The Mystery, Crime, and Thriller Group discussion

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General Chat > Classic teen sleuths: do you recognize any of these?

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message 1: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
I just got this article in my email about classic teen sleuths who were not Nancy Drew. I'm sitting here reading it, and I'm transported back to nights of reading under the blankets by flashlight. How many books featuring these teenaged detectives have you read?

the link:
https://bookriot.com/books-like-nancy...


message 2: by Bill (new)

Bill I read the Hardy Boys, although I preferred Nancy Drew. I remember reading Trixie Belden and the Dana Girls as well. Great fun as a kid..


message 3: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
Bill wrote: "I read the Hardy Boys, although I preferred Nancy Drew. I remember reading Trixie Belden and the Dana Girls as well. Great fun as a kid.."

There were a few on that list I'd never heard of -- Connie Blair, Penny Parker and Kay Tracey. I may have to hunt down copies to see what I missed!


RJ - Slayer of Trolls (hawk5391yahoocom) Bill wrote: "I read the Hardy Boys, although I preferred Nancy Drew. I remember reading Trixie Belden and the Dana Girls as well. Great fun as a kid.."

Same, except I am not sure if I ever read the Dana Girls. But there are some other series I remember reading, like Three Investigators, Encyclopedia Brown, Tom Swift....

Speaking of The Three Investigators, I just learned (thanks Wikipedia!) that there were a couple movies made of their exploits a few years back in Germany. I would have gotten a kick out of this as a kid. Here's a trailer I found: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fV44a...


message 5: by Bill (new)

Bill RJ from the LBC wrote: "Bill wrote: "I read the Hardy Boys, although I preferred Nancy Drew. I remember reading Trixie Belden and the Dana Girls as well. Great fun as a kid.."

Same, except I am not sure if I ever read th..."


I remember Encyclopedia Brown and Tom Swift, can't remember if I read very many of them.. Great memories though.


message 6: by Renee (new)

Renee (elenarenee) | 182 comments I loved Cherry Ames.I read ever book that my library had with he in it


message 7: by Jan C (new)

Jan C (woeisme) | 39412 comments I read a couple of Cherry Ames. But it was really Nancy Drew for me.


message 8: by Bruce (new)

Bruce | 3121 comments I grew up on the Hardy Boys, but read Tom Swift recently.

Cherry Ames was my mom’s favorite when she was growing up. I found one at a used bookstore a while back and got it for her.


message 9: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
RJ from the LBC wrote: "Bill wrote: "I read the Hardy Boys, although I preferred Nancy Drew. I remember reading Trixie Belden and the Dana Girls as well. Great fun as a kid.."

Same, except I am not sure if I ever read th..."


I loved the Three Investigators!!! I even still have my old TI books!


message 10: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
Renee wrote: "I loved Cherry Ames.I read ever book that my library had with he in it"

I liked her too.


message 11: by Carolien (new)

Carolien (carolien_s) I read the Hardy Boys and a few of the Dana Girls. The others are all unknown to me.


message 12: by Monique (new)

Monique | 34 comments Well here’s my public confession that I was a massive Trixie Belden fan. Absolute escapism from my childhood. I STILL have the entire series of the oval frame cover edition, plus the two quiz books. I’m going to be selling it soon though. I really need to offload some books and these are sitting in a box.


message 13: by Mike (new)

Mike (tigermike) Enid Blyton 'Secrret Seven' series as a child, then Agatha Christie as a teen and l have all hr books!!


message 14: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (last edited Dec 12, 2020 02:27PM) (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
Monique wrote: "Well here’s my public confession that I was a massive Trixie Belden fan. Absolute escapism from my childhood. I STILL have the entire series of the oval frame cover edition, plus the two quiz books..."

I was the same way. I loved her!!! I have the hardcover originals from Whitman. Just found a photo of a few here:

https://www.ebay.com/i/293857721647?c...


message 15: by Monique (new)

Monique | 34 comments Nancy wrote: "Monique wrote: "Well here’s my public confession that I was a massive Trixie Belden fan. Absolute escapism from my childhood. I STILL have the entire series of the oval frame cover edition, plus th..."

