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Every Family Has a Creepy Uncle: Trixie Belden #4- "The Mysterious Visitor"

This is one of my favorite Trixie books, so I apologize in advance that this recap is a bit lengthy. The mystery is good, the characters are, well, in-character, and Trixie and Mart face some actual danger at the end. I cut it down as much as I could, but there is a lot of good stuff here that I didn't want to leave out.

The cover above is the actual copy I read, but I really love this early cover as well.

It's a scene directly from the book, and I love the "fifties wealthy" decor of the Lynch mansion. :)

It’s October now, and school is back in session. Trixie and Honey are getting ready to ride home on the bus and are lamenting an essay they have to write over the weekend. The theme is “how I spend my summer vacation.” How many of us had to write that same essay every fall? School hasn’t changed that much in fifty years, apparently.

All of the Bob-Whites are attending high school together. They wear red jackets with “B.W.G.” stitched on the back. This always annoyed me a bit. I don’t have a problem with secret clubs, but it seems kind of jerky to throw it in peoples’ faces and then say “but it’s a secret.”

The (secret) Bob-Whites are dedicated to (secretly) helping others, and Honey has found their next victim-er, beneficiary. It’s Diana Lynch. She is the same age as Trixie and Honey, and is described as the prettiest girl in school. She’s sweet and funny, but lately she’s been quiet and withdrawn. Sensitive Honey says she used to be the same way and can tell something is wrong. Trixie feels guilty because she’s known Di for years but didn’t notice. She says Diana’s father made a lot of money very quickly, and they moved from a simple apartment in town to a home that rivals the Manor House out on Glen Road. I know you’re probably rolling your eyes about now at another poor little rich girl, but I can see how that would be a pretty big lifestyle change.

Honey and Jim ask Di to spend the weekend with them. She telephones her mother, who gives permission. Mrs. Lynch also says she is sending a car with a suitcase of clothes. This seems reasonable, but Di gets very upset. She refuses to say why, though.

The suitcase arrives, and Miss Trask ends up unpacking it because Diana is busy outside. She confides to Trixie that the dresses Di’s mother sent are too grown-up for a thirteen year-old. Miss Trask is worried that Diana will be a bad influence on Honey. (?!) Trix explains that Diana didn’t want the dresses and that Mrs. Lynch just got the wrong idea. But Di overhears them talking and gets upset. (She gets upset a lot in this book). She says she will leave, but Miss Trask manages to smooth things over.

After dinner, Di finally confides in the girls after the boys go to the movies. She says she wants to throw a simple Halloween party for her entire class, but her mother wants it to be really formal and elaborate. Honey agrees to have her mother talk to Mrs. Lynch and explain that not everything has to be Camelot all the time. Di is pleased, but is still worried that “Uncle Monty” will ruin everything. Apparently he is Mrs. Lynch’s long-lost brother, who showed up from Arizona after the Lynches made lots of money. How convenient.

The Bob-Whites plan what sounds like a pretty fun party. Roasted hot dogs and marshmallows, costumes, games, etc. But, just as she had worried, Uncle Monty does indeed try to ruin everything. He convinces Mrs. Lynch to hire an orchestra, caterers, and expensive decorations as a “surprise” for Di. The Bob-Whites show up to the Lynches early to set up for the party, but find it decked out like Hollywood. Di is upset (again). She thinks Monty is trying to annoy her father enough that he will give him a lot of money to leave. He didn’t have any actual proof that he was Mrs. Lynch’s brother, though he did know a lot about her family and the night she was born. Apparently Mrs. Lynch was adopted, so it is possible that she does have a long-lost sibling.

Uncle Monty appears then, dressed as a cowboy. Because he’s a REAL cowboy from a REAL ranch in ARIZONA, see. He calls everybody “podners” and “little lady” and stuff. Ugh. Di tries to tell him that most of the kids don’t know how to dance and that they would rather play the games she had planned, but Monty won’t hear of it. He’s really annoying and sleazy. He asks Honey for a waltz. She uses her power of charm to politely decline, then leads Monty off to the other room to plan a musical quiz game for the guests. (The orchestra plays a few bars of a song, the kids guess, Monty gets to be the M.C.) Honey is awesome.

