The Bungalow Mystery (Nancy Drew Mystery Stories, Bk 3)

I bought this book for my GodDaughter at a flea market and decided to read it again for old time sake. I don't want to give the story away so, I won't write much in my review.
Nancy is trying to solve the mystery of an embezzlement case with her Father, Carson Drew.

Nancy Drew is drawn into yet another mystery, this time investigating the unsavory guardians of her wealthy orphan friend Laura.

The Nancy Drew stories are certainly dated, but retain an almost anthropologically fascinating depiction of earlier times. Nancy is a satisfactorily feminist character;

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she takes the lead on investigations and eschews boyfriends.

This particular mystery is fairly predictable, but satisfying. The biggest twist, perhaps, is how small a role the titular bungalow plays in the plot. Laura Linney provides an excellent read of the mystery, and this audiobook edition would be a good recommendation to middle school or upper elementary girls who like vintage mysteries.

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In my quest to read (re-read) all of the Nancy Drew mysteries this year, I have just completed The Bungalow Mystery. I remember reading this one when I was a kid. Once again, it boggles my mind how dependent I've become on my cell phone. Every time Nancy goes off to investigate or sleuth as she

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calls it, I keep thinking - use your cell phone. Her car breaks down, today she'd be whipping out the cell phone and calling Triple A or using her GPS. Because Nancy doesn't have these modern day devices, it heightens the suspense. I have to chuckle at the language. I teach college English and Communications and wonder if any of my students have ever used "bade" or sleuth for that matter. Considering these are young adult novels, the language is above what most kids read today.
Once again "Carolyn Keene" uses a lot of description of food, clothes and is light on descriptions of other things. It is apparent that these books were meant to appeal to young ladies who were going to grow up to be housewives and cook beautiful meals for their husbands and they'd do it all in high heels shoes while wearing pearls.
The story is good and keeps me reading. I won't go into detail about the story line; I'll just say that once again Nancy stumbles upon someone needing help and comes to the rescue. This is the second book where Nancy rescues an orphan.

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*spoiler warning!*

Mixed feelings about this book. It was definitely a good read, but...

It seemed like Nancy was very slow with the detective-ing. I realize this is the 3rd-ever ND book, and maybe that's why, the series was just starting out, she wasn't as experienced, etc.... But it got a little

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frustrating. Nancy was suspicious about Laura's new guardians from the beginning, but even when she found out that their phone was disconnected and they'd seemed to disappear, she doesn't really do much. I'm used to her spending all day hunting down clues by the time things get that suspicious!

I guess I should've seen it coming, but I was actually fairly surprised at just how the bank embezzlement case was tied to the plot about Laura's mean guardians. It made sense when I read it, but I definitely hadn't realized it before. And learning about the *real* Jacob Aborn was a big twist! I really liked that.

I loved the end of this book... In most ND books Nancy or the police eventually catch the criminal(s), but this time the criminals did themselves in by driving too recklessly during their escape!

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This is a comparative review of the 1930s and 1950s editions of this book - if you get a chance to read them side-by-side, I very strongly recommend it.

Of the three books I've read comparatively, this one diverges the furthest. Points of difference include:

- In the 50s edition, the guardian is

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accompanied by his wife - which makes the whole thing much less sinister. They also don't behave nearly as villainously.

- The 50s version introduces an entire subplot where Nancy is helping with a bank fraud case for her dad that ends up being related. This is really only odd in comparison (and it feels a little too convenient, but there's only so much I'm going to ask for, plotting-wise.)

- Don't forget the Gratuitous Housework Scene, a must in the 50s editions!

- All guns mysteriously disappear in the 50s versions. This appears to be consistent book-to-book.

- Any moral ambiguity in the finale is removed for 50s audiences.

I believe that the original versions remain more interesting than the revised versions, even when they have highly problematic elements (class, race, etc.) But the comparison is definitely best of all.

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I think I read this when I was in 7th grade. It is the second Nancy Drew book I read. We looked on such books as "girls books" but when we had read the 'boys books' we would read books like this and I remember I thought it was not bad reading.

Fun read. It's no wonder these books have been so popular for generations. They are well written and a pleasure to read. Glad my library has a large selection available to download and read.

The Bungalow Mystery is the third Nancy Drew book, and just happens to be one of my favorites. This book turned out way better then I'd thought it would. This book kept me sitting at the edge of my seat. One of the best Nancy Drew books I've ever read.

Nancy is an awesome character as always. And

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she knows automobile mechanics. Is there anything she can't do?

We don't see a whole lot of Helen in this book; she's in the beginning of the book but that's pretty much it. But she's still a good character. Laura is also a good character; and, of course, I love Nancy's dad and Hannah.

All of my favorite parts are the bungalow scenes, like when Nancy went there to follow Laura's guardian, and when she went to the bungalow at night and her flashlight burnt out. It was a little scary to listen to this on autiobook.

I highly recommend this book. That's it for now.

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I sometimes get sick of listening to Carolyn Keene go on and on about Nancy's upper-class details, endless socializing, and general excessive perfectness (is that a word?). It makes me want to watch the Nancy Drew movie, which I understand makes fun of all that. This time Nancy runs into one person

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and place after another to solve her again double mystery of who took the bank bonds and what's wrong with Laura (another new instant friend)'s new foster parents.

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I absolutely loved Nancy Drew growing up. This was a series I latched on to for dear life and never let go. Anytime my mom and I would go to antique stores, we'd peruse the Nancy Drews and add them to the collection (oftentimes my mom had to make deals with me on how many I could buy). So, while I

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don't remember the exact details of each and every one, the entire series was amazing and really fed my love for reading (especially novels full of suspense and mystery). Thank you, Carolyn Keene, for giving us an intelligent female character to fall in love with in Nancy Drew!

