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The Hardy Boys
The Hardy Boys Detective Handbook
Retired FBI Special Agent William F. Flynn provides young would-be detectives with tips on how to investigate cases just like the Hardy Boys. Includes information on crime solving techniques and how investigations are conducted.
214 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1959
15 people are currently reading
383 people want to read
About the author
Franklin W. Dixon
751 books994 followersFranklin W. Dixon is the pen name used by a variety of different authors who were part of a team that wrote The Hardy Boys novels for the Stratemeyer Syndicate (now owned by Simon & Schuster). Dixon was also the writer attributed for the Ted Scott Flying Stories series, published by Grosset & Dunlap.
Canadian author Leslie McFarlane is believed to have written the first sixteen Hardy Boys books, but worked to a detailed plot and character outline for each story. The outlines are believed to have originated with Edward Stratemeyer, with later books outlined by his daughters Edna C. Squier and Harriet Stratemeyer Adams. Edward and Harriet also edited all books in the series through the mid-1960s. Other writers of the original books include MacFarlane's wife Amy, John Button, Andrew E. Svenson, and Adams herself; most of the outlines were done by Adams and Svenson. A number of other writers and editors were recruited to revise the outlines and update the texts in line with a more modern sensibility, starting in the late 1950s.
The principal author for the Ted Scott books was John W. Duffield.
Canadian author Leslie McFarlane is believed to have written the first sixteen Hardy Boys books, but worked to a detailed plot and character outline for each story. The outlines are believed to have originated with Edward Stratemeyer, with later books outlined by his daughters Edna C. Squier and Harriet Stratemeyer Adams. Edward and Harriet also edited all books in the series through the mid-1960s. Other writers of the original books include MacFarlane's wife Amy, John Button, Andrew E. Svenson, and Adams herself; most of the outlines were done by Adams and Svenson. A number of other writers and editors were recruited to revise the outlines and update the texts in line with a more modern sensibility, starting in the late 1950s.
The principal author for the Ted Scott books was John W. Duffield.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
August 3, 2018
Alas, having finished all 58 of the Hardy Boys books (original series, 1920s-1950s, re-edited 1960s-1970s), this is all that's left. Fun mixture of mini-adventures plus detective how-to.
I'll miss you, Frank and Joe. Thanks for all the great adventures and mysteries!
I'll miss you, Frank and Joe. Thanks for all the great adventures and mysteries!
August 10, 2016
This is way more technical than the Nancy Drew counterpart. What is going on, Grosset & Dunlap?
I like the in-depth chapters on surveillance, fingerprinting, and the judicial system. They are quite informative but technical and dry. You should be able to find better, more readable articles about them on the Internet or something. The funny thing is that there are chapters on criminal slang and drugs. So if some kids were able to fluently purchase illegal drugs after reading this I wouldn't be surprised. The information might be out-of-date though. Plus, the modus operandi the author describes might be out-of-date, too, as this was written before the Godsent computer.
The stories demonstrating the crime-busting are pretty bad. The author simply loves to tell us how amazing the Hardy Boys are. I mean, someone has to look at them in admiration almost every chapter. Otherwise, the author goes like, "Yoohoo, audience, this is Joe and he's one of the amazing, manly Hardy Boys. He's one of the fastest people on the track team. Whoooshh, there he goes again! Like a high-speed bullet! OMG OMG!" If an author has to keep reminding us how awesome his characters are like this, I get grumpy. Author, pls.
Besides that, the author's writing is boring and flat. What happened to "show, not tell?" Sometimes, he even goes into passive voice. Yoohoo, this is not an essay. And adverbs! Flee for thine precious lives!
I have never read The Hardy Boys series before. This is probably why I think them calling their crime-busting kits names like "The Hardy Plaster Cast Kit" very dumb. What is with "The Hardy?" Are their kits special or something? Do they have more functions than "The Average Plaster Cast Kit?"
As you can see from the other reviews, established fans of the Hardy Boys will love this. I don't love it very much, because I haven't read the series. But who am I kidding? I don't love very much.
I like the in-depth chapters on surveillance, fingerprinting, and the judicial system. They are quite informative but technical and dry. You should be able to find better, more readable articles about them on the Internet or something. The funny thing is that there are chapters on criminal slang and drugs. So if some kids were able to fluently purchase illegal drugs after reading this I wouldn't be surprised. The information might be out-of-date though. Plus, the modus operandi the author describes might be out-of-date, too, as this was written before the Godsent computer.
The stories demonstrating the crime-busting are pretty bad. The author simply loves to tell us how amazing the Hardy Boys are. I mean, someone has to look at them in admiration almost every chapter. Otherwise, the author goes like, "Yoohoo, audience, this is Joe and he's one of the amazing, manly Hardy Boys. He's one of the fastest people on the track team. Whoooshh, there he goes again! Like a high-speed bullet! OMG OMG!" If an author has to keep reminding us how awesome his characters are like this, I get grumpy. Author, pls.
