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Trixie Belden #19
Trixie Belden and the Secret of the Unseen Treasure
Somebody is trying to ruin nice Mrs. Elliot's flower business. Does it have something to do with stolen Social Security checks? Trixie is determined to uncover the truth.
210 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1977
3 people are currently reading
419 people want to read
About the author
Kathryn Kenny
52 books100 followersThe Kathryn Kenny pseudonym was created by Western Publishing House in 1961, three years after Julie Campbell wrote her last book (#6) of the Trixie Belden series. There were several ghost writers who wrote Trixie Belden stories under this pseudonym. Some have been identified and later credited but some are still unknown.
***
http://www.trixie-belden.com/books/Ka...
The Kathryn Kenny pseudonym was born in 1961, three years after Campbell wrote her last book of the Trixie Belden series. Did it take Western Publishing several years to find a suitable author? The answer is unknown and the identity of the authors of the 33 Kathryn Kenny books are not known for sure but there is some information about the ghost writers.
Nicolete Meredith Stack
Nicolete Meredith StackStack is thought to be the first author to tackle the Trixie Belden series, although there is much debate about which books were actually written by her. She was born in Des Moines, Iowa in 1896 but lived in Webster Groves in St. Louis, Missouri for most of her adult life. Stack wrote other children's books under her own name and various pen names, including the Robin Kane series by Eileen Hill for Whitman between 1966 and 1971.
Stack is said to have written five books in the Trixie Belden series between 1961 and 1971, but Who's Who in the Midwest claims that she wrote eight titles between 1961 and 1966. There were eight Trixie Belden titles published between 1961 and 1966, but it is doubtful that she wrote them all.
James Keeline in his article, Trixie Belden "Schoolgirl Shamus", believes that books 7, 9 and 16 can be attributed to Stack but there are others that may have been written by her.
Virginia McDonnell
Virginia Bleecher McDonnell was born in 1917 and was a registered nurse who trained at Russell Sage College in Troy, New York. McDonnell wrote the Nurses Three series from 1963 to 1965 using the pen name Jean Kirby, and the Kim Aldrich series as Jinny McDonnell, both for Whitman. She is also wrote volume six of The Waltons.
McDonnell and her husband were avid skiiers and many of her books featured details of nursing or skiing. It seems likely that she wrote three Trixie Belden books, The Mystery of Cobbett's Island (1964), The Mystery of the Emeralds (1965) and The Mystery of Mead's Mountain (1978). Skiing is mentioned early in The Mystery of Cobbett's Island, although this is not the theme of the book.
McDonnell also wrote another book called Country Agent that has a number of similarities with The Mystery at Happy Valley, although her book was published in 1968. Read a review of this book, and see what you think.
There is little biographical information available on McDonnell, but the three books attributed to her are three of the most widely loved books in the Trixie Belden series.
Gladys Baker Bond
Gladys Baker BondGladys Baker Bond was born in Berryville, Arkansas on the 7th of May, 1912. On September 2, 1934, she married Floyd James Bond and had one son, Nicholas Peter. Bond's childhood years were spent in the Ozarks of Arkansas. She lived in Idaho and Washington all her adult life and was an officer of the Idaho Writers League between 1952-54.
Bond's books for children cover a wide range of subjects and are often autobiographical. Mrs. Bond wrote under the pseudonymns, Jo Mendel (The Tucker series) and Holly Beth Walker (the Meg series), as well as her own name. She also wrote volume five of The Waltons.
She is credited with writing The Mystery of the Uninvited Guest (1977), The Mystery of the Castaway Children (1978), and The Sasquatch Mystery (1979). However, with her childhood spent in the Ozarks, she could be the author of The Mystery at Bob-White Cave (1963).
Carl Henry Rathjen
Carl Henry RathjenRathjen was born on the 28th of August 1909 in Jersey City, New Jersey and died in 1984. His ambition was to become a mechanical engineer, but when things didn't go
***
http://www.trixie-belden.com/books/Ka...
The Kathryn Kenny pseudonym was born in 1961, three years after Campbell wrote her last book of the Trixie Belden series. Did it take Western Publishing several years to find a suitable author? The answer is unknown and the identity of the authors of the 33 Kathryn Kenny books are not known for sure but there is some information about the ghost writers.
