Although edward stratemeyer created the characters and synopsis for the first few nancy drew books, he did not write them himself, and the actual writers agreed not to reveal their names. Nancy drew books by carolyn keene learn about the nancy drew books. Here are all 56 original nancy drew books, ranked worst to. Nancy drew books taught me many new words, which i did not know before. Carolyn keene first published in 1930, the nancy drew mystery stories have sold over 70 million. While the character has undergone numerous iterations throughout the years, nancy drew has been cited as an important part of the literary and cultural landscape and an inspiration to many women, notably sandra day oconnor, sonia sotomayor, and hillary clinton. The original series by author carolyn keene is available under childrens fiction. Producing films in the late 1930s and recently as well in 2007, its eponymous character has an enduring appeal, which is also reflected in its videogame titles as well. Although edward stratemeyer created the characters and synopsis for the first few nancy drew books, he did not write them himself, and the actual writers agreed. The novels bear the same pseudonyms as the originals. A recent article about the cw series referred to carolyn keene as the original nancy drew author and stated that harriet stratemeyer adams later rewrote some of the novels.
The first author to use the pseudonym was mildred wirt benson, who wrote 23 of the original 30 books. The character was created by edward stratemeyer, head of the stratemeyer syndicate, which produced not only nancy drew, but also the hardy boys, tom swift, the bobbsey twins, the rover boys and more series. See the complete nancy drew mystery stories series book list in order, box sets or omnibus editions, and companion titles. Nancy drew is the protagonist of several series of childrens mystery novels, written under the house name of carolyn keene. Read as nancy drew and her friends solve more mysteries in the nancy drew diaries detective books series. The adventurous writer who brought nancy drew to life. The whole world can read nancy drew books, just for a very exciting adventure, kind of.
The alaskan mystery 1985 for sale nancy drew and the hardy boys fly to alaska to search for a missing newspaper reporter. A recent article about the cw series referred to carolyn keene as the original nancy drew author. Carolyn keene is the pseudonym of the authors of both the nancy drew mystery stories and a spinoff called river heights and the dana girls mystery stories, both produced by the stratemeyer syndicate. Nancy drew is a fictional character, a sleuth in an american mystery series created by publisher edward stratemeyer as the female counterpart to his hardy boys series. She grew up having nancy drew books read to her by her father, and is now an avid reader of mystery, thriller, and horror, along with everything from literary fiction to poetry to personal essays. Nancy drew books, in one form or another, have been popular for more than 70 years. Other writers who have adapted the carolyn keene moniker include leslie mcfarlane, james duncan lawrence, walter karig, and nancy axelrod. The nancy drew starter set is the perfect gift for aspiring detectives, or longtime fans of the series. Carolyn keene is a pen name used by a variety of authors for the classic nancy drew mystery series. The character was created by edward stratemeyer, head of the stratemeyer syndicate, which produced not only nancy drew, but also the hardy boys, tom swift, the bobbsey twins, the rover boys. Nancy began as a 16 yearold high school grad, but was later.
Both adams and bensons contributions to the series are explored in melanie rehaks girl sleuth. By 1929, stratemeyer was a successful childrens book mogul. Its no longer a secret that carolyn keene, the hardworking, prolific, zippilynamed and incredibly longlived author of the nancy drew books. In the new show, according to imdb, nancy drew makes plans to leave her hometown for college after high school graduation but finds herself.
The character of nancy drew seems to be more popular in some countries than others. Carolyn keene and the mystery of the real nancy drew author. Shop for nancy drew mystery books online at target. This is close to the truth, but not the whole story by a long shot. The book nancy drew and the clue of the dancing puppet, with 177 pages, written in 1990 by carolyn keen is intended for older kids from ages ten to fourteen. Here are all 56 original nancy drew books, ranked worst to best. Nancy drew hardcover 44 nancy drew girl detective aladdin 42 nancy drew the clue crew quality 32 nancy drew 32 nancy drew diaries 32 nancy drew clue book 31 nancy drew notebooks 21 nancy drew the clue crew library 16 draw and write journal k2 16. The following indepth books on nancy drew and similar series and their creators are. But she was the owner of the business, so it wasnt my place to think about it.
Heralded by many feminists as a strong female rolemodel, nancy drew has had an extremely positive influence on her young readers over the years. The house name was created by the stratemeyer syndicate the same group responsible for the hardy boys, tom swift, the rover boys, the bobbsey twins and more and is most associated with mildred a. See the complete nancy drew files series book list in order, box sets or omnibus editions, and companion titles. By some estimates, as many six different writers were involved in writing the original 56 nancy drew novels. Having been produced by a number of writers, all lending their own take on the story. The character of nancy drew ghostwritten and credited to the pseudonymous carolyn keene has appeared in a number of series over the years. The early nancy drew is smart, adventurous, flippant, and daring. Eightyfive years have passed since readers first encountered both the hardy boys and their teendetective counterpart, nancy drew, yet new books continue to be released several times a year. Famous ghostwritten books and their ghostwriters derek. Carolyn keene is the house name of authors who wrote childrens novels, including all of the various the nancy drew series as well as the dana girls and river heights series.
