newspaper and was 19 years older than she.

They had a daughter named Peggy. Nothing is really said about her other than she and Mildred did not get along. Peggy has passed away as has her mother. I found nothing on the internet about Peggy.

After Mildred’s husband’s death Mildred married a Benson. After his death she never remarried.

Nancy Drew books came out during the depression and sold for 50 cents a copy. I just paid $22.50 for a Mildred A. Wirt book, The Clue at the Crooked Lane, only in acceptable condition. Published in 1936. No other dates in book. Well, on looking again, you can get a great copy for $275.00. The publisher was Cupples and Leon. Mildred had written seven different mystery books for them. I will not buy anymore, I say, but I plan on re-reading and doing reviews on my Nancy Drew and Dana Sister book collection this year. Maybe two a month.

Mildred always believed that girls should be able to do the same things as boys. I thought that myself, but generally men are stronger and that can limit most women.

There was no library in the town where she grew up, so she borrowed books from neighbors and the school library. She loved action and mystery books. And she loved the Nicholas magazine and had a monthly subscription to it.

Mildred had also written stories under her own name as well as other pseudonyms. The Penny Parker series is one of them. Also, the Brownie Scout Series. I had never read this series because I didn’t like being a Brownie and soon quit. I just didn’t like doing all of those stupid crafts. The Boy Scouts had more fun because they learned survival techniques. I liked playing in the dirt.

I must go on with the list:

Dot and Dash, Kay Tracy Mystery Series, Madge Sterling, Nancy Drew, Dana Sisters, Ruth Darrow’s Flying Stories, Trailer Stories for Girls, as well as some others. In relation to the flying stories, Mildred had learned to fly and loved it. Who wouldn’t? Well, there are those who are afraid of flying.

This book was worth reading, as I actually enjoyed learning about Mildred Wirt Benson, although tgere really wasn’t much to say about her, and she had left out much about the Dana Sister series. There is a website called Mildred A. Wirt Benson website. The creator of that website has more interesting information as did Wikipedia.

For some reason a recipe had been added to this book as had other tidbits about things. Filler? It is actually a great recipe to have, and I will try it. It is the first brownie recipe ever created and was invented by a chef at the Palmer House Hotel in Chicago and served at the World’s Fair in 1893. I can find no mention of the chef’s name. What a shame! It was called The Palmer House Brownie and first appeared in the Sears & Roebuck Catalog in 1898. It also appeared in the Fanny Farmer cookbook. It is still served today at the Palmer House Hilton in Chicago.

Bertha Palmer’s Brownie

14 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
1 lb. butter
12 oz. granulated sugar
8 oz. flour
4 large whole eggs
12 oz. crushed walnuts
Vanilla extract

Melt chocolate with butter in a double boiler. Mix dry ingredients into a mixing bolw, except walnuts. Mix chocolate/butter blend with dry ingredients, for four to five minutes. Add eggs and vanilla. Pour into a 9 x 12-inch baking pan. Sprinkle with walnuts on top, press walnuts down slightly into mixture with your hand, and bake at 300 degrees for thirty to forty minutes.
You will know when the brownies are done as the edges will start to become a little crispy and the bronies will have risen about one-quarter inch. Note: Even when the brownie is properly baked it will test “gooey” with a toothpick in the middle due to the richness of the mixture.
After removing the pan from the oven, allw the brownies to cook about thirty minutes before spreading a thin layer of glaze on top with a pastry brush.

Glaze:
1 cup water
1 cup apricot preserves
1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin.

Mix together the water, preserves and unflavored gelatin in a saucepan. Mix thoroughly and bring to a boil for two minutes.

SPREAD THE GLAZE MIXTURE ON THE COOLED BROWNIES WHILE IT IS HOT. Special Tip: The brownies are easier to cut if you place them in the free3zer for about three to four hours after glazing.

[Kathyanngallagher · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Missing Millie Benson" is a biography for young readers that I happened across one day at the library. I was intrigued. I had no idea that Carolyn Keene was a pseudonym name used by the creator of the Nancy Drew idea and the very name that Millie wrote 30 books under. What a wonderful read from start to finish. For any Nancy Drew fan, this is a must!

[Linda · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Nancy Drew mysteries were some of my favorite when I was a young girl. It was many years later that I found out that the original author of these books was a writer for my home town newspaper The Toledo Blade. That made the books even more special to me.
I was excited to see there was a book about Millie Benson. It is slim and labeled "Biographies for Young Readers" but that would not stop me.
The writer/editor in me had trouble with the writing style of the book. I felt the author was talking down to the reader.
I appreciated the information about Millie and the pictures. It is a very quick read with an extensive bibliography of both Millie's books and books and articles for reference.

[Amy Payne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have fond memories of devouring Nancy Drew mysteries as a kid and then introducing them to my kids. I had no idea Carolyn Keene was a pseudonym so I was intrigued to read the life story of the name behind the series. She wrote a LOT of books that I might see if our library has. Kudos to our wonderful local library for having this book out in the kids section to catch my eye!

[Alexa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pleasant YR biography of Mildred Augustine Wirt Benson, long-time Ohio resident and author of more than 20 of the original Nancy Drew books. Informative for fans of this series, and meticulously researched.

[Nann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rubini's biography was cited in a recent "A Mighty Girl" article about the 90th anniversary of Nancy Drew. I learned a lot. Very well-presented.

