Book #1: The Secret of the Old Clock (1959 Edition)

Ah, the first ever Nancy Drew book.  Now, for this particular edition, I have the 1959 copyright version, which describes Nancy as "an attractive girl of eighteen," whereas the 1930 edition lists her as 16 years old.  Of course, the original edition is also littered with blatant racial stereotypes and Nancy is kind of a bitch.  Hmmmm...maybe I'll re-read that one too.

This book really hits the ground running, which is not unusual for Nancy Drew books, but still...I was captivated.  After saving a little girl from being roadkill (because Nancy Drew is practically perfect in every way, much like Mary Poppins), Nancy realizes that the girl is being cared for by two kindly great-aunts, as the girl's own parents were killed...IN A BOAT EXPLOSION.  Sweet Zombie Jesus.  I thought that only happened on, like, Magnum P.I.  

Anyhoo, Nancy discovers that these women, along with several other ridiculously nice people in town (two girls who attempt to run a farm by themselves, and an elderly woman who hasn't eaten in a week because she doesn't have the money), have been tricked out of an inheritance.  They're all baffled that the late Josiah Crowley left his entire fortune to the Tophams, a snobby rich family that puts Billy Zane in Titanic to shame.  I, of course, am now imagining all the hard-working townspeople that have been hoodwinked by the Tophams dancing an Irish Jig on the lower decks.  Ohhhhh.  We love them.  And we HATE the Tophams!

Here's the best part--even though practically perfect Nancy Drew doesn't like to gossip, she hates those Tophams too.  Oh, yeah.  She doesn't show it, what with her being a proper girl, but she hates those Tophams with the white hot intensity of a thousand suns.  So, of course, she sets out to find a later will, one which will give her new friends the money they deserve.  And, of course, after lunching with a few judges, chatting with the mayor, and some well-timed eavesdropping (which she tries to cover up as being accidental, but come on, Nancy) on the evil Isabella and Ada Topham, she has her answer: there is a later will.  

Awww.  This shit just got real.  

The rest of the book really is a non-stop thrill ride.  Nancy infiltrates the Topham house by pretending she must sell tickets to a gala, and heads out to her friend Helen Corning's lake house to find the titular old clock.  Unfortunately, some no-good crooks steal the clock before she can check it.  They even go so far as to lock Nancy in a closet.  Oh, helllls no.  Nancy, of course, catches up with the scoundrels while they stop for dinner (rookie move, crooks) and solves the case in one fell swoop.  She then delights in being there as the new will is read aloud, ruining the snobby Tophams (who have evidently been bankrupted due to Mr. Topham's ponzi-esque schemes) and making a new life for Nancy's new friends.  Woo-hoo!

I was really pleasantly surprised reading Nancy's first case.  I often re-read the older titles that have my favorite characters, Bess Marvin, George Fayne, and Ned Nickerson, but The Secret of the Old Clock was just delightful.  I give it a 4 1/2 out of 5.

    
Head Injury Count: 0