Buyer Confusion on Nancy Drew #31

Vintage Lot of 19 Nancy Drew & Hardy Boys HC Books Item #270447639838

This is the seller's picture:


The auction contained this information in the description:

1. The Scarlet Slipper Mystery 1954
2. The Mystery of The Ivory Charm 1936
3. The Clue of the Velvet Mask1953
4. The Clue in the Old Stagecoach 1960
5. The Mystery At The Moss-Covered Mansion 1941
6. The Haunted Showboat 1957
7. The Mystery of the Brass Bound Trunk 1940
8. The Clue of the Black Keys 1951
9. The Haunted Bridge 1937
10. The Password to Larkspur Lane 1933
11. The Secret At Shadow Ranch 1931
12. The Ringmaster's Secret 1953
13. The Clue of the Leaning Chimney 1949
14. The Secret of the Old Clock 1930 (missing binder)
15. The Whispering Statue 1937 (has water damage on front, back, & binder)
16. The Secret of the Golden Pavilion 1959
17. The Hidden Window Mystery 1956
18. The Clue in the Diary 1932

Question: Do these all have 25 chapters (in particular, The Hidden Window)? Thanks.

Answer: All but 3 have 25 chapters including The Hidden Window has 25. The 3 that have only 20 chapters are The Clue in the Old Stagecoach, The Haunted Showboat, and The Secret of the Golden Pavilion.

As I have stated in the past, this type of question is often unnecessary. In this particular case, it was completely unnecessary. The seller provided a photo of the books and even gave the copyright dates. With the inclusion of the copyright dates, there is no doubt which books contained the original text.

All Nancy Drew books with a copyright date of 1956 or before must contain 25 chapters. All blue tweed Nancy Drew books must contain the original text with the exceptions of #1, 2, 3, 4, and 6. It is only necessary to ask about #1, 2, 3, 4, and 6 if the copyright date is not given. If the copyright date is given and is before 1956 (it will be 1930 or 1931), then those books must contain the original text. Of those books, this lot only contained #1, and the copyright date given was 1930, proving that the book has the original text.

The blue tweed books for #35 through 38 have copyrights after 1956 and contain just 20 chapters. However, those four books never had 25 chapters in the first place, so they contain the original text.

Of particular concern to the prospective buyer was whether Hidden Window contained the original text. Hidden Window was not revised until the 1970s when it was in the matte picture cover format. It is not possible for a tweed copy of Hidden Window to have anything other than the original text. The copyright date for the original text is 1956, so this is further proof that the book has the original text.

If prospective buyers have a handy list of the original copyright dates of Nancy Drew books, then it is always easy to determine whether the book has the original 25 chapter text. The book just has to have a copyright date of 1956 or before.