Status
Available
Publication
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (2005), 384 pages
Description
In 1930 a plucky girl detective stepped out of her shiny blue roadster, dressed in a smart tweed suit. Eighty million books later, Nancy Drew has survived the Depression, World War II, and the sixties, and emerged as beloved by girls today as by their grandmothers. Rehak tells the behind-the-scenes history of Nancy and her groundbreaking creators. Both Nancy and her "author," Carolyn Keene, were invented by Edward Stratemeyer, who also created the Bobbsey Twins and the Hardy Boys. But Nancy Drew was brought to life by two remarkable women: original author Mildred Wirt Benson, a convention-flouting Midwestern journalist, and Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, a wife and mother who ran her father's company after he died. Together, Benson and Adams created a character that has inspired generations of girls to be as strong-willed and as bold as they were.--From publisher description.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member richardderus
Rating: 4* of five
The Book Description: A plucky "titian-haired" sleuth solved her first mystery in 1930. Eighty million books later, Nancy Drew has survived the Depression, World War II, and the Sixties (when she was taken up with a vengeance by women's libbers) to enter the pantheon of American
Who created Nancy Drew? And how did she go from pulp heroine to icon?
The brainchild of children's book mogul Edward Stratemeyer, Nancy was brought to life by two women: Mildred Wirt Benson, a pioneering journalist from Iowa, and Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, a well-bred wife and mother who took over as CEO of the pioneering Stratemeyer Syndicate after her father died. In a century-spanning story Rehak traces their roles--and Nancy's--in forging the modern American woman. With ebullience, wit, and a wealth of little-known source material, Rehak celebrates our unstoppable girl detective.
My Review: When I was about nine, I went through a Hardy Boys phase. My mother, who went from buying Oldsmobile-priced cocktail dresses at Henri Bendel and Chevrolet-priced suits at Bonwit Teller to working three jobs to support us, never said no when it came to buying me a book. So I read my way through the catalog, and looked around for more. Mama somewhat diffidently pointed out the Nancy Drew books. I asked if she solved crimes. “Yes, and drives a blue roadster,” said the wily old girl, and I had another school year's reading at a quarter a book. (Used. We most often bought used...Mama said the words didn't wear out and who cared about the cover anyway?)
Ever after, I've had a “thing” for All-American boys and girls who just damn well do it for themselves. From such acorns....
Mystery-reading pleasure was a given. Mother and sister were big consumers of the genre. I got my own books, and they were not mysteries, but good heavens a boy can't survive on a book a week! I mean really! So I read their mysteries. I checked mysteries out of the liberry. I read all the Hardy Boys (always preferred Joe to Frank, Iola be hanged) and Nancy Drew (what a maroon Ned Nickerson was!) a couple times each. They lost their luster about the time I found good SF.
But do you ever forget that first kiss? I know I haven't. Nancy, Frank, and Joe...oh my how I treasured their orderly world. No one behaved badly (my narcissistic parents were astonishingly insensitive and ill-mannered in their divorcing) without consequences, and crimes were punished. I liked that a lot! And I still do.
Melanie Rehak apparently did, too. She set out to tell the story, public since the 1970s at least, of the origins of Nancy Drew, Girl Sleuth. All the ookie bleccchhhy part about families in conflict over Smothers-Brothers-y “dad always liked you best” and “I sit here with mom and you swan about” and so on; all the fish-out-of-water growing up of a major tomboy with a ginormous brain, in a rinky dink dink little wide spot in the road, leading to Iowa State and college degree in the 1920s; all the nasty mean greedy behind-the-scenes moneygrubbing everyone seems to have thought nothing of.
It's as good as a novel. It's as much fun as a Nancy Drew story to unravel. It's not perfect, but it's got a lot of story and it tells the story concisely, yet without leaving annoying holes or piling numbing crap all over the reader.
The focus is on Nancy, her “father” Edward Stratemeyer, her “mother” Midred Wirt, and wicked stepmother Harriet Stratemeyer Adams. That's enough for a 600pp doorstopper, let me assure you! Author Rehak got out her laser, finely cut and carefully etched the truly important bits from these three peoples' lives and then soldered and electroplated the whole thing into a lovely, solid bracelet shaped like Nancy Drew.
Even if you've never read one of these books, THIS book is a very good read, and an intriguing side window onto American culture in the mid-20th century.