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*Duplicate Copy* I absolutely loved Nancy Drew growing up. This was a series I latched on to for dear life and never let go. Anytime my mom and I would go to antique stores, we'd peruse the Nancy Drews and add them to the collection (oftentimes my mom had to make deals with me on how many I could

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buy). So, while I don't remember the exact details of each and every one, the entire series was amazing and really fed my love for reading (especially novels full of suspense and mystery). Thank you, Carolyn Keene, for giving us an intelligent female character to fall in love with in Nancy Drew!

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Nancy Drew and her friend Helen are out sailing on a lake when a storm comes up. Luckily they are rescued by a girl who, of course, has a mystery. Her mother has died and she is going to live with her new guardians who she has never meet. But the guardians seem untrustworthy and only interested in

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the girl's jewels. Plus Nancy is asked by her father to help investigate a bank robbery! How will Nancy solve these mysteries? Like she always does, with courage, determination and more than a little sleuthing.

The Little Bookworm

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That inimitable girl sleuth, Nancy Drew, returns in this third mysterious adventure, confronting all kinds of life-threatening situations with aplomb. The story opens as Nancy and her chum, Helen Corning, out for a expedition on Moon Lake, find themselves swimming for their lives when their boat

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goes down in a storm. Really, it's Nancy doing the swimming, valiantly towing the hapless Helen. When a girl their own age rows out to rescue them, at the risk of her own life, they make a new friend, learning that Laura Pendleton had only recently been orphaned, and left in the guardianship of an as-yet-unknown childhood friend of her mother's. When this guardian turns out to be a cruel tyrant, Laura runs away, seeking refuge with Nancy. Determined to help in any way she can, the girl sleuth loses no time in investigating, discovering that Jacob Aborn is not who he seems. Tracking him to a deserted bungalow, Nancy embarks on a nighttime adventure that involves many dangers, but which eventually restores her new friend's fortune, and reunites her with her true guardian, held captive for weeks by the criminal imposter, Stumpy Dowd...

As with its two predecessors, The Secret of the Old Clock and The Hidden Staircase, I read the original 1930 version of The Bungalow Mystery, reprinted in this facsimile edition by Applewood Books. I read the revised 1950s versions as a girl - the yellow-spined hardcovers so many readers of today remember - and never cared for them, only discovering the charm of the series when I started reading the originals. These longer versions are better written than their more contemporary counterparts, I feel, and are more descriptive, with plenty of period vocabulary and charm. They are also often far more racist - one of the reasons for the revision of the 1950s was to excise anything considered racially insensitive - although in this particular title there isn't anything of that nature. There is plenty of classism however, as Nancy is able to discern the villain's true nature by his "mistreatment" of his ward, which conduct includes such atrocities as expecting Laura to clean the house. The horror of it! Leaving that aside, this was just a fun little romp, complete with plenty of unlikely escapes for our heroine, and a happy ending in which all is restored to its proper order. Nancy is quite daring here! I understand from some comparative reviews that I have read online that her behavior has been toned down in the 1950s edition, making me quite happy to have read the original. It is a particularly nice feature of these Applewood Books editions that each one features an introduction by a contemporary woman mystery author, describing how reading Nancy Drew as a girl inspired her. Here that author is P.M. Carlson, author of the Maggie Ryan mystery series. Recommended to anyone who enjoys vintage girls' fare.

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I always appreciate Nancy's care and protection of vulnerable young women, and she shines as a sister figure to the orphaned Laura Pendleton, whose guardians are acting strangely.

Starts quite dramatically, with Nancy and her friend almost dying, but then gets kinda boring. The mystery was easy to guess the end of and there were far too many convenient coincidences.

While on a vacation with her friend Helen, Nancy almost loses her life when their boat tips over and they are far from shore. Lucky for them another visitor named Laura hears them and rows out to save them. The girls establish a fast friendship and Laura tells her Nancy and Helen about her parent's

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death and her new guardians. While talking to her new friend, Nancy discovers her father is out of town and her housekeeper has hurt herself and she knows she must go home to help.

Once home, Nancy speaks to her father when he asks her help on an embezzlement case and she heads out to talk to some of the main suspects. When Nancy gets home she has a surprise visitor, Laura, who tells a fantastical story of having been locked in her room and having to escape in order to get to Nancy's. Nancy heads back to help figure out what is going on with Laura's guardians and may very well be able to answer her father's questions at the same time.

As usual, Laura Linney does a beautiful job of narrating Nancy Drew's mishaps and drawing the listener into the story. She makes sure that the reader truly enjoys the story and wants to continue listening.

Nancy Drew will forever be some of my favorite reads. They are so simple and comforting and bring back wonderful memories of my elementary school library visits.

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In between wardrobe changes Nancy gets involved with embezzlers, kidnappers, and an unhappy heiress, suffers a concussion, almost drowns, and gets her first taste of bondage. Spoiler Alert: she solves the case.

4.25/5 I forgot how some books could start off with heart-pounding thrills. This one grabbed me from the 1st page, and I couldn't stop reading until it was finished. Gotta love Nancy, Miss-Jack-of-All-Trades: “She got out of the car, lifted the hood, and flashed her light inside. She had taken a

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course in automobile mechanics and knew the possible sources of trouble.“ Of course she did. #wonderwomannancy Can't wait for the next one!

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