Nicolete Meredith Stack
Nicolete Meredith StackStack is thought to be the first author to tackle the Trixie Belden series, although there is much debate about which books were actually written by her. She was born in Des Moines, Iowa in 1896 but lived in Webster Groves in St. Louis, Missouri for most of her adult life. Stack wrote other children's books under her own name and various pen names, including the Robin Kane series by Eileen Hill for Whitman between 1966 and 1971.
Stack is said to have written five books in the Trixie Belden series between 1961 and 1971, but Who's Who in the Midwest claims that she wrote eight titles between 1961 and 1966. There were eight Trixie Belden titles published between 1961 and 1966, but it is doubtful that she wrote them all.
James Keeline in his article, Trixie Belden "Schoolgirl Shamus", believes that books 7, 9 and 16 can be attributed to Stack but there are others that may have been written by her.
Virginia McDonnell
Virginia Bleecher McDonnell was born in 1917 and was a registered nurse who trained at Russell Sage College in Troy, New York. McDonnell wrote the Nurses Three series from 1963 to 1965 using the pen name Jean Kirby, and the Kim Aldrich series as Jinny McDonnell, both for Whitman. She is also wrote volume six of The Waltons.
McDonnell and her husband were avid skiiers and many of her books featured details of nursing or skiing. It seems likely that she wrote three Trixie Belden books, The Mystery of Cobbett's Island (1964), The Mystery of the Emeralds (1965) and The Mystery of Mead's Mountain (1978). Skiing is mentioned early in The Mystery of Cobbett's Island, although this is not the theme of the book.
McDonnell also wrote another book called Country Agent that has a number of similarities with The Mystery at Happy Valley, although her book was published in 1968. Read a review of this book, and see what you think.
There is little biographical information available on McDonnell, but the three books attributed to her are three of the most widely loved books in the Trixie Belden series.
Gladys Baker Bond
Gladys Baker BondGladys Baker Bond was born in Berryville, Arkansas on the 7th of May, 1912. On September 2, 1934, she married Floyd James Bond and had one son, Nicholas Peter. Bond's childhood years were spent in the Ozarks of Arkansas. She lived in Idaho and Washington all her adult life and was an officer of the Idaho Writers League between 1952-54.
Bond's books for children cover a wide range of subjects and are often autobiographical. Mrs. Bond wrote under the pseudonymns, Jo Mendel (The Tucker series) and Holly Beth Walker (the Meg series), as well as her own name. She also wrote volume five of The Waltons.
She is credited with writing The Mystery of the Uninvited Guest (1977), The Mystery of the Castaway Children (1978), and The Sasquatch Mystery (1979). However, with her childhood spent in the Ozarks, she could be the author of The Mystery at Bob-White Cave (1963).
Carl Henry Rathjen
Carl Henry RathjenRathjen was born on the 28th of August 1909 in Jersey City, New Jersey and died in 1984. His ambition was to become a mechanical engineer, but when things didn't go
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
April 13, 2023
5+ stars (7/10 hearts). Can I just say I’m so glad Dan is a part of this book? He just so often isn’t, but every time he shows up he’s awesome and I’m soooo glad to hear of what his career is going to be. He was really a huge part of this book (and so was his past!) and I was so here for it.
Anyways. Dan aside, I loved this book! Ellen was so sweet, and I couldn’t help liking Max somehow. The Bob-Whites were their own usual awesome selves and I loved seeing how they argued over Trixie’s idea but ended up docilely following anyways. She did some good detective work here!
The mystery was really interesting and satisfactory, with some good strong excitement and plenty of unseen twists. I wish the Sergeantwould take Trixie more seriously/be kinder—he drove me wild—but I also liked seeing Trixie get reminded of her place a couple times. On the other hand, seeing the Bob-Whites mess up as typical teens was awesome. Also, Charles was epic and he should have been a permanent fixture in the series. And I love the contemporary glimpse of the ’60s here with the marijuana and the rules for male cops…
Also the scene where the kids argue about who goes to the flower patch was hilarious. I mean, the whole chapter is really funny with all their nerves, but that scene with all the “sex discrimination” and “age discrimination” is *chef’s kiss.*
Content euphemisms
A Favourite Humorous Quote: “Di, standing beside her, shivered.
