The girls learn that Miss Tisdale has a sister, Mrs. Brixton, who is estranged from their parents. Miss Tisdale has been supporting Mrs. Brixton, who is now in great need without her sister's support. The police cannot be contacted since it is believed that the shock of learning of Miss Tisdale's disappearance could kill her father. The Danas have no choice but to try to solve the mystery with only Captain Dana's assistance.
On page 173, Captain Dana tells the girls about the boy who was hired by a man to pick up a letter at the post office. The boy took the letter to the man, and then the man drove off. The boy somehow knew the license plate number. That's a bit amazing that a boy who was paid to do a small job just happened to note and remember the license plate. Wow.
This story features a live radio show, which dates the story. It's not surprising that this book was dropped during the second run of the series in the 1970s. However, all books written by Mildred Wirt Benson were dropped for the second run, so the story being dated was not the real reason.
This is a very good book.
1 comment:
The Dana Girls are an interesting series insofar that the McFarlane/Wirt books are outstanding, as you note every bit as good as the Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys books that were published contemporaneously. The quality of the writing tails off significantly after that, which makes the higher prices for the later books hard to stomach. Unlike the single-authored series (Rick Brant, Ken Holt, Judy Bolton, etc.), where the later books are excellent even if they didn't sell well, it is harder to justify spending more on the later Dana Girls books. Thank you for keeping up interest in the earlier books, though, which are outstanding.
Post a Comment