As we move through our 30 Minute Reading Challenge this week we’ve decided to focus on mystery books. Wee spent our 30 minutes with Trixie Belden earlier in the week. Today I would like to introduce you to another girl who has been solving mysteries for generations: Nancy Drew!
And if you enjoyed Trixie Belden, Nancy Drew may be the perfect book to pick up today. Because Trixie and Nancy have something very important in common. They don’t just wonder about a mystery. They want to solve it. Which as a child I thought was neat.
They ask questions. They notice details. They follow clues. They investigate. They make connections. And they keep going when the answer doesn’t come easily. That’s one of the reasons I love introducing children to mystery books. You’re not just reading a story. You’re trying to solve the story which is the fun in these stories.
Nancy Drew is a teenage girl detective who first appeared in The Secret of the Old Clock in 1930. The book introduced readers to Nancy as she investigates a missing will and tries to help people who may lose an inheritance.
And here’s something interesting about the name on the cover. The books are credited to Carolyn Keene, but Carolyn Keene is a pseudonym used by multiple writers. One of the most important early Nancy Drew writers was Mildred Wirt Benson, who wrote 23 of the original 30 books.
So when you’re reading Nancy Drew, you’re really stepping into a character and a literary tradition that has been passed from writer to writer and generation to generation.If you’ve never read Nancy Drew before, start at the beginning:
The Secret of the Old Clock which is the first Nancy Drew mystery. In this story Nancy is trying to solve the mystery surrounding a missing will, and what starts as an investigation turns into an adventure filled with clues and danger.
The current edition is recommended for ages 8–12 and grades 3–7. That’s right in the sweet spot for many elementary and middle-grade readers. But don’t let an age recommendation stop you from reading it together.
A younger child might enjoy having it read aloud. An advanced reader might enjoy it independently. A parent, grandparent, teacher, or homeschool parent can read it right alongside a child. Sometimes the best way to introduce a classic is simply to sit down and read it together.
When asking how many Nacy Drew books are there this is where Nancy Drew gets really interesting. There isn’t just one Nancy Drew collection which I didn’t know. Did you? I’ve only read the original books. How about you?
The original Nancy Drew Mystery Stories eventually reached 175 books. And then there are newer Nancy Drew series designed for different ages and generations of readers. That means discovering Nancy Drew isn’t the end of the reading adventure. It’s the beginning. A child who falls in love with Nancy can have mystery after mystery waiting for them.
Here are some of the major Nancy Drew series families may come across.
The Original Nancy Drew Mystery Stories– 175 books Ages: Approximately 8–12
Why we recommend it:
This is the classic Nancy Drew experience. If you want your child to meet the Nancy Drew that generations of readers grew up with, this is where I’d begin.
Nancy Drew Diaries– Approximately 20 books Ages: Approximately 8–12
Why we recommend it:
These stories give Nancy a more modern feel while keeping the mystery-solving adventures. They’re a nice option for a child who likes the idea of Nancy Drew but wants stories that feel more contemporary.
Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew– Approximately 40 books Ages: Approximately 6–9
Why we recommend it:
This is a great option for younger readers who aren’t quite ready for the longer classic mysteries. Nancy, Bess, and George work together to solve mysteries, making this a fun bridge into chapter-book reading.
Nancy Drew Notebooks– Approximately 69 books Ages: Approximately 6–9
Why we recommend it:
These are another good choice for younger independent readers. If your child loves mysteries but isn’t ready for the original Nancy Drew books, this can be a wonderful place to start.
Nancy Drew: Girl Detective– Approximately 47 books Ages: Approximately 8–12
Why we recommend it:
This series gives Nancy a more modern presentation while keeping the familiar girl-detective idea. It’s another option for children who enjoy Nancy but want a newer-feeling story.
And remember: series counts can vary depending on whether you’re counting the original numbered books, newer editions, companion series, or related Nancy Drew books. The important thing is that there are a lot of Nancy Drew mysteries to discover!
