# Children's Mystery Series (Pre-1970), Who read them? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 16, 2005, 10:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618 "2005-04-16T10:13:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/21 "2005-04-16T17:11:19Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > I remember loving the Happy Hollisters, but who or what the Happy Hollisters were – nope, got nothin’. They were a family with five kids that just happened to stumble onto mysteries and solved them. There was one where they went to the Grand Canyon (or somewhere in the Southwest) and met Indians and solved a jewelry-theft mystery. The Indian kids they met were named Red Feather and Blue Feather. Three of the Hollister kids were named Pam, Ricky (the trouble-maker), and the youngest was Holly. I always thought ‘Holly Hollister’ was the coolest name in the world. I can’t remember the other two kid’s names. Why I remember that after all these years, I don’t know. I can’t remember what I had for lunch yesterday, but I can remember that. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e56c9b/32.png) [@Mirror\_Image\_egamI\_rorriM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mirror_Image_egamI_rorriM)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/22 "2005-04-16T17:12:24Z")
Happy Hollisters! Those were my favorite when I was little. My mom bought them for me at flea markets and garage sales, and I still have all of them. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/23 "2005-04-16T17:16:19Z")
> [@BiblioCat](#): > > Three of the Hollister kids were named Pam, Ricky (the trouble-maker), and the youngest was Holly. I always thought ‘Holly Hollister’ was the coolest name in the world. I can’t remember the other two kid’s names. Pete and Sue were the other two! I just remembered it. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 5:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/24 "2005-04-16T17:21:38Z")
> [@](#): > > Danny Dunn I remember reading some of these, the homework machine in particular. Couldn’t remember the name though. Some random memories: The kid invented a device to make three copies of the same homework papers by suspending a board with three pens secured through it over three pieces of paper and pressing down on the board to write out the assignments, cleverly tilting the papers at different angles to make the “handwriting” look different; and a discussion between the kid, the scientist and the mom about the correctness of the phrase “aren’t I” (the professor suggested “amn’t I”). Another book I remember, not sure if it’s part of a series, had a boy with a younger sister and at one point they invented an atomic fireball-type candy by dumping half the contents of their kitchen cabinets into a pot. The boy writes down as much as he can remember (leaving out the Tabasco sauce) and sends it in for a contest to a candy company and wins a trip. I learned from that book how to say “very good” in German. Ring any bells with anyone? Anyone remember the Space Cat series? There were at least three that I remember, one to the Moon, one to Mars and another one (Jupiter maybe?). How about Mrs Piggly-Wiggly, not an adventure series so much as a screed against ill-mannered children. She lived in an upside-down house and was stinking rich. And there was Miss Pickerel (I think that was her name), an old bitty who managed to hook up with bush pilots and astronauts and go with them to Antarctica and the Moon, respectively. And a few books about a kid who hoarded a big junk pile in his basement, stuff he’d salvage off the streets. One thing I remember in particular he had was a collapsible top hat. And he had a next-door neighbor girl who had bridgework, ad he was always trying to convince her to trade something for her partial, which hooked into her mouth with tiny gold hooks. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/25 "2005-04-16T17:28:21Z")
> [@Otto](#): > > Another book I remember, not sure if it’s part of a series, had a boy with a younger sister and at one point they invented an atomic fireball-type candy by dumping half the contents of their kitchen cabinets into a pot. The boy writes down as much as he can remember (leaving out the Tabasco sauce) and sends it in for a contest to a candy company and wins a trip. I learned from that book how to say “very good” in German. Ring any bells with anyone? I seem to remember that one - is it part of the series I mentioned in my first post? The one with the kid and his sister and his best friend who solve mysteries? The boy likes to think of himself as another Albert Einstein, but I think his name was Alvin. ---
**Author:** ![furthur](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@furthur](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furthur)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/26 "2005-04-16T17:37:34Z")
> [@Otto](#): > > How about Mrs Piggly-Wiggly, not an adventure series so much as a screed against ill-mannered children. She lived in an upside-down house and was stinking rich. And there was Miss Pickerel (I think that was her name), an old bitty who managed to hook up with bush pilots and astronauts and go with them to Antarctica and the Moon, respectively. Ooh, Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle! I loved Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle. Bought a compendium of her stuff for my kids. I also enjoyed Miss Pickerel; we still have them at our public library. Other series that I loved and still own: Happy Hollisters Trixie Belden The “Meg” series by Holly Beth Walker – my favorite was the one about the Washingtons’ dollhouse I also read the Three Investigators and wanted their clubhouse. A junkyard, how cool is that? Mrs. Furthur ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/27 "2005-04-16T17:39:24Z")