The Book Description: A plucky "titian-haired" sleuth solved her first mystery in 1930. Eighty million books later, Nancy Drew has survived the Depression, World War II, and the Sixties (when she was taken up with a vengeance by women's libbers) to enter the pantheon of American
Show More
girlhood. As beloved by girls today as she was by their grandmothers, Nancy Drew has both inspired and reflected the changes in her readers' lives. Now, in a narrative with all the vivid energy and page-turning pace of Nancy's adventures, Melanie Rehak solves an enduring literary mystery:Who created Nancy Drew? And how did she go from pulp heroine to icon?
The brainchild of children's book mogul Edward Stratemeyer, Nancy was brought to life by two women: Mildred Wirt Benson, a pioneering journalist from Iowa, and Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, a well-bred wife and mother who took over as CEO of the pioneering Stratemeyer Syndicate after her father died. In a century-spanning story Rehak traces their roles--and Nancy's--in forging the modern American woman. With ebullience, wit, and a wealth of little-known source material, Rehak celebrates our unstoppable girl detective.
My Review: When I was about nine, I went through a Hardy Boys phase. My mother, who went from buying Oldsmobile-priced cocktail dresses at Henri Bendel and Chevrolet-priced suits at Bonwit Teller to working three jobs to support us, never said no when it came to buying me a book. So I read my way through the catalog, and looked around for more. Mama somewhat diffidently pointed out the Nancy Drew books. I asked if she solved crimes. “Yes, and drives a blue roadster,” said the wily old girl, and I had another school year's reading at a quarter a book. (Used. We most often bought used...Mama said the words didn't wear out and who cared about the cover anyway?)
Ever after, I've had a “thing” for All-American boys and girls who just damn well do it for themselves. From such acorns....
Mystery-reading pleasure was a given. Mother and sister were big consumers of the genre. I got my own books, and they were not mysteries, but good heavens a boy can't survive on a book a week! I mean really! So I read their mysteries. I checked mysteries out of the liberry. I read all the Hardy Boys (always preferred Joe to Frank, Iola be hanged) and Nancy Drew (what a maroon Ned Nickerson was!) a couple times each. They lost their luster about the time I found good SF.
But do you ever forget that first kiss? I know I haven't. Nancy, Frank, and Joe...oh my how I treasured their orderly world. No one behaved badly (my narcissistic parents were astonishingly insensitive and ill-mannered in their divorcing) without consequences, and crimes were punished. I liked that a lot! And I still do.
Melanie Rehak apparently did, too. She set out to tell the story, public since the 1970s at least, of the origins of Nancy Drew, Girl Sleuth. All the ookie bleccchhhy part about families in conflict over Smothers-Brothers-y “dad always liked you best” and “I sit here with mom and you swan about” and so on; all the fish-out-of-water growing up of a major tomboy with a ginormous brain, in a rinky dink dink little wide spot in the road, leading to Iowa State and college degree in the 1920s; all the nasty mean greedy behind-the-scenes moneygrubbing everyone seems to have thought nothing of.
It's as good as a novel. It's as much fun as a Nancy Drew story to unravel. It's not perfect, but it's got a lot of story and it tells the story concisely, yet without leaving annoying holes or piling numbing crap all over the reader.
The focus is on Nancy, her “father” Edward Stratemeyer, her “mother” Midred Wirt, and wicked stepmother Harriet Stratemeyer Adams. That's enough for a 600pp doorstopper, let me assure you! Author Rehak got out her laser, finely cut and carefully etched the truly important bits from these three peoples' lives and then soldered and electroplated the whole thing into a lovely, solid bracelet shaped like Nancy Drew.
Even if you've never read one of these books, THIS book is a very good read, and an intriguing side window onto American culture in the mid-20th century.
Show Less
LibraryThing member PhaedraB
As may be obvious, I picked up this book because, as an avid child reader, I went through a lot of Nancy Drew. I was pleasantly surprised at how much I became engrossed in not just the publishing and character history but the story of the women (and men) who created the character and wrote not just
Rehak recreates the turn-of-the-last century world that produced the children’s serial industry in a most entertaining and engrossing manner. Harriet Stratemeyer Adams and Mildred Wirt Benson, two women who left indelible marks on Nancy, had fascinating lives of their own. Some reviewers felt too much was made of their histories, but I found their stories wonderfully told. I wanted to be at Wellelsey with Harriet, or flying planes in my 80s with Mildred.