“‘Cold?’ Trixie asked.
“‘Scared,’ Di admitted. ‘I’ve been rearranging all of my goose bumps.’
“‘If you need any more,’ said Honey, ‘I’ve got plenty to spare.’”
Anyways. Dan aside, I loved this book! Ellen was so sweet, and I couldn’t help liking Max somehow. The Bob-Whites were their own usual awesome selves and I loved seeing how they argued over Trixie’s idea but ended up docilely following anyways. She did some good detective work here!
The mystery was really interesting and satisfactory, with some good strong excitement and plenty of unseen twists. I wish the Sergeantwould take Trixie more seriously/be kinder—he drove me wild—but I also liked seeing Trixie get reminded of her place a couple times. On the other hand, seeing the Bob-Whites mess up as typical teens was awesome. Also, Charles was epic and he should have been a permanent fixture in the series. And I love the contemporary glimpse of the ’60s here with the marijuana and the rules for male cops…
Also the scene where the kids argue about who goes to the flower patch was hilarious. I mean, the whole chapter is really funny with all their nerves, but that scene with all the “sex discrimination” and “age discrimination” is *chef’s kiss.*
Content euphemisms
A Favourite Humorous Quote: “Di, standing beside her, shivered.
“‘Cold?’ Trixie asked.
“‘Scared,’ Di admitted. ‘I’ve been rearranging all of my goose bumps.’
“‘If you need any more,’ said Honey, ‘I’ve got plenty to spare.’”
May 24, 2018
Both my copy and Goodreads think this was first published in 1977. Hmmmm. I’m surprised it’s not mid-60s, judging by the dates on the earlier books. That said: it’s over 40 years old no matter what, right?
Welcome to 2018, all!
Later in this same book, Dan and Regan smell marijuana on them and freak out, soooooo.
PS: The mystery is pretty great in this one! Lots of interesting twists. But somehow that’s not what stood out the most in this reread.
...“Usually it’s just called marijuana.”[Side note: HAHAHAHAHAHAHA.]
“It’s illegal!” Honey said. “So that’s why Max is growing it hidden from sight.”
“It might not be illegal for long,” Jim said, frowning. “There are a lot of states considering legalizing it.” He shook his head. “I’m not sure, but I think there’s a bill in the New York legislature to legalize it.”
“If it’s going to be legal,” Honey said, “then why hide where it’s growing?”HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
“Because,” Brian suggested, “if it was legal, there’d be regulations and taxes for producing and selling it, just like alcohol. If someone wanted to avoid those, he’d still hide the plants.”
Welcome to 2018, all!
Later in this same book, Dan and Regan smell marijuana on them and freak out, soooooo.
PS: The mystery is pretty great in this one! Lots of interesting twists. But somehow that’s not what stood out the most in this reread.
February 17, 2019
Reread in 2019: A quick reread in preparation for the 19th anniversary of our Trixie online fan group. I think I like this one more than I think I do. :) Still bothered by the abrupt timeline leaps back and forth, but I liked the mystery, the secondary characters and, of course, the inclusion of Dan in this one. I did, however, find two unintentionally funny parts. First was when Peter Belden not once but TWICE says that his work at the bank is confidential. "But that's okay, I'll tell you this anyway." What?? And the other part was when Trixie and Honey somehow needed Dan to drive them to Mrs. Elliott's. They live on the same road! Get on your bike, for crying out loud! But overall, despite these mocking criticisms, I really did enjoy this reread.
***
Now the timeline REALLY starts to fall apart. It was just fall (#18-Phantom Grasshopper) and suddenly it's summer again? And in the next book it'll be spring...and then summer again? Oy. This book doesn't rank highly on my list, though I have no real beef with it, other than my beloved Dan actually suspecting (however briefly) that his friends were smoking pot. Really?
***
Now the timeline REALLY starts to fall apart. It was just fall (#18-Phantom Grasshopper) and suddenly it's summer again? And in the next book it'll be spring...and then summer again? Oy. This book doesn't rank highly on my list, though I have no real beef with it, other than my beloved Dan actually suspecting (however briefly) that his friends were smoking pot. Really?
March 2, 2014
Trixie is determined to help neighbor Mrs. Elliot when someone seems determined to ruin her flower business. Despite the lack of Di and Dan, I find this summer mystery to be lots of fun.