The rest of the Bob-Whites discuss Monty after they leave. Trixie points out that Mrs. Lynch has blue eyes, but Monty’s are brown. She remembers that there is a portrait of Mrs. Lynch’s birth parents in the gallery. If she could see if both her parents had blue eyes, they would know Monty is an imposter. Blue-eyed parents can’t have a brown-eyed child. And while that’s not entirely true (the genetics for eye color are more complicated than that), it’s still good thinking on her part.

Later, Honey tells Trixie that Monty overheard them talking and he knows of her plan to look at the portraits. Monty practically glues himself to Trixie’s arm all evening, keeping her busy and away from the gallery. He’s so creepy. Other than that, the party ends up being pretty successful. The other Bob-Whites even start to like Monty a bit. He tells great (though exaggerated) stories about being a “bronco-buster” out West. (Do real bronco-busters even use that word?) They tell Trixie to give it up and stop investigating Monty, because it’s just going to hurt Di’s feelings.

Tom Delanoy (the Wheeler’s chauffer) shows up to pick up the kids around midnight. You know, until I started writing these recaps, I had always mentally pronounced Tom’s name as “Delaney.” But know that I write it out, it’s obviously “Del-uh-noy.” Anyway, the kids tell him about the party and ask if he has met Uncle Monty yet. Tom insists that he saw Monty in town at the train station two weeks ago! Monty came up to the car and asked (in an English accent) to be taken to 291 Hawthorne Street. Tom told that it was a private car. Tom has a photographic memory, and he definitely saw Uncle Monty in town before he said he arrived. Tom tells Trixie that Hawthorne Street is basically Skid Row, and that 291 is a bad hotel run by a man named Olyfant. Tom tells Trix to stay away from there. You know she’s not going to listen.

Over the weekend, Tom also tells Trixie that Mr. Wheeler has promised the old gatehouse to him and Celia (the maid) to live in after they get married. Apparently Celia moves fast. Didn’t she and Tom just meet in August? The Bob-Whites have been fixing up the gatehouse to use as their clubhouse for a while now, and they’re understandably bummed. Trixie calls Diana to tell her what’s going on, but Di refuses to speak to her. She’s upset about something. Again.

Trixie, of course, makes the trip to Hawthorne Street and Olyfant’s Hotel. It’s just as bad as Tom described it, and Trixie has a narrow escape with Olyfant himself. She fast-talks her way out of it. She also sees a personalized match book from the Lynch house in Olyfant’s hand, so the trip isn’t a total loss.

Diana finally forgives Trixie a few days later. She says Monty told her that Trixie said some bad things about Diana and her mother at the party. Di is now definitely convinced that Monty is a fake. She says she and Honey asked to see the portraits in the gallery, but someone had slashed them from their frames! Monty said he lost his key to the gallery and that one of the servants or caterers could have taken it and the pictures. Lame.

Diana invites Trixie to stay through the weekend so they can keep an eye on Monty. The first night, Trixie checks the veranda fireplace to see if Monty tried to burn the portraits. Canvas is hard to burn. She does find a piece of the portrait in the ashes, and Di’s grandparents do have blue eyes. She also finds Monty. He confronts her about her visit to Hawthorne Street and the portraits. Again, she talks her way out. She says the portraits were probably painted from black and white photos, and Mrs. Lynch probably just requested blue eyes because hers are blue. So they don’t prove anything. But there is no doubt that Monty is on to her now, or that he is shady.

The Bob-Whites hold a meeting after school the next day. The girls tell them everything they know about Monty. The boys want to tell Mr. Lynch right away, (which is what they should have done all along!) but Trix says they don’t have proof. She says she will get it by the next day, before Mr. Lynch gives Monty a check and the Robin so he will leave. The boys tell her it’s too dangerous. Mart says he has a plan to get the proof without endangering them, but he won’t say what it is.