I read my Nancy Drews fifty years ago, and was lucky enough to have a couple of the original 1930s versions, courtesy of aunts and older cousins. I knew they’d been periodically updated, but was underwhelmed by Rehak’s examples of the ways the character had been modernized in the last few decades. Apparently, making things “relevant” to children has come to mean oversimplifying and conventionalizing. Are children dumber than they used to be? I doubt it. Hey, I had no idea what a “roadster” was, but that didn’t put me off. I think the words and cultural references I didn’t fully understand added an exotic feel to the stories. What a disservice we do to children when we talk down to them. And how interesting to learn that the later, over-consumerist, over-simplified Nancy series have had a shorter run, while facsimile editions and 1950s revisions are still selling.
Rehak also discusses the failure of Nancy to successfully transition to film or TV. I saw the 2007 Nancy Drew movie, (see excellent review by Lance Mannion here ) and just recently, one of the late 1930s black and white films. In both cases, it was not “my” Nancy being portrayed. She was too flakey, or too conventionally girly, or too dorky, not the strong, competent, natural leader that Mildred and Harriet created and nurtured. (If I wanted to be entertained by dorky outsiders, I didn’t need to read a book, I could just look at myself and my friends.) Nancy was a vision of what we wanted to be, living a life we would have loved to live. Girls (and boys) need something to which they can aspire, not just something with which they can identify.
Bravo to Melanie Rehak for giving us the real lives of Nancy’s creators, both of whom give me something to which I could aspire.
Show More
the Nancy Drew books, but also The Hardy Boys, The Bobbsey Twins, and other icons of my childhood bookshelf. Rehak recreates the turn-of-the-last century world that produced the children’s serial industry in a most entertaining and engrossing manner. Harriet Stratemeyer Adams and Mildred Wirt Benson, two women who left indelible marks on Nancy, had fascinating lives of their own. Some reviewers felt too much was made of their histories, but I found their stories wonderfully told. I wanted to be at Wellelsey with Harriet, or flying planes in my 80s with Mildred.
I read my Nancy Drews fifty years ago, and was lucky enough to have a couple of the original 1930s versions, courtesy of aunts and older cousins. I knew they’d been periodically updated, but was underwhelmed by Rehak’s examples of the ways the character had been modernized in the last few decades. Apparently, making things “relevant” to children has come to mean oversimplifying and conventionalizing. Are children dumber than they used to be? I doubt it. Hey, I had no idea what a “roadster” was, but that didn’t put me off. I think the words and cultural references I didn’t fully understand added an exotic feel to the stories. What a disservice we do to children when we talk down to them. And how interesting to learn that the later, over-consumerist, over-simplified Nancy series have had a shorter run, while facsimile editions and 1950s revisions are still selling.
Rehak also discusses the failure of Nancy to successfully transition to film or TV. I saw the 2007 Nancy Drew movie, (see excellent review by Lance Mannion here ) and just recently, one of the late 1930s black and white films. In both cases, it was not “my” Nancy being portrayed. She was too flakey, or too conventionally girly, or too dorky, not the strong, competent, natural leader that Mildred and Harriet created and nurtured. (If I wanted to be entertained by dorky outsiders, I didn’t need to read a book, I could just look at myself and my friends.) Nancy was a vision of what we wanted to be, living a life we would have loved to live. Girls (and boys) need something to which they can aspire, not just something with which they can identify.
Bravo to Melanie Rehak for giving us the real lives of Nancy’s creators, both of whom give me something to which I could aspire.
Show Less
LibraryThing member DeltaQueen50
I found Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and the Women Who Created Her to be a captivating read. Just as Nancy solves mysteries, the author, Melanie Rehak delves into all the rumors that circulate about this imaginary character and sheds light on her creation, who sustained her, and how she came to be an
Originally envisioned by Edward Stratemeyer, it was actually two women who breathed life into Nancy Drew. Edward Stratemeyer ran a publishing syndicate that also was responsible for the serials The Bobbsey Twins and The Hardy Boys. The acknowledged author, Carolyn Keene, was also invented by Mr. Stratemeyer and, in fact, the women whom credit is due is both his own daughter Harriet and the free spirited Mildred Wirt Benson.