Read my full review at Carstairs Considers.
Read my full review at Carstairs Considers.
July 22, 2022
Vejam a minha opinião em vídeo, AQUI.
December 10, 2014
The 'twist' in this one really delights me. Chekhov's Floral Arrangement! :D
April 12, 2020
A shorter Trixie mystery this time around. The strangest part to me was the fact that it's the start of summer - again. Was this published out of timeline order? Or are they not bothering to follow a timeline?
June 16, 2022
The Bob Whites stumble upon an arsonist preparing to set fire to the flower farm of long term family friend, Ethel Elliot. After some snooping, Trixie is convinced that somebody has been trying to sabotage this harmless widow's business. The question is, who wants her out of the way, and why? As well as trying to discover the answers, the Bob Whites aim to help this struggling pensioner make ends meet.
* Ethel Elliot was Mrs Belden's babysitter when Helen was a little girl. Ethel married a horticulturalist named Sam who had a teenage son named Max. Now Sam is long dead and Max has grown up.
* Charles (or Charley) Hartman is a retired cop and ex-judo instructor who still has a very sharp edge. With such a combination, he's not a guy to mess around with. I admire his patience and respect for Trixie's work. Other elderly chaps in his position may well be too ageist and too sexist to take her seriously. Go, Charles!
* The cover of my oval edition is a little misleading. It gives the impression that the 'unseen treasure' of the title may lie deep at the bottom of a sea or lake. In actual fact, the Bob Whites' discovery in the Wheelers' lake is a total accident and red herring. It's a very cool and unexpected scene though, so not a bad choice for the cover. Because of the main setting and subject matter though, I might have preferred a riot of colorful cottage flowers.
* Jim and Brian shoot off for two weeks to work at a boys' camp. Apparently they both shine like the models of young manhood they are. Jim performs a heroic rescue and then Brian delivers some crucial first aid. This is all totally off scene for a chunk of the book, just in case we forget how awesome they both are. They are still in the story though.
* Hmm, I reckon Peter Belden is a bit too chatty with his family regarding privileged information from the bank. Sure, he tells his wife and kids, 'What I say has to stay at this table and go no further,' but it happens more than once. I hope he doesn't start making a habit of these information leaks. At least he just does it in front of Trixie and Mart, and not chatty Bobby.
* Kathryn Kenny does a brilliant job of describing a dodgy florist shop. There's just something about Manton's that's on the nose.
* Hey, how about the outcome of the flower photograph contest? Did Mart's photo end up winning the grand prize for Mrs Elliot? Sure, it doesn't really matter anymore, yet it's still a thread that peters out and would have been nice to know. (By the way, this boy turns out to have another talent, along with music, general knowledge, research skills, furniture restoration, agricultural know-how and a super-dooper vocabulary. It turns out he can take terrific photos too.)
* Whoa, a hidden cannabis crop is a controversial discovery. Not to mention awkward when Dan, who wasn't along for the find, assumes the others have all been smoking pot! I mean, what the...? How well does he know his fellow Bob Whites? (Just in case you're wondering, this isn't the 'unseen treasure' of the title either, haha.)
* Dan is a bit sus and touchy in general in this book, because he's spotted Al Finlay, a gang leader he once knew, hanging around Sleepyside. After what happened to Dan in The Uninvited Guest when his old gang members turned up, I guess we can't blame him for being a bit paranoid. His past never seems to stop haunting him.
* I appreciate Trixie and Honey's innocence in being unable to identify the strange leaves. Even Brian, the future doctor who was credited with so much botanical knowledge in The Marshland Mystery isn't sure. Once again it takes Mart, the budding agriculturalist and general trivia buff, to figure out what the girls have stuffed in their pockets. And he ain't impressed.
* I'm not sure I'm a big fan of allowing Mrs Elliot to remain oblivious about the shenanigans going on under her own roof, and on her own property over the years. In her position I'd want to know. It might help her appreciate the true character of her stepson too.
* But her assessment of him is still good enough to be the quote of the book. 'Max has too much of the city in him. With growing things you have to wait, to be patient.' That's a good life lesson for all of us, and no doubt includes kids, ambitions and dreams.
