The enduring mystery of Nancy Drew

Anyone whacked over the head will usually sustain a serious injury and go straight to a hospital for tests and treatments. Now who has repeatedly been knocked over the head -- not to mention kidnapped, locked in some stuffy room, trapped in a dark and filthy cistern, passed out from inhaling toxic fumes, bound and gagged, left for dead somewhere in sub-zero temperature, and caught in other life-threatening situations? Why, our blue-eyed, blue roadster-driving detective, of course!

But think about it: do you recall any instance where Nancy is rushed to the emergency room after having been knocked unconscious? I don't, though her being left in a deserted shack in the middle of the woods during winter -- with hands and feet tightly bound -- was a pretty close call. She was cold and unconscious by the time her friends found her; still, she made it. 

The fictional detective gets into numerous fixes -- some of them with chums Bess Marvin and George Fayne but more often while on her own. And the various ways in which she makes her escape and outsmarts her would-be captors provide some of the most thrilling (and fantastic) elements in the mystery stories. There is just no stopping Nancy Drew!

She is plucky. And resourceful. And she definitely does not run out of ideas, whether it's plotting her escape or figuring out clues leading to the villains' capture in every case. 

Carson Drew's daughter certainly has my admiration. Even countless women occupying top positions in their chosen fields have acknowledged the significant influence the fictional teen sleuth has had on them, according to this article by Nancy Drew expert and consultant Jennifer Fisher. 

Come to think of it, it is amazing when one considers the popularity of this fictional character among girls across generations. A little girl who grew up in the 1940s reading the Nancy Drew tweeds gifted by her parents may be sharing this love for the books with her great-granddaughters who pored over their own matte and flashlight edition copies in the early 2000s -- probably passed on to them by their own mom from her collection. Neat huh? A single literary character linking girls from multiple generations, all of them taking delight in the adventures of the gutsy, smart, and loyal sleuth and her friends.

I was afforded a wider perspective when I had the good fortune of attending a virtual lecture given by historian and author Leslie Goddard. It happened months ago, and boy, was it fun! Imagine, a lecture titled "The Mystery of Nancy Drew" -- I was all set minutes before the start of the event, ready for stories, trivia, and theories surrounding the titian-haired detective I had just rediscovered at the time. 

Dr. Goddard wove historical details, interesting questions as well as her own views into her lecture, and I learned quite a lot. It was the time I had just started revisiting the book series and researching on the people behind it. Edward Stratemeyer and his book company were recent discoveries for me. I heard the term "dime novels" for the first time when Dr. Goddard used it, describing the historical context in which Mr. Stratemeyer thought up the brilliant story lines for his adventure and detective stories for boys, and later on for girls.

The historian mentioned facts regarding the remarkable number of books the series has reached (175 mysteries excluding spin-offs), and the global reach Nancy Drew has achieved based on foreign language editions in which they come (at least 25), and other book series that were part of the reading fare that many children were also into during that period, like Cherry Ames, Vicky Barr, and Judy Bolton.

Eventually she touched on the continued popularity of the Nancy Drew Mystery Stories over the decades. What is it really that has sustained the popularity of the character and the series?

The fact that the protagonist is able to do what she wants in the stories? Yes, partly that. Any 10-year-old who desires to go out and do more or be more than she is allowed would certainly get a kick out of the adventures of a spirited girl who goes off on her own at a moment's notice, even it if is only on the pages of a book.

The fact that the protagonist has good friends who accompany her in her mystery-solving and in getting in and out of perilous situations? Maybe that's part of it, too. Bess and George -- and Helen Corning from time to time -- do stand by Nancy's side (or at least follow her tentatively) through the spookiest, most dangerous fixes they encounter. And in the process they provide a mix of personalities varied enough so that kids are bound to relate to at least one of them.

There is one factor, though, that Dr. Goddard brought up, which seems to explain why through close to a hundred years now since the character was brought to life in her first mystery, people still hark back to the books with fondness, young girls continue to read the mysteries in one form or another, and Nancy Drew remains a recognizable icon:

"Amid risks and risk-taking, it's wonderful to know that the world is secure just the same," said Dr. Goddard. Now who wouldn't relish the feeling of security, that all is well amid the presence of criminals and the inevitability of danger?

From time to time, elements of certain plots are replicated in some mysteries. One can recognize repetition ("but with some variety") among the stories sometimes. And repetition can be reassuring, Dr. Goddard pointed out, likening the experience to Hallmark movies, which for their part tend to follow a formula and become somewhat predictable -- and it is this factor that provides the reassurance that many of us appreciate, whether or not we know it. 

Nancy Drew Mystery Stories, however, are hardly the stuff of Hallmark movies. So, how is this sense of security conveyed in stories of wily swindlers, hapless victims, "haunted" venues, and detectives shadowing suspects? 

In Nancy Drew, we have a smart, heroic woman who faces up to her fears, goes on adventures, protects the disadvantaged, puts away the bad guys, and always saves the day.