Originally appearing in 1930, and selling for 50 cents a copy, Nancy stepped right into the hearts and minds of young girls everywhere. By December, 1933, the Nancy Drew books were outselling all other series books.
Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and the Women Who Created Her is extensively researched, entertainingly written and her take on this amazingly long-lived franchise is definitely attention holding. I admit that although I was more of a Trixie Belden fan, I read more than my fair share of Nancy Drew books in my youth, and this look at her development over the years is well worth investigating.
Show More
icon for so many girls through a number of generations. More than just an explanation of the part Nancy Drew played, this book offers an examination of women’s roles and development through the early years of the 20th century.Originally envisioned by Edward Stratemeyer, it was actually two women who breathed life into Nancy Drew. Edward Stratemeyer ran a publishing syndicate that also was responsible for the serials The Bobbsey Twins and The Hardy Boys. The acknowledged author, Carolyn Keene, was also invented by Mr. Stratemeyer and, in fact, the women whom credit is due is both his own daughter Harriet and the free spirited Mildred Wirt Benson.
Originally appearing in 1930, and selling for 50 cents a copy, Nancy stepped right into the hearts and minds of young girls everywhere. By December, 1933, the Nancy Drew books were outselling all other series books.
Girl Sleuth: Nancy Drew and the Women Who Created Her is extensively researched, entertainingly written and her take on this amazingly long-lived franchise is definitely attention holding. I admit that although I was more of a Trixie Belden fan, I read more than my fair share of Nancy Drew books in my youth, and this look at her development over the years is well worth investigating.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Bookmarque
I didn’t really intend to read two non-fiction books about fictional crime back-to-back, but as it turned out I did. Like most women these days and for the last 85 years, I grew up with Nancy Drew. I had my own books, but also read my mom’s. It’s one of those mother-daughter things that can
I can’t remember when I realized that Carolyn Keene wasn’t a real person, but a pseudonym, but I did already know and that’s what this book explores; the women who created and kept Nancy alive during hard times like the depression and the 60s and 70s when cultural change threatened to sink our titian-haired heroine. While both of the principal women involved (Mildred Wirt and Harriet Stratemeyer) ended their relationship with each other on somewhat bad terms, neither is vilified nor lionized in the book. Each brought her strength of character and personal vision to the mystique of Nancy Drew and it was fascinating to see who got the upper hand and for how long. I also enjoyed the chapters that talked about how and why the books got updated over the decades.
One thing that hasn’t been updated in the 85 years since Nancy made her debut is that while girls will readily read “boys books”, boys still won’t read “girls books”. Fully ½ of the human race still isn’t part of the human story, instead sidelined into “women’s fiction” or even worse, “chick lit”. Can you imagine J.K. Rowling would have been the same raging success she is had she chosen to use her full name on her books instead of initials? Or if her main character was Hermione instead of Harry? That glaring fact is the very reason the Nancy Drew books exist. That a white man woke up to the fact that girls were reading “boys books” and gee, couldn’t we make some money off them. Sadly, Nancy lost a lot of her independence and smarts and the modern novels are about boys, clothes and the latest styles.
Producing these and many other titles including The Hardy Boys was complex (it’s run by a big eastern syndicate you know) and it was fascinating to see how a book went from concept to manuscript to bound edition. Also the struggles each woman had in making her way in the worlds of publishing and journalism. Harriet Stratemeyer inherited (along with her sister, Edna) her father Edward’s syndicate that produced dozens of children's’ serial books. A woman running a large and successful business is still somewhat of an anomaly today, but in 1930 it was unheard of. Despite some bad decisions made from sheer inexperience, Harriet is successful and fights off the urge to get mad at the people who write to her and her sister as “Gentlemen”.
While the sisters sometimes disagreed about continuing to use the principal writer for the Nancy Drew series, Mildred Wirt, they kept coming back to her until eventually Harriet herself took over writing the books (and much of the rest of the business since Edna basically walked away only communicating to criticize, accuse and collect her share of the profits). Mildred was an awesome person and how I would have liked to have met her. She had her share of heartache and trouble (burying 2 husbands), but never despaired and always kept writing (and flying, she became a pilot when she was something like 60, you go girl!). Harriet, too, is a woman to be admired and one I would also liked to have met if only to thank her for saving Nancy Drew from oblivion so that I could enjoy the books over and over again.