[Phyllis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I gravitate to anything that has to do with Nancy Drew. The Nancy Drew mysteries were some of the earliest books I read. Even though I only had the first four (which I still own), I frequented the library to read as many others as I could. Ten years ago I was lucky enough to discover another nonfiction book about the writers behind Nancy Drew, Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and The Women Who Created Her, so was familiar with Millie Benson. But of course I wanted to get the scoop all about Millie from this "Young Reader" biography. I was a little disappointed, mainly in the writing style. I am guessing that author Julie K. Rubini was following a required format for this series of "Biographies for Young Readers." Her Author's Note, which introduces the book, was honest, lively, and engaging. The actual book contains an overabundance of footnotes and I felt like I was reading a report or term paper. The facts were all there, with plenty of entertaining photos, but Julie's personable style was stifled. So I can only give this book three stars. But if you're hungry for background on Nancy Drew and the author who first wrote about her, you'll find all this and more in Missing Millie Benson.

[Margery Bayne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Millie Benson was an epic lady.

The original ghostwriter of the first 23 Nancy Drew books, she also wrote other children's books (both as a ghostwriter and her own original series), was a career journalist with a Master's degree and a number of recognitions to her name, and a recreational swimmer, springboard high diver, and pilot. She would be considered accomplished now days, and she is definitely even more so for the time she lived.

This children's biography does a fair job of telling her story. It contextualizes ideas, terms, and historical details in the way they would need to be for a young audience who is still building up their knowledge base. However this volume does strain to extend its page count against what is actually known of Millie's life. Some of the cut away 'did you know' and such sections had very tenuous connections to the text at large.

This volume gets three stars, but Millie Benson gets all the stars!

[Meltha · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's always fun to find out the writer of a book I like is also an interesting person. Apparently, Millie Benson, who essentially was Carolyn Keene, had enough action in her life to leave Nancy Drew in the dust. Journalist, athlete, writer of 130 books, pilot, heck, she even tried to go into space. The books is remarkably well researched, almost a bit too much so as the level of detail gets to the point that I now know what her childhood shoes looked like. I'm honestly not sure what age range this is meant to be written for; at times, it has sidebars that feel very young, explaining some pretty basic concepts and words in the glossary, but the text itself feels at a more advanced level.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a well-written biography of Mildred Wirt Benson, the real Carolyn Keene. I have been a fan for many years and even met her and I'm glad that this biography was written for children who still read Nancy Drew. (although most stories were updated from the original books that Mildred wrote) I enjoy the books written under her own name and not for the Stratemeyer Syndicate, who owned the house names the ghost writers all used, even more. The list in the back of all the books she wrote is very helpful to have it all in one place. Not much of this information was new to me but for those who don't know, it's a great book to read.

[Tali Balas · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid choice for mystery readers and biography nuts. Rubini works very hard to make Millie's story compelling and timely. Never having been much of a Nancy Drew fan, I was surprised how much I enjoyed learning about Millie's life and circumstance. Rubini makes sure to connect Millie's life with other famous women of history.
The backmatter is incredibly well done offering: a timeline; awards; list of works; glossary; bibliography; and extensive research notes.

[Marcie · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a longtime reader of Nancy Drew stories, Missing Millie Benson: The Secret Case of the Nancy Drew Ghostwriter and Journalist was an interesting and informative read. I was not aware that Carolyn Keene was a pseudonym for Mildred Wirt Benson, a prolific award-winning ghostwriter and author. Living well into her nineties, Mrs. Benson lived an active and engaging life, just like many of her characters, including Nancy Drew.

[AGMaynard · Rating 3 out of 5]

With better graphics and formatting, this might have been an eye-catching read for young people. Earnest retelling of the life and career of Mildred Wirt Benson, the original ghostwriter of the Nancy Drew series. Millie wrote a number of other series and was also a longtime journalist. Recommended for those who are interested in her and Nancy Drew.

[Mary Bronson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very interesting biography about one of the ghostwriters for the Nancy Drew series. I have read about this over the years, but never researched a lot about it. I loved learning about Millie Benson. I liked learning about how Nancy Drew came about and I loved learning about the amazing career of such a talented writer and interesting person.

[Catherine Cheney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting to me, as I grew up on Nancy Drew and the like, but not sure that the Young Readers that this is written for will be as intrigued. It is an interesting book on the formulaic ghost writing so prevalent in children's literature in the early/mid 20th century.

[Mo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book about Millie Benson who was the original ghostwriter of Nancy Drew.

[Rochelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting read of the actual Carolyn Keene!!

[Sarah Uthoff]

It's obviously written for kids, but out of primary source material. There aren't a lot of biographies on Iowa's Nancy Drew writer so I was glad to read this one. Wirt did many things Nancy Drew would later do herself and beyond that went on to have an outstanding career as a journalist and even became a pilot. It's worth a good read.

[Sally · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although written for a high school audience, Missing Millie Benson covers well the highlights of Mildred Wirt Benson's life, including her contributions to the Nancy Drew franchise and her later experience as a pilot. Nicely done.

[Helen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book solves the mystery of: Who wrote the Nancy Drew books? and: Who made up the pseudonym Carolyn Keene?

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh- ok biography of Millie Benson's life. The first writer of the Nancy Drew books.
I didn't like how while describing her life at University of Iowa- many sentences were "she many have enjoyed the ..." really- you can't figure out if she went to that class or club? Do some research!
Lots of gaps in the story and filler- who cares about the history of the Palmer House Hotel? And how the man Gallup came up with his survey ideas- if you don't have enough details for the story-then don't write it!!!!!!!!
Her life was very interesting-and full of adventures- I hope there will be a better written story about her life.

[Emily Sandoval]

DNF. This is a children’s book, written at much too easy a level for my patience, especially since I have never read a Nancy Drew book.