There is a hilarious bit around the dinner table that night at the Lynches. Mr. Lynch says has indeed given Monty fifty thousand dollars, plus the Robin.

“Mr. Lynch said to Di with undisguised joy, ‘Your uncle is driving back to the far, far West tomorrow morning, dear. Early tomorrow morning. So be sure to say goodbye to him this evening.’
Staring into her soup, Di said dutifully, ‘Goodbye, Uncle Monty.’”

Bwah! Di has a bit of a snarky side sometimes. I love it.

Trix knows it’s now or never. She searches both Monty’s room and the Robin. She finds a pistol permit with Monty’s picture, but the name Tileny Britten on it. Of course, Monty catches her right about then. He’s holding said pistol, and he’s not happy. He ties Trixie up and they take off in the trailer, but not before he spills his whole plan to her. Why do the bad guys always do that?

Trixie is in real trouble as Monty pulls away from the Lynches in the tow car, with her tied up in the Robin behind him. She starts to cry, but right about then she sees the door to the shower compartment opening. It’s Mart! I love Mart. He unties her and they manage to attract the attention of a local cop who is always stationed at the traffic light on the edge of town. The cop takes them all to the station, where Monty’s plan is revealed for all to hear. Mart had hidden a tape recorder in the Robin just before Trixie came in. He had planned to confront Monty and get him to reveal his plan so that it could be recorded, then come back and get the recorder later. Monty saved him the trouble by spilling his guts to Trixie as he tied her up.

As usual, it all works out in the end. Monty goes to jail, Mr. Lynch doesn’t lose his money or the trailer, Mart and Trixie don’t get shot, and Trixie doesn’t get in as much trouble as I think she should. I mean, between the trip to Hawthorne Street and confronting an armed man, that’s pretty risky behavior. Not only is she not really in trouble, Mr. Lynch decides to give her and Mart the Robin as a reward. They agree to give it to Tom and Celia to live in after they get married. The Bob-Whites get to keep the gatehouse for the clubhouse. Diana’s mother sees how unhappy she is and she gets rid of a bunch of the servants they don’t really need. Di will also get paid to help take care of her twin brothers and sisters. And the REAL Uncle Monty has been tracked down! He really does have a ranch in Arizona, and he invites the Bob-Whites to spend Christmas there with him. Two diamonds, a horse, a trailer, a trip to Arizona...what awesome free stuff will Trixie find or be given next? Stay tuned to find out!

"She didn't look like a substitue teacher." Thirteen Ways To Sink a Sub by Jamie Gilson

I promised that this blog wouldn't be all about Trixie Belden, and I'm a blogger of my word. A couple of months ago, I found this book at a library sale for $1.00.

Squee! Hardback and everything! I loved this book when I was a kid, and it totally holds up now. I read it earlier last week when I was having a bad day, and I was laughing and feeling better by the end.

For the first and maybe only time this year, Mr. Starr's fourth-grade class at Stockton Elementary has a substitute teacher. The kids in the class decide to try to "sink" her (i.e.- make her cry). It's boys vs. girls, with the losers having to get kickballs out of the "Spit Pit" (a dirty stairwell full of trash) for the rest of the year.

The main character and narrator is a kid named Hobie. The substitute is a young teacher named "Svetlana Ivanovitch." She dresses the part, too, in a traditional Russian outfit. Miss Ivanovitch initially thinks that fourth graders are no different than kindergarteners and treats them accordingly. She quickly re-thinks this when the kids start switching names, sneaking out, and playing tricks on her.

I love Gilson's kid characters- they are funny and realistic without being cutesy or condescending. Or too bratty, as would be easy in a situation like the one in the book. Some of the kids do eventually feel bad about what's happening, but no one wants to be the one to stop it. Miss Ivanovitch is also smarter than she first appears to be. It was interesting to read this book as an adult, and one who worked briefly as a substitute teacher. I felt a new sympathy for the poor sub that I didn't feel as a kid.