Show More
really make a relationship close, especially when it comes to reading, something my mother taught me early to love. For a while there, the best part of going to the library was getting another Nancy Drew...or three. And yard sales, too, great places to find new books.I can’t remember when I realized that Carolyn Keene wasn’t a real person, but a pseudonym, but I did already know and that’s what this book explores; the women who created and kept Nancy alive during hard times like the depression and the 60s and 70s when cultural change threatened to sink our titian-haired heroine. While both of the principal women involved (Mildred Wirt and Harriet Stratemeyer) ended their relationship with each other on somewhat bad terms, neither is vilified nor lionized in the book. Each brought her strength of character and personal vision to the mystique of Nancy Drew and it was fascinating to see who got the upper hand and for how long. I also enjoyed the chapters that talked about how and why the books got updated over the decades.
One thing that hasn’t been updated in the 85 years since Nancy made her debut is that while girls will readily read “boys books”, boys still won’t read “girls books”. Fully ½ of the human race still isn’t part of the human story, instead sidelined into “women’s fiction” or even worse, “chick lit”. Can you imagine J.K. Rowling would have been the same raging success she is had she chosen to use her full name on her books instead of initials? Or if her main character was Hermione instead of Harry? That glaring fact is the very reason the Nancy Drew books exist. That a white man woke up to the fact that girls were reading “boys books” and gee, couldn’t we make some money off them. Sadly, Nancy lost a lot of her independence and smarts and the modern novels are about boys, clothes and the latest styles.
Producing these and many other titles including The Hardy Boys was complex (it’s run by a big eastern syndicate you know) and it was fascinating to see how a book went from concept to manuscript to bound edition. Also the struggles each woman had in making her way in the worlds of publishing and journalism. Harriet Stratemeyer inherited (along with her sister, Edna) her father Edward’s syndicate that produced dozens of children's’ serial books. A woman running a large and successful business is still somewhat of an anomaly today, but in 1930 it was unheard of. Despite some bad decisions made from sheer inexperience, Harriet is successful and fights off the urge to get mad at the people who write to her and her sister as “Gentlemen”.
While the sisters sometimes disagreed about continuing to use the principal writer for the Nancy Drew series, Mildred Wirt, they kept coming back to her until eventually Harriet herself took over writing the books (and much of the rest of the business since Edna basically walked away only communicating to criticize, accuse and collect her share of the profits). Mildred was an awesome person and how I would have liked to have met her. She had her share of heartache and trouble (burying 2 husbands), but never despaired and always kept writing (and flying, she became a pilot when she was something like 60, you go girl!). Harriet, too, is a woman to be admired and one I would also liked to have met if only to thank her for saving Nancy Drew from oblivion so that I could enjoy the books over and over again.
Show Less
LibraryThing member AprilAnn0814
Non fiction doesn't often catch my attention, but I read every Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys book in my middle school library and now collect the novels produced by the Syndicate. If you're interested in Nancy or her co-conspirators, I would definitely suggest this book. It reveals so much I didn't
Show More
know about Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, and the Bobbsey Twins (who I didn't realize we're associated with the other two!) and it's definitely a fascinating read, if a bit slow at times. Show Less
LibraryThing member emily_morine
All those who, like me, ate up Nancy Drew books as kids, will love this intriguing real story behind the fictional sleuth. Although it does shatter the myth of "Carolyn Keene" (a pseudonym invented by Edward Stratemeyer, owner of the powerhouse Stratemeyer Syndicate), it replaces her with three
I first learned the secret of the Stratemeyer Syndicate from Carole Kismaric's The Mysterious Case of Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, and got the nitty-gritty background details from Diedre Johnson's Edward Stratemeyer and the Stratemeyer Syndicate, but Girl Sleuth is by far the most thorough and engaging history of Nancy and her creators thus far. Melanie Rehak does a great job of outlining the pertinent historical framework and relating it back to the specific stories of individual women and men involved with Nancy's story. This is especially true when relating the history of feminism and anti-feminism in America to the evolution of Nancy Drew and her creators. Overall, very interesting and well-written.
Show More
even more satisfying women: Mildred Wirt, the ambitious tomboy from small-town Iowa who ghostwrote the Nancy Drew books for $85 to $125 per book, with no royalties or rights to her work; Harriet Otis Smith, secretary to Edward Stratemeyer who kept the Syndicate running at the beginning of the Great Depression; and Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, who took over the Syndicate after her father's death and ran it with a firm if slightly paranoid hand, radically revising and shortening Nancy's adventures during the 1960's. I found the stories of the dynamics among the characters during shifting and difficult times, as well as the Stratemeyer system of outlining plots and shipping them off to ghostwriters, to be captivating.I first learned the secret of the Stratemeyer Syndicate from Carole Kismaric's The Mysterious Case of Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, and got the nitty-gritty background details from Diedre Johnson's Edward Stratemeyer and the Stratemeyer Syndicate, but Girl Sleuth is by far the most thorough and engaging history of Nancy and her creators thus far. Melanie Rehak does a great job of outlining the pertinent historical framework and relating it back to the specific stories of individual women and men involved with Nancy's story. This is especially true when relating the history of feminism and anti-feminism in America to the evolution of Nancy Drew and her creators. Overall, very interesting and well-written.
Show Less
LibraryThing member ChickLitFan
I enjoyed this account of two women and their complicated relationship, and their joint creation of the Nancy Drew series I read in younger days. These were women before their time, breaking barriers and persisting in their work even at times when women were expected to return to their homes. The
I'd recommend this for any fan of the intrepid Nancy Drew, and also to those interested in writing and publishing.
Show More
author explains the historical context of women's roles in society throughout most of the 20th century in parallel with these womens' stories. I did find some of these history lessons boring, and would occasionally put the book down during these stretches. I always picked it back up though, to find out what happened to these women, and the author always returned to their more personal story.I'd recommend this for any fan of the intrepid Nancy Drew, and also to those interested in writing and publishing.
Show Less
LibraryThing member MusicMom41
I found this book entertaining and informative. It was a combination social history, an account of the development of group that became a powerfu forcee in children's fiction in the early 20th century, a little bit of biography of the principal people responsible for Nancy Drew’s creation, and a
A personal note: I was a huge Nancy Drew fan from the time I was eight until I was nearly thirteen, reading and rereading the 32 books I had collected during that time. The summer before I was to enter high school my Dad got transferred from California to Oregon and my folks did the packing while I was at summer camp. When we unpacked in Oregon I was horrified to find out Mom had given away my Nancy Drew books because she thought I had outgrown them. At the very end of this book I discovered I wasn’t alone in this tragedy. …as a Washington, D.C., rock band called Tuscadero made clear in a 1995 song called “Nancy Drew.” Its lyrics recounted “horror of discovering your mother threw out your collection of the teenage sleuth’s books.” (p. 310)
Show More
lot about Nancy Drew and her mysteries, including how she was the product of the "rise of feminism" and also partly the impetus. I never realized the influence she had over the views of women from the time of the Depression through the rest of the 20th century. I just remember loving her books.A personal note: I was a huge Nancy Drew fan from the time I was eight until I was nearly thirteen, reading and rereading the 32 books I had collected during that time. The summer before I was to enter high school my Dad got transferred from California to Oregon and my folks did the packing while I was at summer camp. When we unpacked in Oregon I was horrified to find out Mom had given away my Nancy Drew books because she thought I had outgrown them. At the very end of this book I discovered I wasn’t alone in this tragedy. …as a Washington, D.C., rock band called Tuscadero made clear in a 1995 song called “Nancy Drew.” Its lyrics recounted “horror of discovering your mother threw out your collection of the teenage sleuth’s books.” (p. 310)
Show Less
LibraryThing member bookwoman247
What I expected was a trip down nostalgia lane, a couple of biographical sketches, comments on the cultural significance of Nancy Drew, and some interesting information about the publishing industry/history.
This book was that and even more. U.S. history, women's history, world history, film and
The author seems to have done some outstanding research, and written so well and with passion about her subject. What a great treat and a thorough pleasure this was to read!
This book was that and even more. U.S. history, women's history, world history, film and
Show More
television, and more are all tied to the cultural phenomenon of Nancy Drew.The author seems to have done some outstanding research, and written so well and with passion about her subject. What a great treat and a thorough pleasure this was to read!
Show Less
LibraryThing member Krumbs
I certainly know more about Nancy Drew and her creators than I used to! The book was well researched and enjoyable to read. The author did her homework and was able to weave together various threads to show a complete picture from the beginning of the mystery series to the early 2000's.