Was Space Cat the one where they went to Venus once, and the astronaut discovered some substance that was harder than diamond? He broke the tip of his testing tool. The number of the space ship was ZQX-1. And Danny Dunn, with his time machine and Possible Joe, and the bathyscaphe, and the laser that Danny wanted to use to dry up a swamp. And Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle, and a bunch of magic she loaned out to cure various bad habits. There was a pig with perfect manners, and Slow-Down powder, and the last story she was out of money and they had to find a treasure chest in her house. My gosh, I haven’t thought of this stuff for years, and now it all comes back. > [@BiblioCat](#): > > They were a family with five kids that just happened to stumble onto mysteries and solved them. There was one where they went to the Grand Canyon (or somewhere in the Southwest) and met Indians and solved a jewelry-theft mystery. The Indian kids they met were named Red Feather and Blue Feather. Three of the Hollister kids were named Pam, Ricky (the trouble-maker), and the youngest was Holly. I always thought ‘Holly Hollister’ was the coolest name in the world. I can’t remember the other two kid’s names. > Why I remember that after all these years, I don’t know. I can’t remember what I had for lunch yesterday, but I can remember that. :rolleyes: Boy, that’s for sure. Didn’t they have an Indian, and one of the mysteries was some notes or something they got from YIF. It turned out to be Your Indian Friend. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/28 "2005-04-16T17:51:42Z")
I loved Encyclopedia Brown, and the [Boxcar Children](http://www.kidsreads.com/series/series-boxcar.asp) (How could you forget them?) ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/29 "2005-04-16T18:20:50Z")
Oh god, the memories come flooding back. Can’t quite remember the title (The Secret Club? something like that). Three kids discover an old handbook for a secret club that they decide to revive. They make lion masks out of paper bags, and whistles and some other things and discover the secret club headquarters, and learn that their own fathers were the original secret club members. The book had instructions on how to make your own lion mask and whistle and stuff. I could never get the damn whistle to work. There was a sequel, something about how some mean kids were spying on the secret club to learn all their, um, secrets. **Shodan** has it right, Space Cat did go to Venus. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/30 "2005-04-16T18:34:08Z")
How can we be this far in without a mention of the Hardy Boys? Gah! I read those in elementary school at the same time I was reading Encyclopedia Brown and Henry Reed. Help me here: I had one I got from school (one of those book sale forms). It was set in Florida with a bunch of kids (and teens) who ended up having mystery and science adventures. The built a submarine once and went into their local lake. I only remember the one book. And one of the scenes that stood out was where a ‘spy’ who was looking for a secret that was hidden in an old car part was outed by the crew because he claimed to be a native Floridian but was sweating in 85 degree weather. ---
**Author:** ![Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kolak_of_twilo/32/73_2.png) [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolak_of_Twilo)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/31 "2005-04-16T18:35:32Z")
> [@Otto](#): > > I loved the Mad Scientists Club books (I only knew about two of them though, were there more?). There was one full length novel, _The Big Kerplop_, and twelve short stories collected in two different volumes. [The Official Mad Scientists Club website](http://www.madscientistsclub.com/books.html) says that there is another full-length novel that was never published that is going to be out soon. I have found reprints of these on Amazon. They are all being done by a small publishing house and really are very nice. Original illustrations too. The members of the club? Geez, I can’t name all without looking. I remember Harmon Muldoon was their nemesis. Freddy Muldoon was his cousin. Dinky was the skinny kid. Jeff Crocker I remember. The brainy guy was Henry something or other. And yes Charlie was the narrator. I think he had a really goofy last name. That’s all I can recall. ---
**Author:** ![Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kolak_of_twilo/32/73_2.png) [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolak_of_Twilo)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/32 "2005-04-16T18:40:31Z")
> [@Flutterby](#): > > I loved Encyclopedia Brown, and the [Boxcar Children](http://www.kidsreads.com/series/series-boxcar.asp) (How could you forget them?) You are right **Flutterby**. How could I forget them. ::hangs head in shame:: ---
