Stella's Victory - from the Crown Library for Boys and Girls

This was one of those unique books that when I saw it, the cover struck me as interesting, and I knew I had to have it.  My friend, Pam, who is a librarian, was going through books at her library sale, and so she was showing me some of them for sale, and when she held this one up, I fell in love with the beautifully painted cover and asked her to get it for me.  I was not really sure what the story would hold in store, but the book was published by "The Girl's Own Paper" Office - The Girl's Own Paper being a British weekly newspaper for girls published from 1880 to 1956.  I was intrigued by the fact that this weekly newspaper was also publishing full length novels, and I wondered if perhaps this was a collected edition of a story that appeared in weekly installments in the newspaper; however, from everything I was able to find out about the book online, that does not appear to be the case.

Stella's Victory was written by Bertha Leonard, who authored a number of books for girls across the pond, including Castle School Mystery, The Riddle of Rockview School, The School at Kesteven, Silverways Manor School, Nan's Highland School, among others.  Clearly, Leonard enjoyed writing about girls' school adventures and mysteries.  Bertha Leonard was, in actuality, Bertha Howick Fry, who, aside from writing, enjoyed reading and collecting antiques, and whose daughter, Leonora Fry, also went on to write a number of books, many of which were educational in nature (Bertha Fry a/k/a Bertha Leonard).  From what I was able to learn, Stella's Victory was her first full-length novel.

The story centers around Stella Willoughby, the teenage daughter of a once wealthy family who has lived a more than comfortable life and has been used to doing as she pleased.  As the book opens, Stella discovers the family is going to have to leave Trevorholt, their Elizabethan house with its extensive gardens (p. 10) and allow an American family to rent the house for a year.  Even then, Stella is shocked to discover that unless her parents are able to turn the family finances around, they may have to actually sell the great house.  But worse than all of that, Stella is told she will be going away to an all-girls boarding school, and that her holidays will be spent with her Aunt Selina - a wealthy woman in her own right, who spends her days (and her money!) helping those less fortunate.  Stella cannot think of a duller way to spend her holidays, and the only thing giving her hope is her brother's story of a family fortune hidden many years ago somewhere in Trevorholt.  But with the family leaving for a year, and Stella going away to school and her Aunt Selina's, how can they search for the treasure and save their family home?

While this treasure-hunting mystery is set up at the beginning, Leonard pretty much puts that on hold and spends a good portion of the book focusing on Stella's schooldays at the boarding school, her interaction with these new girls (who refer to her as "Duchess" because of her haughty attitude), and her plans to somehow escape staying with her Aunt Selina when the holidays arrive.  The boarding school has some rather strict rules, and in many ways, it reminded me of Starhurst from The Dana Girls Mystery Stories.  Stella and her new friends wind up in trouble when they sneak away to have a picnic on a nearby island where a fortune teller lives, but they give themselves away when they find the older woman unconscious and Stella has to swim back to shore to get help.  

It is during Stella's first holiday with her Aunt Selina that the author plainly reveals the story is a set up for leading Stella on a path to change her ways.  Selina is a devout woman of God, and she wants to leave her great fortune to Stella, but only if she will use the money wisely to help others.  Stella, at first, seems to awaken from her selfish life, as she helps her aunt provide a merry Christmas to a number of homeless children; however, she seemingly reverts right back to her old ways as soon as the holidays are over.  Stella eventually finds a way to spend one of her holiday breaks with her best friend, Celia, and they sneak back over to Trevorholt to search for the treasure.  A surprising scare sends Stella flying down the stairs, and she suffers an injury that leaves her bedridden for some weeks, under the care of her Aunt Selina.  These events ultimately lead to a greater understanding for Stella, and she resolves to not only turn over a new leaf and stop being so self-centered, but she also expresses a desire to aid her Aunt Stella and spend more time helping her help others.

The story definitely has religious undertones, and there is a clear message of Biblical values, but the author is not pushy with the subject matter.  There is no discussion of accepting Christ as Savior or a need for salvation; however, the moral of the story is undeniably the need to not rely on and live for material wealth and focus instead on serving God by serving others.  The mystery element of the family treasure and alleged ghost that haunts Trevorholt are minor elements within the tale and are not the main focus of the plot (although the possible loss of Trevorholt weighs heavily on Stella and influences much of her attitude and actions - and it is not until she lets go of her selfish nature that she is provided the means by which the family home can be saved; which, in a way, is a allegory of the Christian faith, that letting go of "self" and simply trusting in God is how and when you will find true peace and success).

The book has two black and white internal illustrations by E.S. Farmer, as well as a color frontis piece by who I can only assume is Alfred Bestall, a British artist who illustrated books by Enid Blyton and later took over the Rubert Bear stories in the Daily Express.  The color print only shows the signature of a last name in the bottom left hand corner, and it appears to be Bestall's, although I cannot be one hundred percent sure.  It is odd they had a different artist provide the interiors than the one who provided the frontis; and as far as the cover goes, I have no idea who provided the art for that.  The book itself does not have a publication or copyright date; in fact, the page that normally contains that information merely says "Made in Great Britain / Printed by Butler & Tanner, Ltd., Frome and London."  Thus, I can't even be sure when this particular copy of the book was published.

Nevertheless, the book was a fair enough read, although not enough mystery for my taste.  Again, this is one of those rare "non-series" books that I picked up, and for the price I paid, I certainly can't complaint too much about the quality of the tale.  Fans of girls' school books will probably enjoy the story, with its adventures of the girls in Dormitory Six; as for me, I'll stick to the mystery stories!

RATING:  6 empty iron-bound boxes out of 10 for providing a tale of character growth and moral expectations, with just a hint of mystery thrown into the mix.