Gilson wrote several books featuring Hobie and the kids of 4B. Double Dog Dare, 4B Goes Wild, and Hobie Hanson You're Weird are the titles that I know involve these kids. Get them if you can find them. I haven't read her other books, but if they're anything like Thirteen Ways To Sink a Sub, they will be good reads.

Back to Trixie ASAP. Mysterious Visitor is up next! Woohoo!

Dicks and Dips: Trixie Belden #3 "The Gatehouse Mystery"

The word “dick” is used a lot in this book. It was a simpler time, folks. Just so we’re all clear, “dick” is slang for a private detective. A “dip” is a pickpocket.

The story opens with Trixie writing a letter to her brothers at camp, even though they’re due home in less than a week. We get a brief recap of the events of the last two books. Summer is winding down, and school will be starting soon. The next day, Trixie, Honey, and Bobby go to explore an old cottage down by Glen Road, on the Manor House property. It apparently used to be the gatehouse for the estate. Bobby promptly falls and cuts his knee. The girls send him to Regan to get patched up, then look to see what he cut himself on. It’s a rock. A very pretty, shiny, very sharp rock. A diamond! I want to be Trixie. She’s found two diamonds in the last few months.

The girls theorize as to how the diamond got there, pushed down into the dirt floor. They come up with some wild theories about jewel thieves and hobos and gang wars. The girls go to get shovels and tools to look for more diamonds, but Jim and his father return around that time. Honey wants to give the diamond to them, but Trixie makes her promise not to tell so that they can solve the mystery.

The girls don’t find any more treasure, but they do notice scuff marks and heel prints on the cottage floor. Someone has been there recently. Trixie theorizes that a tramp may have stolen the diamond, then dropped in the cottage when they came in to get out of the rain. Whoever it was will probably be back when they realize they’ve dropped the diamond. Honey says she hid it in a secret compartment of her jewelry box. The girls feel as though someone is watching them and listening to them as they talk. They even hear a twig snap outside. Whoever it was is gone. Honey worries that if there really is a diamond thief around, that person might be dangerous. If they heard her talking, they now know the diamond is in her room. I think she has a point. Trix brushes it off, as usual.

Over lunch, the girls tell Jim about their plans to be detectives someday. Jim laughs and calls them “Moll Dicks.” I had to look that one up. The only definition I could find for “moll” was a gangster’s girlfriend. And we know “dick” means detective. Also, I think this is a re-print of the very first Trixie edition. In later ones, Jim calls them “Schoolgirl Shamuses.”

A new car driven by a young man pulls up about this time. Jim says the guy showed up and helped Regan fix one of their cars. He will be the Wheeler’s new chauffer, pending Mr. Wheeler’s approval tomorrow. There is also a new gardener, Nailor, as the old gardener quit abruptly right around the time the girls found the diamond. Trixie thinks either one of them could have dropped the diamond. She agrees to spend the night with Honey in case one or both of them try to sneak into her room to take it.

There is a funny scene of Trix drinking coffee for the first time after dinner to try and keep awake. She’s reduced to tears by how awful it is. Amateur. I love coffee. Anyway, of course she falls asleep, but someone does try to sneak into Honey’s room. Trixie wakes up and yells, which scares him off and wakes up the rest of the house. Whoever it was gets away. Trixie tells Jim she had a nightmare, but he doesn’t buy it. She finally tells him about the diamond. Jim says both Dick and Nailor have good recommendations and couldn’t be suspects.

About this time, Trixie’s brothers return from camp early. Introductions are made. Brian is the oldest. He’s sixteen, (I think), and has dark hair and complexion like Mr. Belden. Mart is eleven months older than Trixie, and they look enough alike to be twins. The boys hear all about the diamond and the girls’ suspicions.

Trixie thinks Dick is the most likely suspect. The others aren’t sure. Dick is almost sadistically rude to Trixie, even though he is nice to everyone else, even Bobby. He also shows up with a black eye the day after he gets the job, and says he has to go see a doctor for it. He’s gone the whole day. Regan is not pleased. