Nancy Drew Mystery Stories #47 - The Mysterious Mannequin

I grew up reading Nancy Drew, and by 1979, I had purchased and read all 56 books that had been published at that time (the yellow spine editions, which, in the case of books 1 through 34, meant I had read the revised texts for those books). This included book 47, The Mysterious Mannequin.  Since that time, I have collected  Nancy Drew books, as well as many other children’s mystery series; but, I have honestly not gone back and re-read many of those first 56 Nancy Drew books.  So, when our Central Florida Sleuths reading group decided to read The Mysterious Mannequin for our August get-together, well, let’s just say it was almost like reading the book for the first time - - again!

By the time The Mysterious Mannequin was published, Harriet Stratemeyer Adams, the daughter of Edward Stratemeyer, who created Nancy Drew, was writing the manuscripts for all of the new Nancy Drew books being published.  The later books in the series (such as The Crooked Bannister, The Sky Phantom, The Thirteenth Pearl, etc.) were not good reads at all, so I wondered how this story would be.  Imagine my surprise when I started reading the book and found myself really enjoying it.  The mystery was unique and engaging, and the dialogue was very well-written.  The banter between some of the characters was fun to read and breathed new life in Nancy, Ned, Bess, George, and their friends.  It actually left me wondering if Harriet actually wrote this manuscript, or if someone else ghosted the book. However, from the sources I was able to locate online, it appears that Harriet did, indeed, outline, write, and edit this book.  A close friend of mine even shared some photographs that Harriet took while on a vacation in Turkey, which trip provided Harriet with information for this particular mystery (which was partially set in Turkey).

The mystery begins when Carson Drew receives a package from Turkey – a intricately designed rug that Carson can only assume was sent by a former client who was wrongfully accused of smuggling. There is no message, so Carson and Nancy wonder if perhaps there is a message woven into the rug.  The two of them, and later Hannah, Ned, Bess, and George all join in, search carefully along the border of the rug to locate any potential clues for a hidden message – and eventually they discover that his client is wanting them to search for a mannequin that used to sit in his store window and bring it to him.  Of course, the client left the country two years ago, and no one has seen the mannequin since…

It was actually rather fun to read along as Nancy and her friends return to the rug time and again to locate more parts of the message; rather than the clue just being dropped in her lap as happens in many of the mysteries, the young detective has to really work for it in this one.  And when a stranger breaks into the house and tries to steal the rug, it was cute to see Togo (Nancy’s pet terrier) jump in to help Nancy keep the rug away from the intruder!  It is also nice to see the financial aspect of the sleuths brought into question. When the trip to Turkey is decided, there is a question raised as to how the girls will afford it (something that usually is never a concern for Nancy and her friends). The fact that they get a group discount through the travel agent, and then obtain lodging with friends rather than a costly hotel brings some realism to the tale that makes it all that more believable.

There are a few scenes in the story that seem rather superfluous – Ned being asked to hold a potential witness’s baby, and Helen (Corning) Archer joining the girls for a game of tennis – but, these scenes add some humor, as well as rare moments of characterization that you don’t often see in the series.  For instance, when Ned is asked to hold the baby, he is rather reluctant, and Nancy has to hold back her laughter at how uncomfortable and uncoordinated Ned is with trying to hold the baby. And the scene with Helen ends with the girls in the gift shop, where Bess accidentally knocks over a vase, which shatters, leaving the girl to wonder how she will possibly afford to pay for it!

The only true drawback to this mystery is the fact that there is so much talk about Turkey, but Nancy and her friends spend very little time there at the end of the book.  It would have been nice to see the young sleuths spend a bit more time in Turkey, so readers could get more information about the country, its people, and its splendor.  (Also, the fact that Nancy figured out the location of the mannequin “off-screen,” so to speak, was a bit of a disappointment.)

Overall, the book was a satisfying read and definitely one of the better Nancy Drew books from that era.

RATING:  8 winking mannequins out of 10 for not only showcasing Nancy Drew’s skill as a detective, but showing readers just how human she and her friends can be with fun dialogue and banter!