The Clue in the Diary facts for kids
Original edition cover
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| Author | Carolyn Keene |
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| Illustrator | Russell H. Tandy |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Nancy Drew Mystery Stories |
| Genre | Juvenile literature |
| Publisher | Grosset & Dunlap |
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Publication date
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1932, 1962 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 174 |
| ISBN | 0-448-09507-6 |
| OCLC | 25734838 |
| Preceded by | The Secret of Red Gate Farm |
| Followed by | Nancy's Mysterious Letter |
The Clue in the Diary is the seventh book in the exciting Nancy Drew Mystery Stories series. It was first published in 1932. The book was written by someone using the pen name Carolyn Keene. Later, in 1962, the story was updated and rewritten a bit.
This book was the last one that Mildred Wirt Benson wrote in her first time working on the series. She came back to write more Nancy Drew books later. She wrote volume 11, The Clue of the Broken Locket, and kept writing until 1948. She even helped write one more in 1953.
Contents
What Happens in the Story? (1932 Version)
Nancy Drew and her friends, Bess and George, are driving home from a fun carnival. They are talking about a family from Sweden, Mrs. Swenson and her daughter. The girls had just helped them have a great time at the carnival.
Suddenly, they see a big house by the road burst into flames! The girls quickly stop their car to make sure no one is trapped inside. While checking, Nancy sees someone running away from the burning house. She also finds a diary on the ground. It's written in Swedish.
As firefighters arrive, Nancy notices a young man moving her car to safety. His name is Ned Nickerson. At first, Nancy is a little suspicious of him. But Ned quickly proves to be a helpful and kind friend. He becomes a loyal admirer of Nancy from that day on.
Meanwhile, Mrs. Swenson's husband is missing. She realizes the diary Nancy found belongs to him! To make things even more mysterious, the owner of the burned house, Felix Raybolt, is also gone. His wife claims that Joe Swenson made her husband disappear.
It turns out that Raybolt used to trick inventors like Swenson. He would steal their ideas and inventions. He even used one of these stolen inventions to start the fire. Nancy must now use the diary to solve the mystery of the missing men.
How the Story Changed in 1962
The 1962 version of The Clue in the Diary tells mostly the same story. However, some small details and side stories were removed. For example, Nancy's first thoughts about Ned were changed to be less suspicious. A country club dance scene that wasn't important to the main plot was also taken out.
A new part of the story was added about mail fraud. Some readers felt this new part didn't really help the main mystery. It seemed to be added just to fill space. This mail fraud idea also appears in the next book, Nancy's Mysterious Letter.
In this updated version, Nancy works hard to understand the diary. She wants to find the two missing men. Her best friends help her, along with her new friend, Ned Nickerson.
Artwork and Illustrations
The very first edition of the book had a picture of Nancy looking very neat. She was shown picking up the diary. There were also four other drawings inside the book by Russell H. Tandy. He later updated his main front picture for the 1943 print.
The cover art for this book has been the same since 1950. This is when Bill Gillies created new art for the revised edition. It shows a very active Nancy running after someone. The diary is falling from her hand, and a building is burning behind her.
When the book was revised in 1962, new drawings were added inside. These showed Nancy and her friends solving clues. There was also a new front picture of Nancy in jeans, looking at old ruins at night. All these drawings can be found in books published up to 2009.
Images for kids
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Original edition cover
