The Secret in the Old Attic - Mystery

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      As a young girl, I enjoyed many of the Nancy Drew Mystery Stories. Mystery Series #21 is titled The Secret in the Old Attic, by Carolyn Keene. The main character in all of the Nancy Drew stories is Nancy, and along with her father Mr. Drew, solved many mysteries. 

      Once again, Nancy is involved in solving a mystery, that of stolen musical compositions originally written by a deceased young soldier.  The music was sold and became very popular, earning income for the thieves. Mr. March, an elderly man who has the care of his granddaughter Susan, is the father of Fipp (a nickname for Philip) who was the author of the music, and Susan is the daughter of Fipp. Mr. March is in desperate financial need and went to Nancy and her father Mr. Drew to help find the remaining musical manuscripts so that they can be rightfully published and income earned. Thus began the investigation which took Nancy to a chemical processing plant, and most especially inside the old attic in Mr. Marc's Victorian home, which had a secret room no one knew about.

      With many twists and turns and frightful experiences, the secret room and remaining manuscripts were discovered, with Nancy at risk of losing her life. Hence, although not stated in the book, Mr. March rightfully published the music created by his son Fipp and was financially able to care for his granddaughter Susan and live a comfortable life.

      Like all of Nancy Drew's Mystery books, they are written for older elementary and early middle school children, from 8 to 14 years old. The author Carolyn Keene is a  pen name for Mildred Wirt Benson (1905-2002) who was hired to write the manuscripts for the first books. A few sketched drawings are in the Nancy Drew books, as they are geared for older children and emphasize the highly energetic text. 

      As a classroom assignment, teachers could assign chapters to groups of students and have them collaborate together the main points and events in each chapter. Then afterwards, come together as a class to discuss, in the order of the chapters, and have afterwards a book review.

Reader Response Questions:

1. Who was Mr. March and why did he seek the help of Nancy Drew and her father?

2. How many songs were stolen and published?

Where was the secret room found and what did it contain?

      After many years, I enjoyed reading once again a Nancy Drew mystery. It is fast moving and exciting and I now can see what captured the interest of youth reading the books for many years. A fantastic series of books to instill creativity and vocabulary knowledge!

Reference

Keene, C. (1970). The Secret in the Old Attic. New York: Grosset & Dunlap.