However,
However,
Show More
the one thing I found really off--there is a big deal made about who really created the character of Nancy Drew and this author clearly roots for one of the women. Why is this strange? Because neither of the women created Nancy Drew even though one of them actually wrote the books early on! A man created her and was quite firm about the character's personality and development, in many instances completely changing what was originally written. Rehak covers this early on but seems to have forgotten this bit by the end of the book... Show Less
LibraryThing member kaulsu
A look at the syndication of our beloved childhood serial tales (Hardy Boys, Bobbsey Twins, Tom Swift, Dana Girls, and etc.), especially Nancy Drew, shows as nothing else quite could the rocky road to women's financial independence.
If you were never a fan, I'm not sure how much this volume can
If you were never a fan, I'm not sure how much this volume can
Show More
speak to you. Show Less
LibraryThing member hailelib
Rehak's book is part history of children's books and publishing, part social history of women in the US, and part biography of Stratemeyer, his daughters, and author Mildred Wirt Benson. But most of all, it is the story of Nancy Drew from her earliest incarnation to the present day version of the
Show More
famous girl detective. While I was more of a fan of the Hardy Boys than Nancy Drew, I enjoyed the book and found it to be an easy read though some may find the level of detail more than they want to know. To me, however, the details were fascinating. I have been vaguely interested by the Stratemeyer Syndicate for some time and this book provided a lot of information about it and some of the ghostwriters employed, especially Mildred Benson. (I also noticed that LT member James Keeline was mentioned in the acknowledgments as one of Rehak's sources.) Show Less
LibraryThing member rennerra
Enjoyable read about authors(s) of Nancy Drew and the system of developing the books. Love this type of biographical look at women on the "fringes" of history. Well-written, fast-paced although it did start out a bit slow.
LibraryThing member rwilliamson
Girls from the 1930s through today enjoy the adventures of Nancy Drew. The back story of her creation by Edward Stratemeyer shortly before his death, is facinating. Stratemeyer was the owner and creator of a syndicate of children's series including the Bobsey Twins and Hardy Boys. Two very
Show More
different women, Harriet Stratemeyer and Mildred Writ Benson wrote all of the Nancy Drew books until the syndicate was sold in the 1980s. The back story is facinating and sad because in building her father-up Harriet Stratemey felt the need to cover-up Benson's part. Then when the world rediscovered Benson, Harriet Stratemeyer is turned into a villain. Both women were strong role models. This story is well worth reading if a little long-winded. Show Less
LibraryThing member mommablogsalot
This just simply wasn’t the book I wanted it to be. I loved Eating for Beginners so much but this didn’t have that same fantastic wit that I’d grown to love in EFB and the book was much more about feminism and women’s suffrage than it was about Nancy Drew – not an uninteresting topic,
Show More
just not what I’d been hoping to read and ultimately it felt more like that stodgy traditional “nonfiction” that I was forced to read in school. Show Less
LibraryThing member bearette24
This was a well-written, fast-paced biography of fictional Nancy Drew and the two women who primarily wrote about her: Harriet Stratemeyer Adams and Mildred Wirt Benson. Benson emerges as the more sympathetic, though both women exemplify the confidence and perseverance for which Nancy is famous. I
My only complaint was that the book started slowly, and didn't really address Nancy Drew as a topic until page 92 or so. The chapter on Harriet's college years at Wellesley was particularly excruciating, aside from an entertaining bit where Harriet, in a Nancy-like turn, exhibits bravery under pressure when a fire hits an important building at Wellesley. Other than the slow beginning, however, the book was perfect -- and may even spike Nancy Drew sales.
Show More
also learned many interesting tidbits about history and feminism.My only complaint was that the book started slowly, and didn't really address Nancy Drew as a topic until page 92 or so. The chapter on Harriet's college years at Wellesley was particularly excruciating, aside from an entertaining bit where Harriet, in a Nancy-like turn, exhibits bravery under pressure when a fire hits an important building at Wellesley. Other than the slow beginning, however, the book was perfect -- and may even spike Nancy Drew sales.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Morena
I LOVED this book!!! I *devoured* Nancy Drew as little girl, and found that I didn't miss having the idea of "Carolyn Keene" in my mind. The women who actually brought my favorite role-model to life were themselves interesting and quite fun to read about.
