Franklon Dixon
Fiction 1927
I was reading an article about mystery and suspense novels which mentioned The Hardy Boys, and I harkened back to when I was 10, 11, 12 (?) and reading every Hardy Boys book. So, I thought, "What the heck. It is the dog days of summer. I think I will reread a bit of my youth."
And so I read the first three Hardy Boys books:
The Tower Treasure (1927)
The House on the Cliff (1927)
The Secret of the Old Mill (1927)
It was serious fun! What I noticed first is the vastly different character style from what I read today. Those who read my blog regularly know that I am a stickler for well-developed characters and plots. All we know about the Hardy boys is that Frank is 18 with dark hair and his brother Joe is a 17-year-old blond. We know nothing else, really. No deep context about their lives or characters.
The other big noticing I have is the writing style. Every sentence is short and crisp and either shows action, quick dialogue, or occasionally an internal thought. They are, after all, young adult books. And I enjoy the suspense still!
I recommend this exercise! Not to go read three Hardy Boys books, but to read a book or two from that time frame in your life and notice what you notice. Perhaps for you it was Nancy Drew or the Bobbsey Twins or The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.
Tell us here what you discover!
August 2026
What a wonderful suggestion!
I love it
A couple of years ago, I came across a Cherry Ames book at a yard sale. She was my favorite read probably between the ages 10-12. Cherry was a nurse and the series started with “Cherry Ames, Student Nurse”. Subsequent titles followed her adventures as a nurse in the army, summer camp, rural setting, etc. There was always some mystery or dilemma that Cherry got involved in resolving. At that point in my young life, I thought of being a nurse. I’m not sure which came first – my interest in nursing or the books which spurred the interest.
I was very excited to find this book, thinking that maybe I would work on collecting them. That idea faded about 1/3rd into the book. Like you found, the writing is simple, character development is lacking, the story line wasn’t very interesting.
The idea of a nursing career pretty much faded away in high school.
I read some Hardy Boys books – with 4 older brothers there were a few gathering dust in my childhood home. Also read some Nancy Drew. I recall Cherry Ames as my favorite.
Interesting! Never heard of her ….
My sister is always digging up interesting books. And for some reason she wants my comments here. I first read the Hardy Boys when I was about 12, I guess, at Grandma’s house in Detroit. The actual, physically same books Andrea commented on. Like, actual paper books. I don’t remember how many I read — Grandma had a bunch, and I dug in. Not being a grownup I didn’t know anything about plot or character development and enjoyed and almost envied the main characters and their adventures. As it was almost 70 years ago I can’t tell you about any of the details, but that was the beginning of a reading journey that has lasted decades, embracing murder and detective books, science fiction, hard and soft science. I was then and still am fascinated by the subject matter and don’t care much about the people. A failing on my part, but there it is.
I have no recollection of grandma having The Hardy Boys, but my love relationship with reading was cemented at that age, too!