**Author:** ![fessie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@fessie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fessie)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/33 "2005-04-16T18:41:45Z")
And wasn’t there a series with a protagonist by the name of Alvin Fernald? _The Great Brain_ series by John D. Fitzgerald usually gets mentioned in threads like this, so I’ll toss him in just for fun! ---
**Author:** ![fessie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@fessie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fessie)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/34 "2005-04-16T18:42:50Z")
Hey - Hey - I mentioned the Boxcar Children already. Pay attention, people! ---
**Author:** ![Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kolak_of_twilo/32/73_2.png) [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolak_of_Twilo)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/35 "2005-04-16T18:49:39Z")
> [@brianjedi](#): > > I know of Brains Benton, having found a couple of books years ago from that series. As I recall, he was the only baseball-playing geek ever. > > Were the books hokey and unrealistic? You bet. Fun to read? Yeah. And still pretty fun to read today. Those books are really pretty clever. ---
**Author:** ![Flutterby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Flutterby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flutterby)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/36 "2005-04-16T19:54:22Z")
Apologies, **fessie**. It didn’t register with me. Psst, **Jonathan** They were mentioned in the op where he asked about the _other_ ones we read. 😉 I must’ve read the whole collection at the library in the small town I lived in. All of the Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, Bobbsey Twins, Boxcar Children and Encyclopedia Brown I could get my hands on (and of course Babysitters Club but I don’t think they fit here). ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/37 "2005-04-16T20:52:17Z")
> [@BiblioCat](#): > > Three of the Hollister kids were named Pam, Ricky (the trouble-maker), and the youngest was Holly. I always thought ‘Holly Hollister’ was the coolest name in the world. I can’t remember the other two kid’s names. I loved the Happy Hollisters! I think, though that Sue was the baby, and Holly was the tomboy with the braids, who got into scrapes with Ricky. My favorite one was when the family went to “Skyscraper City,” which means New York City, and solved a mystery in Chinatown. I am also a huge fan of Trixie Belden, mentioned by **tripthicket**. Mysteries AND horses, how can you go wrong? One of the ghost writers of that series also wrote the Meg Duncan mystery books. I was always disappointed that there weren’t more of the Meg books. ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/38 "2005-04-16T21:13:16Z")
> [@Kolak of Twilo](#): > > The members of the club? Geez, I can’t name all without looking. I remember Harmon Muldoon was their nemesis. Freddy Muldoon was his cousin. Dinky was the skinny kid. Jeff Crocker I remember. The brainy guy was Henry something or other. And yes Charlie was the narrator. I think he had a really goofy last name. That’s all I can recall. Jeff Crocker, Henry Mulligan, Homer Snodgrass, Mortimer Dalyrimple, Dinky Poore, Freddy Muldoon, and Charlie (whose last name I don’t remember ever seeing, unless it showed up in _The Big Kerplop_). I’ve had _The Mad Scientists Club_ for years, and just got it and the other two in the new editions. For Bonus Points: Harmon Muldoon’s cronies were (I think) Stoney Martin and Buzz Maculiffe. I think there might have been more than the 2, but those are the only two names ever mentioned. Harmon’s club didn’t have a name. It’s been years since I read any of the Three Investigator books. I wonder if they’ll ever be republished. ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/39 "2005-04-16T21:19:13Z")
> [@delphica](#): > > I loved the Happy Hollisters! I think, though that Sue was the baby, and Holly was the tomboy with the braids, who got into scrapes with Ricky. My favorite one was when the family went to “Skyscraper City,” which means New York City, and solved a mystery in Chinatown. Yes, you’re right. I actually went and dug out “The Happy Hollister and the Indian Treasure” from the box under my bed, and I had Sue and Holly mixed up. I need bookshelves for all my old books. I have a bunch of old books that were my mom’s and grandmother’s and all my old Raggedy Ann books and Scholastic bookclub books from the early 70s that I’d love to have out. ---
**Author:** ![Dark\_Side\_of\_the\_Floyd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bb73d2/32.png) [@Dark\_Side\_of\_the\_Floyd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dark_Side_of_the_Floyd)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2005, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618/40 "2005-04-16T21:20:11Z")
I once read **The Case of the Missing Message**. I wanted to be Brains so badly. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/childrens-mystery-series-pre-1970-who-read-them/299618.md?page=3)