I also enjoyed how Rehak showed how much
I also enjoyed how Rehak showed how much
Show More
changed in the series depending on which editions you were reading. I read the yellow hardback 1970s versions during the mid-90s, and knew Nancy as a titian-haired 19-year-old with a blue Mustang. But seeing how she evolved was one of the things I liked most about the book. Show Less
LibraryThing member librarychicgeek
A little overly thorough at times, this was a fascinating look into the history of Nancy Drew and the people who created and shaped her.
LibraryThing member MarieAlt
Fascinating read.
As a kid, I found the Hardy Boys more interesting, and couldn't stand Nancy Drew--perhaps because my first of her books was on of the Nancy Drew Notebooks, which, according to this book, were written to make her more 'girly-girly': boy and makeup obsessed.
But because I knew the
Several chapters focused on women's history, which seemed tedious, but only because I am fairly familiar with the subject. I didn't always agree with Rehak--she has some clear bias--but she presented a clear and thorough history of Nancy Drew and how she's effected our culture throughout the years.
As a kid, I found the Hardy Boys more interesting, and couldn't stand Nancy Drew--perhaps because my first of her books was on of the Nancy Drew Notebooks, which, according to this book, were written to make her more 'girly-girly': boy and makeup obsessed.
But because I knew the
Show More
two series were connected, I was willing to give the history a chance, and they did bring up a bit about the Hardy Boys and Edward Stratemeyer (who frankly seemed more interesting than the pages devoted to his story). Several chapters focused on women's history, which seemed tedious, but only because I am fairly familiar with the subject. I didn't always agree with Rehak--she has some clear bias--but she presented a clear and thorough history of Nancy Drew and how she's effected our culture throughout the years.
Show Less
LibraryThing member tygress
Before reading this, I knew some of the basics about how the Nancy Drew series came about from some book I had as a kid: how it was ghostwritten, one of the many series created by the Stratemeyer Syndicate, etc. But this book was a much more complete history, and it's really a fascinating tale.
Show More
Girl Sleuth was hard to put down, and a must-read for anyone who counts Nancy Drew among her (or his) childhood friends. Show Less
LibraryThing member PatienceFortitude
This was a fun, breezy read, full of information about the Nancy Drew writing process (GASP! Carolyn Keene didn't exist!) and about the history of the time.
LibraryThing member PatienceFortitude
This was a fun, breezy read, full of information about the Nancy Drew writing process (GASP! Carolyn Keene didn't exist!) and about the history of the time.
LibraryThing member bnbookgirl
What a great tribute to an American icon, Nancy Drew. I grew up with Nancy Drew and loved each and every book I read about her. As a bookseller, I still recommend the books to customers. This book is a historical and biographical look at the start, growth and continuing love of the series. A must
Show More
read for any fan of Nancy Drew. Show Less
LibraryThing member Rosa.Mill
This book about the woman who created Nancy Drew really helps the reader appreciate how truly ahead of her time Nancy Drew actually was. It gives the history of the two woman behind Nancy Drew, Mildred Wirt Benson and Harriet Stratermyer Adams. Harriet was most likely the first female C.E.O. and
Show More
Mildred was a female pilot, journalist and writer of not only tons of books for the syndicate besides Nancy Drews but several of her own series. Anyone who has ever picked up a Nancy Drew and loved it, will love this book, it really cements Nancy Drew as a feminist icon. Show Less
LibraryThing member Rosa.Mill
This book about the woman who created Nancy Drew really helps the reader appreciate how truly ahead of her time Nancy Drew actually was. It gives the history of the two woman behind Nancy Drew, Mildred Wirt Benson and Harriet Stratermyer Adams. Harriet was most likely the first female C.E.O. and
Show More
Mildred was a female pilot, journalist and writer of not only tons of books for the syndicate besides Nancy Drews but several of her own series. Anyone who has ever picked up a Nancy Drew and loved it, will love this book, it really cements Nancy Drew as a feminist icon. Show Less
Subjects
Awards
Edgar Award (Nominee — Critical/Biographical Work — 2006)
Macavity Award (Winner — Non-Fiction — 2006)
Ohioana Book Award (Winner — 2006)
Agatha Award (Nominee — Non-Fiction — 2005)
Christian Science Monitor Best Book (Nonfiction — 2005)
Rise: A Feminist Book Project for Ages 0-18 (Selection — 2006)
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
2005
Physical description
384 p.; 9.22 inches
ISBN
0151010412 / 9780151010417
Local notes
literary studies