* Ethel Elliot was Mrs Belden's babysitter when Helen was a little girl. Ethel married a horticulturalist named Sam who had a teenage son named Max. Now Sam is long dead and Max has grown up.
* Charles (or Charley) Hartman is a retired cop and ex-judo instructor who still has a very sharp edge. With such a combination, he's not a guy to mess around with. I admire his patience and respect for Trixie's work. Other elderly chaps in his position may well be too ageist and too sexist to take her seriously. Go, Charles!
* The cover of my oval edition is a little misleading. It gives the impression that the 'unseen treasure' of the title may lie deep at the bottom of a sea or lake. In actual fact, the Bob Whites' discovery in the Wheelers' lake is a total accident and red herring. It's a very cool and unexpected scene though, so not a bad choice for the cover. Because of the main setting and subject matter though, I might have preferred a riot of colorful cottage flowers.
* Jim and Brian shoot off for two weeks to work at a boys' camp. Apparently they both shine like the models of young manhood they are. Jim performs a heroic rescue and then Brian delivers some crucial first aid. This is all totally off scene for a chunk of the book, just in case we forget how awesome they both are. They are still in the story though.
* Hmm, I reckon Peter Belden is a bit too chatty with his family regarding privileged information from the bank. Sure, he tells his wife and kids, 'What I say has to stay at this table and go no further,' but it happens more than once. I hope he doesn't start making a habit of these information leaks. At least he just does it in front of Trixie and Mart, and not chatty Bobby.
* Kathryn Kenny does a brilliant job of describing a dodgy florist shop. There's just something about Manton's that's on the nose.
* Hey, how about the outcome of the flower photograph contest? Did Mart's photo end up winning the grand prize for Mrs Elliot? Sure, it doesn't really matter anymore, yet it's still a thread that peters out and would have been nice to know. (By the way, this boy turns out to have another talent, along with music, general knowledge, research skills, furniture restoration, agricultural know-how and a super-dooper vocabulary. It turns out he can take terrific photos too.)
* Whoa, a hidden cannabis crop is a controversial discovery. Not to mention awkward when Dan, who wasn't along for the find, assumes the others have all been smoking pot! I mean, what the...? How well does he know his fellow Bob Whites? (Just in case you're wondering, this isn't the 'unseen treasure' of the title either, haha.)
* Dan is a bit sus and touchy in general in this book, because he's spotted Al Finlay, a gang leader he once knew, hanging around Sleepyside. After what happened to Dan in The Uninvited Guest when his old gang members turned up, I guess we can't blame him for being a bit paranoid. His past never seems to stop haunting him.
* I appreciate Trixie and Honey's innocence in being unable to identify the strange leaves. Even Brian, the future doctor who was credited with so much botanical knowledge in The Marshland Mystery isn't sure. Once again it takes Mart, the budding agriculturalist and general trivia buff, to figure out what the girls have stuffed in their pockets. And he ain't impressed.
* I'm not sure I'm a big fan of allowing Mrs Elliot to remain oblivious about the shenanigans going on under her own roof, and on her own property over the years. In her position I'd want to know. It might help her appreciate the true character of her stepson too.
* But her assessment of him is still good enough to be the quote of the book. 'Max has too much of the city in him. With growing things you have to wait, to be patient.' That's a good life lesson for all of us, and no doubt includes kids, ambitions and dreams.
March 26, 2018
I loved the Trixie Belden books as a kid (nice to see they got republished). I'm still unsure how they ended up in my corner of the world. I slowly amassed the whole series as first editions (it seemed so glamourous as a kid owning precious books that were older than me!) by saving all my pocket money to buy them from the local secondhand store. I can only guess that some adult (probably having moved to our sleepy town from overseas) had sold them off in bulk. They sat in a back corner of the store, thankfully ignored by everyone else, as I slowly acquired them through pocket money and then in a mass swoop for Christmas. It helped that back then secondhand books sold for anywhere from 10 cents to 50 cents rather than $7-10 as they do these days!
They were wonderful mystery books for children of a similar ilk to Famous Five, Secret Seven, Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys, The Three Investigators etc.; set in a time long before cellphones when sleuthing into mysterious mansions, smugglers, and strange sounds in the night wouldn't cause any real harm to befall our child investigators.