Besides that, the author's writing is boring and flat. What happened to "show, not tell?" Sometimes, he even goes into passive voice. Yoohoo, this is not an essay. And adverbs! Flee for thine precious lives!
I have never read The Hardy Boys series before. This is probably why I think them calling their crime-busting kits names like "The Hardy Plaster Cast Kit" very dumb. What is with "The Hardy?" Are their kits special or something? Do they have more functions than "The Average Plaster Cast Kit?"
As you can see from the other reviews, established fans of the Hardy Boys will love this. I don't love it very much, because I haven't read the series. But who am I kidding? I don't love very much.
January 9, 2012
Learn how to tail a criminal through city streets! Learn the slang to go undercover into the "hep" drug subculture! Learn how to defeat the criminal element in your town! Make no mistake: taking any of the information of this book out into the real world will most assuredly get you killed. However, this is a terrific snapshot of a time when Glad Bags were called "glassine" bags, and the drugs you put into them were called "scag," "nose candy," and "stuff." Wonderful artifacts from the boys' adventure genre.
September 30, 2008
As a child, I loved the Hardy Boys series. I remember that when I saw this Detective handbook on the bookstore shelf, I was so excited. I read and reread this book so many times. It was so exciting for a young child to learn about fingerprinting and taking shoe prints. This book is really such an exciting and wholesome book for anyone who is starting to read on their own or who loves to read mysteries.
February 24, 2018
I have the version published in '59 with the help of D.A. Spina, an ex-cop who, after this book was published, was caught up in a corruption scandal in New Jersey. That's why the re-published next edition of the book has a different guy consulting instead.
This is a fun book on crime solving that is hopelessly, hilariously out of date today, which is really where a lot of the fun comes from. If a criminal catches you using the slang defined in this book, you might just kill them with laughter.
This is a fun book on crime solving that is hopelessly, hilariously out of date today, which is really where a lot of the fun comes from. If a criminal catches you using the slang defined in this book, you might just kill them with laughter.
August 6, 2012
This is the book that was responsible for me getting in trouble for pulverizing blackboard chalk to make fingerprint powder. I read and re-read it all through my pre-teen years, and I blame it directly for my brief obsession with "CSI" and the related TV shows.
February 7, 2018
One of my favorite books from childhood. It would be cool if they could update this with current forensic science for a YA audience. I read the 1972 edition. I just discovered the original was 1959. It would be interesting to compare the two editions.
June 22, 2021
Interesting book. Provided information on hardy boy cases and related to police investigating tools like fingerprinting and surveillance.
July 19, 2023
I was a bit torn on rating this one. It is full of good, if not dated information on police procedures as of 1959. However, the technical aspects on areas such as fingerprinting are quite detailed and will likely be very boring to a 10-14 year old. The language is dated and there are a lot of generalizations and assumptions that are really dated by today's standards. The last chapter on surveillance was interesting, but society has adapted a totally different approach on substance abuse, so the narrative is not really recommended.
This was the only book that I had not read as a child, so it was a bit refreshing. It was also interesting to see how police procedures have advanced.
While not specific to this book, I'll end my reviews of the Hardy Boys series with the following observations:
- they have more freedom to travel and do things that almost any real teenager would have.
- they have an inexhaustible supply of money that fuels their pursuit of solving mysteries.
- they have been knocked unconscious probably 30 times in 59 books. They would likely be severely handicapped by now and walking around with helmets on.
- they never age. I know the authors wanted to keep the boys relevant, but 17 and 18 are just a bit too young for some of the adventures and situations they are put in.
- the language is dated and stereotypical and may not be suitable today. This includes thoughts on the roles of women, minorities and other areas.
- they can be tied up on page 168, but will be free and solved the mystery successfully by page 178 due to a spectacular rescue that is contrived. It would have been nice to have a cliffhanger ending that carried into another book.
Overall, the early books are a great read for middle school children. Once the series advances, so of the books are more challenging or the concepts not really helpful in learning.
This was the only book that I had not read as a child, so it was a bit refreshing. It was also interesting to see how police procedures have advanced.
While not specific to this book, I'll end my reviews of the Hardy Boys series with the following observations:
- they have more freedom to travel and do things that almost any real teenager would have.
- they have an inexhaustible supply of money that fuels their pursuit of solving mysteries.
- they have been knocked unconscious probably 30 times in 59 books. They would likely be severely handicapped by now and walking around with helmets on.
- they never age. I know the authors wanted to keep the boys relevant, but 17 and 18 are just a bit too young for some of the adventures and situations they are put in.
- the language is dated and stereotypical and may not be suitable today. This includes thoughts on the roles of women, minorities and other areas.
- they can be tied up on page 168, but will be free and solved the mystery successfully by page 178 due to a spectacular rescue that is contrived. It would have been nice to have a cliffhanger ending that carried into another book.
Overall, the early books are a great read for middle school children. Once the series advances, so of the books are more challenging or the concepts not really helpful in learning.