Here’s another thing I really love about Nancy Drew, especially for families who use the library: You don’t necessarily have to read the books in numerical order to enjoy them. Let’s be honest.
Libraries don’t always have every single book in a series, and they certainly may not have them sitting neatly on the shelf from Book #1 through Book #175. With Nancy Drew, you can often pick up a mystery that’s available, open the book, and start reading.
Maybe the library has Book #12 but not Book #11. That’s okay. Maybe you find Book #25 sitting on the shelf. Grab it! Your child doesn’t have to wait until you’ve tracked down every book that came before it.
You can simply choose a mystery that looks interesting and start solving it. That’s one of the things that makes Nancy Drew so much fun for families. You can build your collection slowly. You can borrow them from the library.
You can find them at used bookstores, thrift stores, yard sales, or even occasionally at places like Dollar Tree. And every time you find another Nancy Drew book, you’ve added another mystery to the bookshelf. For families who love libraries, this is a BIG plus. You don’t have to find every book in order to enjoy the adventure.
Charlie asked me if Nancy Drew Has animals because she is a girl and he prefers books about boys but if she had animals he would give the books a try. Yes! Animals appear in Nancy Drew stories, and there are mysteries involving pets, horses, farms, and other animals.
That can make Nancy Drew especially appealing to children who already love animals and Charlie too. And the younger Clue Crew books can be a particularly good choice for animal-loving kids because some of their mysteries revolve around animals and animal-related adventures.
So if your child says: “I don’t want to read a mystery.” You might be able to find a Nancy Drew mystery that combines mystery + animals + adventure and suddenly reading sounds a whole lot more interesting.
I wanted to remind you mystery books are good for learning. This is one of the reasons mystery books have such a special place in our 30 Minutes Reading Challenge. Mystery books encourage children to pay attention.
That little detail on page 12 might matter on page 100. A character’s behavior might give us a clue. Something that seems unimportant might suddenly become very important.And that means children are practicing skills while they’re having fun.
Mystery reading can encourage: Observation — What did you notice? Memory — What happened earlier? Prediction — What do you think will happen next? Critical thinking — Does that explanation make sense?
Problem-solving — How could this mystery be solved? Reading comprehension — What is actually happening? Sequencing — What happened first, next, and last? Evidence-based thinking — What makes you think that? That’s a lot of learning hiding inside something a child simply thinks is a good story.
If you or someone you know is #Homeschooling Nancy Drew could be a lot of fun for homeschool families. Instead of simply saying: “Read Chapter 3.” Turn your child into a detective.
Give them a notebook and have them create their own Nancy Drew Mystery Notebook. They could keep track of: Suspects. Clues. Questions. Predictions. Important details. Possible solutions. Final answer
You could even stop at the end of each chapter and ask: What do you think is going on? What clue did Nancy discover? Who do you suspect? What evidence supports your theory? Did you change your mind?
Why? What would you have done if you were Nancy? Now your child isn’t just reading. They’re analyzing the story. And that’s exactly the kind of learning we want reading to encourage.
Nancy Drew or Trixie Belden? This is where our reading challenge comes in. If you read Trixie Belden yesterday, you might be wondering: Why should I read Nancy Drew today? Because although they’re both girl-detective stories, they have their own personalities.
Trixie Belden gives you lots of friendship, family, and group adventures. Nancy Drew often puts Nancy right in the middle of the investigation, following clues and taking the lead. If you loved Trixie’s friendships and adventures, you may enjoy seeing how Nancy approaches a mystery.
And if you grew up loving Nancy Drew, Trixie Belden gives you another young girl detective to discover. I almost think of them as book cousins. You don’t have to choose one. You can love both.
Summer and mystery books just seem to belong together. Imagine putting together a little Summer Detective Reading Basket: A Nancy Drew book. A notebook. Pencils. A magnifying glass. A bookmark. Maybe a cozy blanket.
Now you’ve created something that can keep a young reader busy on those long summer afternoons. And with so many Nancy Drew mysteries available, one book can easily lead to another. Which is why you will find them inside our Summer Gift Guide.
If your looking for something besides another toy or electronic device as a back to school gift for your children put a Nancy Drew book in the backpack. A book can become a quiet-time activity, an after-school activity, or something to reach for when the child simply wants to escape into a good mystery.
A boxed set would make an especially nice gift for a child who is already becoming a Nancy Drew fan. This is why you will find the Nancy Drew books inside our Back-to-School Gift Guide.
Nancy Drew is practically made for a Christmas book gift. You could give one book. You could give several. Or you could create a complete Nancy Drew Mystery Basket. Which is why you will find these books inside our Christmas Gift Guide.
Add:
📚 Nancy Drew books
🔎 A magnifying glass
📝 A detective notebook
✏️ Pencils
🔖 A bookmark
Now you’ve got a gift that encourages reading, imagination, and problem-solving. And unlike many toys, the adventure doesn’t end when Christmas morning is over. There’s another mystery waiting on the shelf.
I also have the Nancy Drew books in our Halloween Gift Guide, too! Because of the things you find in mystery stories: Old houses. Hidden rooms. Secrets. Missing objects. Strange happenings. Mysterious clues. And maybe even a little bit of spooky atmosphere.
The Hidden Staircase, Nancy Drew’s second book, is an especially fun example because it involves a mysterious old mansion and strange occurrences. That’s a perfect October reading atmosphere without having to give a child a truly frightening horror book. Mystery without the nightmares that’s my kind of book.
Here’s something fun for those of us who remember Nancy Drew from more than just the bookshelf. Nancy Drew has been on television! Yes, I did watch these shows. How about you?
Back in 1977, ABC aired The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, starring Pamela Sue Martin as Nancy Drew. The series ran from 1977 to 1979 and brought Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys from the books onto the television screen.
And Nancy Drew eventually returned to television again. The CW’s Nancy Drew premiered in 2019 and ran for four seasons, ending in 2023. So Nancy Drew really has had quite a life: Books → television → back to books → and into another generation of readers. That’s pretty special for a character who first appeared in 1930. Just like Barbie she is a women who can and did do it all.
Here’s another little tip for parents, grandparents, teachers, homeschool families, and book lovers: Check Dollar Tree! You can sometimes find children’s books and familiar book characters there, and the selection changes frequently from store to store.
So if you’re already shopping at Dollar Tree, take a peek at the book section. You might just find a Nancy Drew book waiting for a young detective. And if you find one for little more than a dollar? That’s a pretty inexpensive way to introduce a child to a classic character and potentially start them on an entire series.
Teachers and librarians should keep Nancy Drew in mind, too. A classroom or library mystery collection can give children another genre to explore, especially children who aren’t excited about traditional books but love solving problems and figuring things out.
And there’s something especially wonderful about a librarian handing a child a book that their parent or grandparent may have once loved. That’s how reading traditions are passed from one generation to another.
Now, I would like to remind you why someone would want to read Nancy Drew? Sometimes a child needs more than: “You need to read for 30 minutes.” They need a reason to want to turn the page.
Nancy Drew gives them a mystery. A question. A problem. A trail of clues. And the chance to try to solve it right alongside her. And that’s what we’re really trying to accomplish with our 30 Minutes Reading Challenge. We’re not just counting minutes. We’re helping children discover books that make them say: “Can I read one more chapter?”
So today, pick up The Secret of the Old Clock, meet Nancy Drew, and see if you can solve the mystery before she does. And if you read Trixie Belden yesterday, tell us: Are you Team Trixie, Team Nancy, or do you think every young detective needs BOTH on their bookshelf? 🔎📚
Happy Reading!
Grateful, Thankful, and Blessed
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates