My inspiration: Katherine Woodfine on Nancy Drew

Katherine Woodfine got hooked on Carolyn Keene’s Nancy Drew mystery stories when she was just nine years old, here’s why

Emma Roberts as Nancy Drew in a still from the 2007 film version of the books that inspired Katherine Woodfine to write The Mystery of the Clockwork Sparrow. Photograph: Melinda Sue Gordon

Katherine Woodfine

Monday 25 May 2015 - The Guardian

I first encountered girl detective Nancy Drew on a family holiday to Wales when I was probably nine years old. I have a vivid memory of lying on the top bunk, reading The Mystery of the Lilac Inn - and being immediately hooked.

Looking back, I’m not entirely clear on what it was about the “titian-haired” girl detective, with her trademark blue convertible, that appealed to me so much. The books, which were originally written in the 1930s and then revised in the 1950s and 1960s, today seem rather dated, with racial stereotypes and cliches that can occasionally make for slightly uncomfortable reading for a contemporary reader. What’s more, Nancy’s adventures are on the silly side - she is constantly being kidnapped or sent threatening messages, chapters regularly end on cliffhangers, and plots are dependent on a not-very-believable series of coincidences. At the end of each story, all loose ends are neatly tied up and the villains are punished appropriately: the outcome is always predictable.

So what was it about Nancy Drew that grabbed my attention? Perhaps it was the romance of the titles (The Secret in the Old Lace, The Sign of the Twisted Candles) the exotic locations, or simply the satisfaction of seeing the mystery solved. Most of all though, it was the character of Nancy herself. I read a lot of mysteries at this time - especially series by Enid Blyton, such as the Famous Five, as well as books by (the less well-known) Malcolm Saville. The girl characters in these books were always depicted as being somehow flighty - impetuous, a bit moody, usually either timid like Anne or headstrong and “difficult” like George, who was continually being reprimanded by Julian and Dick. In these books, it was always the boys who led the way when it came to solving the mystery, investigating the secret tunnels or exploring the ruined castle whilst poor Anne was left behind to wash up the picnic lunch.
More