Big top flop by carolyn keene and peter francis mar 22, 2016 4. May 18, 2015 carolyn keene is the pseudonym of the authors of both the nancy drew mystery stories and a spinoff called river heights and the dana girls mystery stories, both produced by the stratemeyer syndicate. Buy nancy drew diaries paperback books her interactive. The character of nancy drew ghostwritten and credited to the pseudonymous carolyn keene has appeared in a number of series over the years 533 nancy drew books have been published as of 2019, in nine series, as follows. If you like nancy drew central rappahannock regional library. The above is a nancy drewinspired graphic novel, which has more ties to the new cw show that airs wednesday, october 9, after the fourth season of riverdale premieres. Oct 24, 2019 as well as writing new books in the nancy drew series, harriet did indeed rewrite the earlier books to update them, giving them a modern to the time setting, an agedup nancy from 16 to 18, and various other details so they would match the new books in the series. Nancy drew starter set by carolyn keene, hardcover barnes.
The hardy boys, nancy drew, and the secret ghostwriters of. The name was a pseudonym created by the publishers to churn out popular series. Nancy has blond hair and drives a smart blue roadster. To her readers, she was carolyn keene, one of at least two and perhaps as many as six writers who used that pseudonym for the original 56. See more ideas about books, my books and nancy drew books. May 27, 2015 eightyfive years have passed since readers first encountered both the hardy boys and their teendetective counterpart, nancy drew, yet new books continue to be released several times a year. The question of who wrote the nancy drew books was a mystery for many years. Written under the penname of carolyn keene, the nancy drew series has become an industry unto itself thats enjoyed immense popularity throughout the course of the twentieth century. Jan 30, 2020 nancy drew books, in one form or another, have been popular for more than 70 years.
Order of nancy drew books nancy drew is the protagonist of several series of childrens mystery novels, written under the house name of carolyn keene. Its no longer a secret that carolyn keene, the hardworking, prolific, zippily named and incredibly longlived author of the nancy drew books. Nancy drew books have been published in many european countries especially in nordic countries and france as well as in latin america and asia. The first 34 nancy drew books in the original texts published from 1930 to 1956 contain 25 chapters and around 210 to 225 pages each. The nancy drew books are an iconic mystery series about a teenage sleuth who solves crimes. The secret syndicate behind nancy drew jstor daily. A nancy drew ghostwriter on the art of being carolyn. Nancy drew mystery stories series 175 primary works 175 total works the nancy drew mystery stories was the longrunning main nancy drew series, published between 1930 and 2003. The books are ghostwritten by a number of authors and published under the collective pseudonym carolyn keene. Order of carolyn keene books carolyn keene is the house name of authors who wrote childrens novels, including all of the various the nancy drew series as well as the dana girls and river heights series.
Nightlight is slates popup blog about childrens books, running for the month of august. Mar 07, 2019 but she was the owner of the business, so it wasnt my place to think about it. Summer 2005 volume xlviii, number 2, pp 248250 cover story septuagenarian nancy drew still solving mysteries photo of the hidden staircase since 1991, applewood books has been publishing exact replicas of the original nancy drew mystery series from the 1930stwenty to date. New nancy drew books were published after 1979, including multiple. Edward stratemeyer october 4, 1862may 10, 1930 essentially invented book packaging. Mildred wirt benson, who wrote the text of 23 of the first 25 nancy drew books under the direction of edward stratemeyer, was still an active newspaper columnist when she died in may of 2002 at the age of 96. A nancy drew ghostwriter on the art of being carolyn keene. Nancy drew is a great mystery, and the best part is that everyone can read nancy drew. Over the course of more than 600 books, nancy drews adventures were. Eighty million books later, nancy drew has survived the depression, world war ii. The first five books are packaged together in a collectible box set with an updated design. The whole world can read nancy drew books, just for a very exciting adventure, kind of scary, good, good book. Benson, as carolyn keene, is said to have taken the plots and thumbnail sketches supplied by the syndicate and given nancy the adventurous nature and plucky spirit that has com. Mildred wirt benson, who wrote the text of 23 of the first 25 nancy drew books under the direction of edward stratemeyer, was still an active newspaper columnist when she died in.
Nancy drew has starred in movies, tv shows, computer games, and comicsbut it all started with nancy drew books. Jul 02, 2018 the adventurous writer who brought nancy drew to life. Nancy drew has been solving mysteries, and delighting fans, for over 75 years. The main problem in the clue of the dancing puppet is that every night a mysterious puppet comes out and dances in the backyard o. What are some of the best books of nancy drew files of. Mildred wirt benson is probably the most well known nancy drew author. There are 175 novels plus 34 revised stories that were published between 1930 and 2003 under the banner. Nancy drew starter set by carolyn keene, hardcover. Bobbie ann mason, may 1995, university of georgia press.
Now, for the first time, you can purchase all sixtyfour classic nancy drew titles in one complete set. New releases, upcoming books, video, excerpts and special features. The nancy drew files book series by multiple authors includes books secrets can kill, deadly intent, murder on ice, and several more. Nancy drew, first edition abebooks shop for books, art. Stratemeyer then attributed the books to pseudonymous authors and farmed them out to publishers. Nancy drew and the hardy brothers run into danger when they try to prevent the sabotage of an antipollution campaign. The adventurous writer who brought nancy drew to life arts. The nancy drew mystery stories book series by multiple authors includes books the secret of the old clock, the hidden staircase, the bungalow mystery, and several more. The original text books with 25 chapters, 1930 to 1956.