NANCY DREW

THE SECRET OF THE OLD CLOCK

by Carolyn Keene

Nancy Drew's keen mind is tested when she searches for a missing will.

They say you can’t go home again. I don’t know who “they” are, but they’re wrong. When I held this book in my hands, it felt like home. When I opened the book, I felt like a child again. When I read the first line, “Nancy Drew, an attractive girl of eighteen, was driving home along a country road in her new, dark blue convertible,” I was home, and I was a little girl again. The memories flooded into me so fast, I smiled and teared up at the same time. I was back with my idol, Nancy Drew. And you know what? I still want to grow up to be just like Nancy.

I drank in THE SECRET OF THE OLD CLOCK like I had been dying of thirst. I suppose I was really. A thirst for those old feelings of adventure. The ones that I thought so many cozy mysteries had quenched. Don’t get me wrong, cozy mysteries are my oasis in life. They bring me shelter and nourishment. They are the cooling rain in the middle of a vast desert. But Nancy Drew? Well, reading Nancy Drew again was the tall glass of ice water I have been craving.

Now that I have expressed those oh so deep feelings, let me get to my review.

THE SECRET OF THE OLD CLOCK was wonderful from page one until the end. I truly enjoyed riding along with Nancy as she found herself involved in her first case.

Reading the interactions between Nancy with her father, Hannah her house keeper, and the wide cast of characters she meets and befriends in the story, was great fun. As a girl, Nancy’s kindness was the first thing that drew me to her. And she holds that same appeal to this day. 

While Nancy was working so hard to help the families that stood to benefit from her finding the clock, she found herself in many dangerous situations. I really like that she didn’t always get herself out of them. She had no problem with yelling for help. Had no problem taking help that was offered. This made Nancy not only heroic, but human.

Sure, the times have changed. They have even changed for Nancy. The edition I read has been updated and changed from the original, first edition story from 1930. Yet that makes no difference. I still find Nancy Drew to be timeless.

If I had a daughter, I would encourage her to read this entire series. I do however have a niece, and when she is old enough to read at this age level, I will be proud to buy her, her very first Nancy Drew book, THE SECRET OF THE OLD CLOCK. As a matter of fact, it would be fun to buy her not only “my” Nancy Drew, but to buy her the more recent series that have followed. She and I can read those at the same time and both learn how the story of the world’s favorite female detective has grown and still lives on!

I strongly encourage anyone with a young girl in their lives to introduce them to the world of Nancy Drew books. After all, once you have her hooked on those, you’ll have someone to pass all your cozies on to! 

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Please continue reading for the  

Monday Mystery Mashup

solutions. 

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SOLUTIONS

1. Just Ducky

2. Grace Under Pressure

3. The Murder at the Murder at the Mimosa Inn

4. The Handsome Man's De Luxe Café

5. Desperate Housedogs

Check back next Monday 

for more Mashups!