March 27, 2024
Not exactly the last of the original Hardy Boys books, as it was published around 1971. Additional novels were released with this style of cover until around 1979. When the cover style changed, the series ended for me.
While this isn't a novel, it is in many ways my favorite of the entire series. The stories are said to be based on real cases, and a former FBI agent was consulted for the book. Unlike the wild, unruly stories of the novels, the short stories presented here follow actual police procedures. The stories are a bit more raw, and thus more realistic and compelling. Some deal directly with the issue of drugs, and in one case the murder of a policeman occurs. Murder was a taboo topic for the novels during the run of the original series, and drugs were rarely if ever mentioned.
The final chapters cover the details of things like fingerprinting, police note taking, and surveillance. The police procedures are 50 years out of date now, but interesting nonetheless.
While this isn't a novel, it is in many ways my favorite of the entire series. The stories are said to be based on real cases, and a former FBI agent was consulted for the book. Unlike the wild, unruly stories of the novels, the short stories presented here follow actual police procedures. The stories are a bit more raw, and thus more realistic and compelling. Some deal directly with the issue of drugs, and in one case the murder of a policeman occurs. Murder was a taboo topic for the novels during the run of the original series, and drugs were rarely if ever mentioned.
The final chapters cover the details of things like fingerprinting, police note taking, and surveillance. The police procedures are 50 years out of date now, but interesting nonetheless.
November 27, 2017
This is a fun book for readers of all ages!
The first few chapters are fictional accounts of police cases in which the Hardy Boys assisted their father. The final few chapters are non-fiction about police and detective procedures such as fingerprinting, surveillance, and evidence collection.
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Borrowed through the public library's interlibrary loan system.
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The first few chapters are fictional accounts of police cases in which the Hardy Boys assisted their father. The final few chapters are non-fiction about police and detective procedures such as fingerprinting, surveillance, and evidence collection.
-------------------------
Borrowed through the public library's interlibrary loan system.
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June 5, 2018
Ate these up as a kid and usually got them as gifts for birthdays, Christmas and other events. This edition would be quite dated now and I believe they have updated the books. The author was a pseudonym for a plethora of writers who contributed to this series.
June 9, 2021
my dad found this book in a box of his old things and gave it to me so of course I had to read it. it’s a very informational book filled with definitions and explanations of different things to do with crime investigation. I think had I read this when I was younger I would’ve enjoyed it a lot:)
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 6, 2017
this was so much more cheesy detective-y than usual (which = A LOT bc it's usually very cheesy detective-y) but it was a cool read and taught a lot
October 28, 2017
BAHAHAHAHAHAHA, what a gem.
April 2, 2018
Great book, brought back fond memories and is still relevant. If only kids today still read books.
Read
June 13, 2018Read the whole series through mid 1960’s publishings.
November 7, 2019
You may certainly learn some words in this tome.
April 21, 2025
Not very much of a "handbook" I like the stories, but it doesn't really make sense why it's called a "handbook"😒
October 28, 2025
I found this at a thrift store. Kind of awesome!
February 18, 2022
It took nearly 50 years, but I finally got around to reading _The Hardy Boys Detective Handbook_, which had been sort of a holy grail for me during my Hardy Boys phase. Maybe if I'd read it all those years ago, I'd have been more impressed by the HBDH but reading it as an adult--and some 50 years after it was written--I find that it doesn't hold up very well. The dialogue is very stilted, the solutions to the "mysteries" are, in true Hardy Boys fashion, pretty much delivered to the "detectives" on a silver platter, and their relationship with law enforcement agencies is totally unrealistic. Still, there's some interesting information here on surveillance, undercover work, and especially fingerprint identification that I'd have eaten up as a kid. I'm amazed by all the five-star reviews it gets, but find that many reviewers on here are only too willing to give five-star reviews to pretty much anything that comes along.
Want to read
February 10, 2008I spent most of my childhood looking for this book after I'd read the rest of the series. My Dad didn't have it in his collection, and none of the libraries around had it either, it sat in the list at the back of each book taunting me.
I finally found it at a book shop last year. I just have to find time to read it now...
I finally found it at a book shop last year. I just have to find time to read it now...
February 23, 2009
The Holy Grail of my childhood. I finally scored a copy for my son this year. Despite the 1972 cover and techniques, it still made my heart go pit-a-pat...a more complete human being am I.
October 19, 2013
additional resource book to the original hardy boy mystery series
August 2, 2012
MY CHILDHOOD. I MISS THE GOOD OL DAYS D:
Currently reading
October 13, 20152014-Summer-Reading
March 25, 2013
About 40 years after reading both this and the 1970's updated edition, I recalled verbatim several passages while taking a Special Topics in Biology: Forensics class
January 9, 2008
You would think this rules. But it doesn't. It was written by the Army. Yes. Seriously.
August 30, 2016
Rating is based on target age group of 10-12 year olds.
Read
October 23, 2014ABOUT KIDS. SUCKS
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews