When I stumbled across this on Amazon.com, I was not sure if I really wanted to buy it. After all, there are already a number of books out there about the "creators" of Nancy Drew - ones that focus on the Stratemeyer Syndicate itself, others that focus on Mildred Wirt Benson, and some that focus on the evolution and impact of the character, Nancy Drew. Did I really need another one? And I had no knowledge of the author, Christine Keleny, other than the brief information provided on Amazon about her. So, I debated back and forth, but I finally listened to that insistent voice in the back of my mind that kept saying, "if you want all things Nancy Drew related, then you must have this," and I bought it. Took me a bit before I finally picked it up and read it, but now, I can honestly say, I am so thoroughly glad I bought it, because this book is not just another analytical study of the individuals who created and wrote Nancy Drew - no, this book is actually a well-written, well-researched prose biography of the three people who had the most influence in the character of Nancy Drew - Edward Stratemeyer, his daughter Harriet, and his young ghostwriter, Mildred Wirt!
Will The Real Carolyn Keene Please Stand Up gives fans a fresh new look at the history of Nancy Drew's creation. For a character that has been around for nearly 100 years, with new stories continuously published over the course of those nearly ten decades, Nancy Drew has had plenty of books look at her creators, her longevity, her enduring appeal, her pop icon status, and just about every other aspect you can think of as it relates to the girl detective. Authors like Melanie Rehak, Michael G. Cornelius, Carolyn Carpan, Bobbie Ann Mason, LuElla D'Amico, Emily Hamilton-Honey, Geoffrey S. Lapin, and many others have offered so much insight over the years with books, essays, and countless hours of research on the subject of Nancy Drew and her creation; yet, surprisingly, in all of that time, not once has there ever been a historical look at those creators told in a prose, biographical fashion. Until now. Author Christine Keleny (Christine Keleny Books) is not only a writer, but she is also an editor, book designer, and publisher, whose works cross into historical fiction, mystery, adventure, and memoir. This particular book, while offering well researched biographies on Stratemeyer, Adams, and Wirt-Benson, is also infused with a certain level of historical fiction - since a lot of the conversations and character-thoughts expressed throughout the book are not necessarily factual - but based on everything we knew about these three, they very well could be!
Keleny alternates between the various players. Some chapters focus on Edward, while others look at what Mildred was doing, while others take a look at Harriet and her sister, Edna. Keleny's story is so well-written, that the reader can visually picture each of the characters as they act and speak on the page, and honestly, this would transition so beautifully into a movie, or even a television mini-series. Edward, Harriet, and Mildred are all developed far beyond their typical "this is what research tells us about them" found in most books; instead, we get living, breathing characters with emotions, with hopes and dreams, with frustrations and losses, with times of happiness and times of mourning. Yes, the scenes portrayed throughout the book come from the Stratemeyer Records on file with the New York Public Library ... from the Iowa Women's Archives at the University of Iowa ... from researchers such as Geoffrey S. Lapin (to whom the author credits having done considerable work to uncover Wirt's connection as the original author of the Nancy Drew books) and James Keeline ... and to the descendants of the Stratemeyer family itself ... however, they are expressed through a prose tale that draws the reader in until, just like the children's series that are the subject matter of these individuals, he or she cannot help but turn page after page after page to see what is going to happen next!
The one thing I think Keleny does perfectly with this book is acknowledge the fact that there was never just "one" Carolyn Keene. Sure, Edward Stratemeyer created the idea and the initial outlines for the Nancy Drew series. Sure, Mildred Wirt (Benson) wrote the original books in the series. Sure, Harriet Stratemeyer Adams took over the character and molded her into the later image that so many adults today remember her as. Yet, it was not just one of these three that "created" Nancy Drew; rather, it was the amalgamation of all three - Stratemeyer, Wirt, and Adams - that ultimately defined Nancy Drew and gave her the characteristics and charisma that has helped her endure for nearly 100 years non-stop. While so many other series fell away, many long forgotten - Nancy Drew is still at the forefront, still recognized as the quintessential girl detective (let's face it - any book, any movie, any television show that features a female detective will always make at least one, if nor more, reference to Nancy Drew). And this book is the perfect story of how these three individuals, in their own special ways, combined to make (literally!) the world's greatest amateur female detective.
Now, for all this praise (and I really did enjoy the book!), that's not to say it's perfect. It is always a bit off-putting when I come across grammatical errors or misspellings in a published book - and this book had a number of them. When talking about the gala thrown by Simon & Schuster after they took over publication of the Stratemeyer properties, it states, "[w]asn't Nancy's popularity proven at the gala 15th anniversary party put on by Simon & Schuster for Nancy Drew..." (p. 5). This was actually referring to the 50th anniversary gala. Later, when we read about Edward acting out a story he is writing, his wife "knew that this roll-playing was important to Edward..." (p. 20). I believe the author meant "role" playing. These are only a couple - there are others that could be listed, but it is a reminder that books are no longer edited with precision as they used to be. While these are small things, and they don't make the book any less readable, they do (for me, at least) present a jarring moment, at which I'm taken out of the story as my mind immediately focuses on the error.
As an aside, Keleny does throw in a moment of Hardy Boys history for us, as she gives us a few pages of Leslie McFarlane and his first communications with Stratemeyer (pp. 108 - 114), which ultimately led to his taking on the Hardy Boys books, and later, the first few Dana Girls stories. There are also moments with members of the Garis family, as well as the addition of Andrew Svenson as a partner of the Syndicate. Thus, the author gives readers a well-rounded story of everything that was going on in the lives of these three creators, and how it all impacted their work on, and in Harriet's case, her utter devotion to Nancy Drew.
Who was the real Carolyn Keene? Well, once you read this book, I believe you will be in a much stronger position to answer that question, and you will be sparked to delve deeper and do your own research and studies to get a better understanding of everything (and everyone!) that went into creating our favorite teen detective! Is every word of this book true, and did every thing that is described in this book actually take place the way it is written here? Probably not. But that does not in any way lessen this book's value in the annals of Nancy Drew studies, and it certainly should not detract from anyone's enjoyment in reading the story.
RATING: 10 last ditch attempts to sell the Syndicate out of 10 for a well-researched, superbly written story of the lives, loves, hardships, and successes of the three individuals who, in one way or another, created Nancy Drew.
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