They were wonderful mystery books for children of a similar ilk to Famous Five, Secret Seven, Nancy Drew, The Hardy Boys, The Three Investigators etc.; set in a time long before cellphones when sleuthing into mysterious mansions, smugglers, and strange sounds in the night wouldn't cause any real harm to befall our child investigators.
October 2, 2022
I would like to thank myself for reading and loving this series as a child (and also my mother for purchasing all those oval paperbacks), because otherwise I would not be enjoying this trip down memory lane, forty-odd years after first picking up Trixie Belden and the Mystery of the Queen's Necklace.
This one wasn't exactly a trip down memory lane though - there are four or five in the series that I'd never owned and apparently never bothered to get from the library as a child. This was one of those but it still felt as familiar as the house I grew up in.
Also, if we were to track Trixie's age based on the season in which each book takes place, I think she'd be roughly 75 by the end of the series :-)
This one wasn't exactly a trip down memory lane though - there are four or five in the series that I'd never owned and apparently never bothered to get from the library as a child. This was one of those but it still felt as familiar as the house I grew up in.
Also, if we were to track Trixie's age based on the season in which each book takes place, I think she'd be roughly 75 by the end of the series :-)
January 1, 2024
Trixie and her fellow Bob-Whites of the Glen find themselves embroiled in another mystery when they spot someone trying to set fire to nice Mrs Elliott's shed. They race in on horseback and save the day, but now Trixie can't quit thinking about why someone would want to ruin Mrs Elliott's flower selling business. As the BWGs delve deeper, they uncover a ruse involving stolen Social Security checks, other incidents of sabotage, and a shady marijuana growing business. Trixie can't believe that Mrs Elliott or her stepson, Max, are involved, and she's determined to get to the bottom of things.
This was one of the more fun and perplexing Trixie mysteries. I thoroughly enjoyed it, which is why I managed to knock it back in a short time. Very good, a perfect read for young and old alike. Four stars.
This was one of the more fun and perplexing Trixie mysteries. I thoroughly enjoyed it, which is why I managed to knock it back in a short time. Very good, a perfect read for young and old alike. Four stars.
September 29, 2020
The 19th book in the Trixie Belden series and yet another great mystery. This had a pretty interesting story to it, it felt with a bit of risqué subject matter for the time, so that was a surprise. This was another in the series which I don’t believe I had read before, so another fresh TB mystery for me to enjoy.
Read
December 15, 2023I found this book on one of my bookcases so maybe I read this decades ago, but if so, I forgot about it.
I was surprised by the marijuana storyline.
I wish there had been better consistency with keeping the books in order considering the previous book was fall and this book jumped ahead to summer.
I was surprised by the marijuana storyline.
I wish there had been better consistency with keeping the books in order considering the previous book was fall and this book jumped ahead to summer.
June 26, 2017
One of the good ones, so must have been one of the writers that knew the series well. Always appreciate it when they keep it pure Trixie. Good story, glad that it stayed close to home with everyone around.
February 2, 2020
3.8
Foi uma história gira
Gostava de um romance entre a Patrícia e o Jim e queria que o Dan e a Di aparecessem mais vezes nos livros, porque a continuar assim parecem mais personagens secundárias do que principais
Foi uma história gira
Gostava de um romance entre a Patrícia e o Jim e queria que o Dan e a Di aparecessem mais vezes nos livros, porque a continuar assim parecem mais personagens secundárias do que principais
September 4, 2022
It's suddenly 1977 in Sleepyside! Trixie uncovers a marijuana grower who's hidden his crime inside an old lady's cornfield. But don't worry; the characters assure us that weed's about to become legal in New York State.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 27, 2024
All the action in this (my favorite series as a kid) takes place near Trixie's hometown... beginning with the first day of summer vacation and involves a widow who grows flowers for a living but is constantly being vandalized.
January 3, 2022
Fun edition to the Trixie Belden Series.
September 6, 2022
The 19th book in the Trixie Belden series. Charming and fun.
January 25, 2023
My bby Dan is here and I really don’t care about much else tbh.
Recommended 11+ for scary moments for younger readers, drug mentions/hinted usage, and other things I may have missed.
Recommended 11+ for scary moments for younger readers, drug mentions/hinted usage, and other things I may have missed.
December 24, 2024
This one goes out to the RUC book nook for giving me my first new Trixie belden read in approximately 15 years 💕
May 3, 2015
a HUGE and most dedicated fan of Trixie and her crew. This is odd, of course, because they were MEANT for teen and pre-teen girls, but I was a young boy that read everything he could get his hands on and when I first stumbled on my first TRIXIE BELDON book I was instantly hooked!
I immediately sat about reading them all, as quickly as I could get my greedy little paws on them. Trixie is the star, or "lead" character, followed by Jim and Honey (who quickly became the love of my young life, I had a total crush on a fictional character that only existed in ink) and this brave trio was constantly getting into trouble, solving mysteries and murders; that sort of thing.
It falls along the line of the Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew and other similar series, but the Trixie series carries more of the teenage angst and a subtle love triangle of conflicted who likes whom mystery that battles back and forth throughout the series. All of the while though, the same cheerful, effervescent and energetic positive attitude and domineering never quit/never let them see you down philosophy is the major subtext all through the books.
It is simply impossible to read these and NOT feel good about yourself and about LIFE, to have a sense of "all is well" in the world and a cheerful demeanor just naturally permeate your soul. I know, it SOUNDS crazy, but it is true.
I lost all of my Trixie books years ago, lending them to friends and that sort of thing. Since then, I have been on a quest to rebuild my collection of hardbacks. I find most of them at "Friends of the Library Sales" and things like that, but I am ever watchful at garage sales and places, for I do not have even a third of them built back
I immediately sat about reading them all, as quickly as I could get my greedy little paws on them. Trixie is the star, or "lead" character, followed by Jim and Honey (who quickly became the love of my young life, I had a total crush on a fictional character that only existed in ink) and this brave trio was constantly getting into trouble, solving mysteries and murders; that sort of thing.
It falls along the line of the Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew and other similar series, but the Trixie series carries more of the teenage angst and a subtle love triangle of conflicted who likes whom mystery that battles back and forth throughout the series. All of the while though, the same cheerful, effervescent and energetic positive attitude and domineering never quit/never let them see you down philosophy is the major subtext all through the books.
It is simply impossible to read these and NOT feel good about yourself and about LIFE, to have a sense of "all is well" in the world and a cheerful demeanor just naturally permeate your soul. I know, it SOUNDS crazy, but it is true.
I lost all of my Trixie books years ago, lending them to friends and that sort of thing. Since then, I have been on a quest to rebuild my collection of hardbacks. I find most of them at "Friends of the Library Sales" and things like that, but I am ever watchful at garage sales and places, for I do not have even a third of them built back
January 27, 2013
A childhood favorite re-visited.
Is the story as good as I remember? – Yes
What ages would I recommend it too? – Ten and up.
Length? – Most of a day’s read.
Characters? – Memorable, several characters.
Setting? – Real world, pre - computer, pre - cell phone, pre - digital camera.
Written approximately? – 1977.
Does the story leave questions in the readers mind? – Ready to read more.
Any issues the author (or a more recent publisher) should cover? Yes. A slight mention of the time frame of the story - as the teens are given far more freedom to come and go as they please than would be safe today. Also, the absence of computers, cell phones, and digital cameras.
Short storyline: Trixie Belden, Honey, Jim, and her brothers try to help Mrs. Elliot keep her farm. Her stepson behaves oddly thoughout the novel. What truly saves her is Mart's photograph of yellow peas. In a time before digital cameras no one knew how a photo would turn out for days, until expensive one hour photo came along, and you had to take a whole roll (12 or 24 pictures) to develop a single picture.
Notes for the reader: A great mystery! No violence (only referred to from the past), no murder.
Is the story as good as I remember? – Yes
What ages would I recommend it too? – Ten and up.
Length? – Most of a day’s read.
Characters? – Memorable, several characters.
Setting? – Real world, pre - computer, pre - cell phone, pre - digital camera.
Written approximately? – 1977.
Does the story leave questions in the readers mind? – Ready to read more.
Any issues the author (or a more recent publisher) should cover? Yes. A slight mention of the time frame of the story - as the teens are given far more freedom to come and go as they please than would be safe today. Also, the absence of computers, cell phones, and digital cameras.