They are earlier editions than mine, I think. I don't think they published the full series in those editions, but I love the hardcovers. So great that you have kept them too! No thoughts of selling them on?


message 16: by Linda (new)

Linda (beaulieulinda117gmailcom) | 1758 comments I remember going to the library with my mom and getting all the Trixie beldon I could. In fact I wouldn't mind revisiting Trixie lol.


message 17: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
Monique wrote: "Nancy wrote: "Monique wrote: "Well here’s my public confession that I was a massive Trixie Belden fan. Absolute escapism from my childhood. I STILL have the entire series of the oval frame cover ed..."

They were old when my mom got them for me (most likely at yard sales), and no, I probably won't sell. On the other hand, they're sitting in boxes in the closet that goes under the stairs, so I'm not really using them...


message 18: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
Linda wrote: "I remember going to the library with my mom and getting all the Trixie beldon I could. In fact I wouldn't mind revisiting Trixie lol."

:)


RJ - Slayer of Trolls (hawk5391yahoocom) Nancy wrote: "I loved the Three Investigators!!! I even still have my old TI books!"

Yeah, they were my favorite.


message 20: by Bruce (new)

Bruce | 3121 comments Are The Three Investigators the one that’s Hitchcock themed?


message 21: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
That's correct. As per Wikipedia:

"In the first book, The Secret of Terror Castle, Jupiter bluffs his way into the office of director Alfred Hitchcock and makes a deal with him that if the Investigators can find him a haunted house to use as a location for his next movie, Hitchcock will introduce the story of their adventures. Hitchcock agrees, not expecting them to succeed; but at the end of the book is impressed with the boys' investigation and not only introduces the book but also refers several other future clients to them in subsequent novels. The last chapter of each book was usually an epilogue in which the investigators sat with Alfred Hitchcock (and later, Hector Sebastian), reviewing the mystery and revealing the deductions through the clues discussed earlier in the book."


message 22: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
as if. LOL


message 23: by Monique (new)

Monique | 34 comments My goodness! Lucky I read this when I was too young to know who Alfred Hitchcock was, because that’s just frigging absurd! 😂


message 24: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
Monique wrote: "My goodness! Lucky I read this when I was too young to know who Alfred Hitchcock was, because that’s just frigging absurd! 😂"

but you have to admit that at the time it was fun.


RJ - Slayer of Trolls (hawk5391yahoocom) Nancy wrote: "Monique wrote: "My goodness! Lucky I read this when I was too young to know who Alfred Hitchcock was, because that’s just frigging absurd! 😂"

but you have to admit that at the time it was fun."


I was too young to care but to be honest it's not much less plausible than the rest of the stories if I recall correctly.


message 26: by Renee (new)

Renee (elenarenee) | 182 comments I had a wonderful job as a preteen. My neighbors mother was very frail. She was the smartest, kindest person I have ever met. She was just not strong. My job was to just stay with her and help her get around. The house was filled with books. It was there that I read Cherry Ames, Nancy Drew and Agatha Christie. I think she had as much fun exposing me to mysteries as I did reading them.


Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (susannag) | 556 comments I've read the Hardy Boys, Trixie Belden, Cherry Ames, and Judy Bolton. My favorite, of all including Nancy Drew, is Judy Bolton.


message 28: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
Renee wrote: "I had a wonderful job as a preteen. My neighbors mother was very frail. She was the smartest, kindest person I have ever met. She was just not strong. My job was to just stay with her and help her ..."

I used to do weekend babysitting as a teen and raid the bookshelves once the kids would go to bed. That backfired once, when I read The Exorcist and scared myself silly.


message 29: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (last edited Dec 30, 2020 09:30AM) (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
Susanna - Censored by GoodReads wrote: "I've read the Hardy Boys, Trixie Belden, Cherry Ames, and Judy Bolton. My favorite, of all including Nancy Drew, is Judy Bolton."

Oh my gosh -- I just typed in "Judy Bolton" at Amazon, and you can buy the books with retro covers! When I was a kid, I would have been into titles like The Spirit of Fog Island, or The Yellow Phantom, very old-style pulp sounding.

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=judy+bolto...


message 30: by Barbara (new)

Barbara On another group, someone mentioned a series written in the '90s featuring a teenage girl sleuth who was the daughter of a rabbi (I think) - The first one was called "Mystery. at Miami Beach", don't know how many books were in the series.
There is also a series about a teen or pre-teen Sherlock Holmes by an author named Lane.


message 31: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
Barbara wrote: "On another group, someone mentioned a series written in the '90s featuring a teenage girl sleuth who was the daughter of a rabbi (I think) - The first one was called "Mystery. at Miami Beach", don'..."

haven't heard of that one.


message 32: by Pam (new)

Pam (pmunro) | 132 comments I still have a few of the Dana Girls mysteries and most of the Cherry Ames series. i also read Judy Bolton, Hardy Boys, Boxcar Children, Bobbsey Twins, Trixie Belden ...
Years ago, I took a class that highlighted the ghost writers of the Statemeyer Syndicate and their teen characters.


message 33: by CBRetriever (new)

CBRetriever | 2653 comments Campfire Girls?


message 34: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
CBRetriever wrote: "Campfire Girls?"

