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A review by inkerly
The Secret of the Old Clock by Carolyn Keene
4.0
Reading this as a 21-year old who swore in her 4th grade years she was Nancy Drew's long lost sister was such a sweetening refresher.
I didn't know if I would get nostalgia from rereading this book, as I remember devouring the Nancy Drew Series as I kid, but I didn't need the nostalgia. The book is fun, innocent, and progressive in its own right for young girls.
As this is the first book in the series, I was taken aback by how simple Nancy Drew is. No, kidding. She's literally described as just a 18-year old "blonde blue-eyed girl" with a love for her father, friends, and a passion to help people. She likes shopping and hanging out with her friends. But she also knows how to fix a flat tire and do some undercover sleuthing. Admittedly this "Not like other girls" trope is so overplayed in TV shows and movies that it almost gives feminism a bad rep, but in this kid's book it was just simple and nice to read along. And it's so interesting to re-read a book from your childhood as an adult and see the pervasive gender and societal norms for a book written in the 19(30!s).
Now the actual book.
I found myself genuinely laughing (sometimes from the ridiculousness of some scenarios) and
in the latter half of the book I was thoroughly engrossed in the mystery, even though I knew what would happen. You can't really expect a shocker mystery for a kids book meant to be read in the space of a few hours, but it's still a nice read. I also appreciated that in Drew's sleuthing for the whereabouts of the mystery will, she has the actual discernment of an 18-year old. Sure for the book's sake, her lines are a little amateurish, but she has the quick wit to not "spoil" her plans to people she's interrogating, she comes up with a clever plan to attend a location that she thinks may hold a valuable will, and even when she lands herself in quirky predicaments, her approach to things is always realistic. Funny because every modern-day adaptation of Nancy Drew I've seen (from the Emma Robert's protrayals to the current TV-show Riverdale-inspired Nancy Drew series on the CW channel) fail to take this into account. They usually depict her as much younger than 18, and this all-knowing high school detective girl who can pick locks with bobby pins and outsmart criminals. This Nancy doesn't! And it's perfectly okay! And that's what I appreciated.
I'm only knocking off 1-star off, because again there are some things in the book that in today's age, probably would not fly as "progressive" even though it was progressive for its time. And with regards to the actual mystery, there were some sleuthing methods that I found quite ridiculous (though entertaining nonetheless). Tracking down a criminal by following their truck tracks on the road? Finding truck keys under floor mats? Reporting theft crimes to the police? (Let's be honest, a young 18-year old black detective would NOT have the police on their side). This book REALLY says 1930s for ya'!
I didn't know if I would get nostalgia from rereading this book, as I remember devouring the Nancy Drew Series as I kid, but I didn't need the nostalgia. The book is fun, innocent, and progressive in its own right for young girls.
As this is the first book in the series, I was taken aback by how simple Nancy Drew is. No, kidding. She's literally described as just a 18-year old "blonde blue-eyed girl" with a love for her father, friends, and a passion to help people. She likes shopping and hanging out with her friends. But she also knows how to fix a flat tire and do some undercover sleuthing. Admittedly this "Not like other girls" trope is so overplayed in TV shows and movies that it almost gives feminism a bad rep, but in this kid's book it was just simple and nice to read along. And it's so interesting to re-read a book from your childhood as an adult and see the pervasive gender and societal norms for a book written in the 19(30!s).
Now the actual book.
I found myself genuinely laughing (sometimes from the ridiculousness of some scenarios) and
in the latter half of the book I was thoroughly engrossed in the mystery, even though I knew what would happen. You can't really expect a shocker mystery for a kids book meant to be read in the space of a few hours, but it's still a nice read. I also appreciated that in Drew's sleuthing for the whereabouts of the mystery will, she has the actual discernment of an 18-year old. Sure for the book's sake, her lines are a little amateurish, but she has the quick wit to not "spoil" her plans to people she's interrogating, she comes up with a clever plan to attend a location that she thinks may hold a valuable will, and even when she lands herself in quirky predicaments, her approach to things is always realistic. Funny because every modern-day adaptation of Nancy Drew I've seen (from the Emma Robert's protrayals to the current TV-show Riverdale-inspired Nancy Drew series on the CW channel) fail to take this into account. They usually depict her as much younger than 18, and this all-knowing high school detective girl who can pick locks with bobby pins and outsmart criminals. This Nancy doesn't! And it's perfectly okay! And that's what I appreciated.
I'm only knocking off 1-star off, because again there are some things in the book that in today's age, probably would not fly as "progressive" even though it was progressive for its time. And with regards to the actual mystery, there were some sleuthing methods that I found quite ridiculous (though entertaining nonetheless). Tracking down a criminal by following their truck tracks on the road? Finding truck keys under floor mats? Reporting theft crimes to the police? (Let's be honest, a young 18-year old black detective would NOT have the police on their side). This book REALLY says 1930s for ya'!