Short storyline: Trixie Belden, Honey, Jim, and her brothers try to help Mrs. Elliot keep her farm. Her stepson behaves oddly thoughout the novel. What truly saves her is Mart's photograph of yellow peas. In a time before digital cameras no one knew how a photo would turn out for days, until expensive one hour photo came along, and you had to take a whole roll (12 or 24 pictures) to develop a single picture.
Notes for the reader: A great mystery! No violence (only referred to from the past), no murder.
April 20, 2016
I did not really enjoy this book.
Firstly, the mystery was all over the place (yet again). First it was just a simple matter of stolen social security checks, and then they added sabotage into the mix, and then marijuana? I feel like the marijuana part and the sabotage was resolved, but the social security thing wasn't. WHY THE HECK WERE THEY THROWN INTO THE WHEELERS' POND?! TELL ME THAT. PLEASE.
The characters were not enjoyable for me, either. The author gave me the impression that Trixie was a dumbbell. She was almost always wrong. That's not Trixie. She makes mistakes, but she is right some of the time. Mrs. Belden was also much too strict.
(Also, I just want to mention, I was a little weirded out when Honey mentioned gender discrimination. This is a book for kids/young teenagers. You really have to bring THAT into this? XD)
I'll round it up, but my actual rating is two-and-a-half stars out of five.
Firstly, the mystery was all over the place (yet again). First it was just a simple matter of stolen social security checks, and then they added sabotage into the mix, and then marijuana? I feel like the marijuana part and the sabotage was resolved, but the social security thing wasn't. WHY THE HECK WERE THEY THROWN INTO THE WHEELERS' POND?! TELL ME THAT. PLEASE.
The characters were not enjoyable for me, either. The author gave me the impression that Trixie was a dumbbell. She was almost always wrong. That's not Trixie. She makes mistakes, but she is right some of the time. Mrs. Belden was also much too strict.
(Also, I just want to mention, I was a little weirded out when Honey mentioned gender discrimination. This is a book for kids/young teenagers. You really have to bring THAT into this? XD)
I'll round it up, but my actual rating is two-and-a-half stars out of five.
January 18, 2016
I read and loved most of the Trixie Belden's as a child, but this one I never got a hold of until now. I was worried that I would be disappointed reading it for the first time as an adult, but I wasn't. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to spend time with the familiar characters and setting in a new-to-me plot. I was pleasantly surprised that the plot itself was quite engaging and I found myself wondering what would happen and how it would end. The mystery is well-done and holds together better than I expected. I would classify it as a medium Trixie Belden -- not one of the best, but not one of the worst either. Right there in the middle, with a solid, enjoyable story-line.
July 23, 2016
For Christmas one year, my parents grabbed me the entire Trixie Belden set and I couldn't put them down. After I finished with them, they continued to purchase them as quickly as I could read them. Even with a learning disability, I devoured the books. I look back now and I find that Trixie Belden was much more age related to young girls, particularly to me, reading the books than Nancy Drew. There was something in these books that I found to be a greater escape than I did ND, too. I found that they weren't so "over the top" or dated. I will be doing the same thing with my granddaughters, if and when I have them, even if I have to stalk every used bookstore to get them.
October 9, 2013
October 2013 ... another easy and light mystery ... fun for the young people, but not a lot of actual "detecting" in this mystery. Knowing the beginning of the series as well as I do, I also get frustrated when this second author in the series writes something that is not in keeping with the way the original author set things up. But overall, an enjoyable, quick and easy read.
January 29, 2021
10/23/10: This is probably the 3rd time I've read this particular one (#1-15 at least 10 times each) but I had to go in order. I own this one randomly because its one of the ones my Grandma had in her basement. Still awesome. I love Trixie!!
August 6, 2013
Book 18 took place in the fall, and now it's first day of summer vacation? Shame on you, Golden Books and your ghost writers.
Mrs. Ethel Elliot, nee Rogers, was once Helen Belden's sitter. Her step-son has come home to help in her nursery business; but are all her woes his fault?
Mrs. Ethel Elliot, nee Rogers, was once Helen Belden's sitter. Her step-son has come home to help in her nursery business; but are all her woes his fault?
February 21, 2015
Trixie has another case, someone is trying to run sweet Mrs. Elliot out of business, they destroy her flowers and try to set fire to her shed. Could it be her son who just returned home? Could it somehow be connected to the theft of social security checks from the same area?
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