LOL!! Did anyone ever do a series with Campfire Girls as detectives?


message 35: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
Pam wrote: "I still have a few of the Dana Girls mysteries and most of the Cherry Ames series. i also read Judy Bolton, Hardy Boys, Boxcar Children, Bobbsey Twins, Trixie Belden ...
Years ago, I took a class ..."


My husband keeps telling me that I should get rid of all of those old books, but I can't.


message 36: by Jan C (new)

Jan C (woeisme) | 39412 comments Pam wrote: "I still have a few of the Dana Girls mysteries and most of the Cherry Ames series. i also read Judy Bolton, Hardy Boys, Boxcar Children, Bobbsey Twins, Trixie Belden ...
Years ago, I took a class ..."


I recall reading one or two of the Cherry Ames stories. I think I got it from a neighbor. I had a couple of neighbors who were a couple of years older than me and I inherited their 45s and their books. They were going to college and didn't need these childish things anymore. Same with my sister.

My mother gave me one book I liked that took place in the West and a bunch of girls were riding horses and solving some kind of mystery. I don't know if it was a series since I only read the one book. There were illustrations that showed these girls in cowboy hats and on horses. No idea what the title was or who these girls were.


message 37: by CBRetriever (new)

CBRetriever | 2653 comments Nancy wrote: "CBRetriever wrote: "Campfire Girls?"

LOL!! Did anyone ever do a series with Campfire Girls as detectives?"


yes, my mother had a few of them: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_Fi... and I read them when I was a tween. I don't remember the ages of the characters but I seem to remember some were in their teens. The Ethel Hollister ones have a 16 year old as one of the main characters.

The Campfire Girls Collection: 26 Campfire Girls Stories = 26 of the books for $1.99 in Kindle version


message 38: by Nancy, Co-Moderator (new)

Nancy Oakes (quinnsmom) | 10128 comments Mod
CBRetriever wrote: "Nancy wrote: "CBRetriever wrote: "Campfire Girls?"

LOL!! Did anyone ever do a series with Campfire Girls as detectives?"

yes, my mother had a few of them: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camp_Fire_..."


I seriously did not know that this was a thing.


message 39: by Mark (new)

Mark Baker (carstairs38) | 233 comments I started with the Hardy Boys, then ventured over to Nancy. But once I discovered Trixie Belden, I never looked back. Those books were wonderful.


message 40: by Michael (new)

Michael (fisher_of_men) | 132 comments I was a (Tom) Swiftie before it was cool. Also I got into the Three Investigators because of the connection with Alfred Hitchcock.


Valerie Book Valkyrie | 661 comments Nancy wrote: "CBRetriever wrote: "Campfire Girls?"

LOL!! Did anyone ever do a series with Campfire Girls as detectives?"


I don't think so but I sure would get a kick out of reading this series if it ever did/will exist ;->


message 42: by Valerie Book Valkyrie (last edited Mar 11, 2024 09:10AM) (new)

Valerie Book Valkyrie | 661 comments Nancy wrote: "CBRetriever wrote: "Nancy wrote: "CBRetriever wrote: "Campfire Girls?"

LOL!! Did anyone ever do a series with Campfire Girls as detectives?"

yes, my mother had a few of them: https://en.wikipedia..."

Thanks for the Link!
The list of books is quite extensive, I'm going to see if I can get a hold of any of them.
I really enjoyed Nancy Drew as a child, and still do!


message 43: by CBRetriever (new)

CBRetriever | 2653 comments Valerie wrote: "Nancy wrote: "CBRetriever wrote: "Nancy wrote: "CBRetriever wrote: "Campfire Girls?"

LOL!! Did anyone ever do a series with Campfire Girls as detectives?"

yes, my mother had a few of them: https:..."


get this Kindle version for $1.99

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...

and a lot of them are available on gutenberg.org - 17 to be exact


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