This post is part of the Nancy Drew Review Project; visit the project index here.
The Bungalow Mystery is the third Nancy Drew mystery and the last volume in the initial “breeder set” published in 1930. The publishers issued a condensed and revised version of the text in 1960—although this is one of the instances where there are no significant changes between the two versions.
In both stories, Nancy is boating with her friend, Helen Corning, when they hit a submerged log and begin to sink. The girls are nearly drowned but their lives are saved by Laura Pendleton. Laura is an orphan, and she’s about to meet her new court-appointed guardian(s). Later, Laura runs away from her new caretaker(s), and Nancy endeavors to help, eventually discovering that Laura’s actual guardian was kidnapped and trapped in the cellar of a seemingly abandoned bungalow.
1930 Original Text
The original text can be divided into two main “sections.” The first five chapters or so deal with Nancy and Helen’s boating accident and Laura’s valiant rescue attempt. Then, most of the final twenty chapters cover the events of a single night, in which Nancy breaks into the home of Laura’s guardian, snoops around, then breaks into the abandoned bungalow and snoops around some more. (Later she’s imprisoned and, after escaping, participates in a high-speed car chase.) I found that because the majority of the book describes what happened in a short time period, there was a lot of detail, emotionality, and suspense. The reader feels very tense as Nancy sneaks around both the house and the bungalow, and there are a few very exciting moments, such as when her flashlight battery goes out and she thinks Mr. Aborn is after her.
Really, there’s not much to be said about the original text of The Bungalow Mystery. It’s a very good book, Nancy acquits herself admirably, and there aren’t any old-fashioned and/or racist moments that district the modern reader. This is a book that certainly did not need to be revised in any way.
1960 Revised Text
The revised text is basically a copy-paste of the original text, just with some scenes condensed and an extra subplot added. I think it’s pretty standard for “modern” Nancy Drew books to have two mysteries, which usually end up being connected. In revising The Bungalow Mystery, the authors added a plot involving the case Carson Drew is currently working on (which, naturally, involves the same villain who’s impersonating Laura Pendleton’s guardian). This side-plot gives Nancy a chance to “dress up” and interview some folks in River Heights in an undercover persona, which I thought was pretty fun.
Aside from a slightly more complex plot, the other major change in the revised text is that Laura’s new guardian has a wife. I honestly don’t understand why it was done, but okay. I guess having a husband-wife villain team is more interesting than just one guy?
In any case, I found the revised text to be well-written and engaging. The action is spaced out a bit more over a matter of a few days, and that rescue of Nancy and Helen at the beginning takes only a few chapters, instead of five.
In both versions of the text, Nancy does the majority of the investigating all by herself—unlike in the revised version of The Hidden Staircase, Helen Corning doesn’t stick around for the entire story. Honestly, I know we’re all used to Nancy having sidekicks, but I kind of liked watching her lone wolf it here. She’s just as capable without Bess, George, Ned, et al. along for the ride.
Finally, the revised text keeps in a fair amount of Nancy’s personality. There are a few moments where Nancy speaks “tersely” or in frustration, and she actually does break the law when she sneaks into the Aborn’s house and the abandoned bungalow. (Ostensibly, she has Laura’s “permission” to break in, but Laura doesn’t actually have legal authority, so…)
Verdict
Again, I liked both versions of the text just about the same. There were no drastic changes made in revisions, and the 1960 text doesn’t completely butcher Nancy’s personality. Obviously, I think Mildred Wirt Benson’s writing in the original text is better and more exiting, so I suppose I prefer the original text. (Honestly, though, I’d be just as likely to give either version to a hypothetical kid interesting in experiencing “the real Nancy Drew.”)
[Disclaimer: cover art scans are from this site.]
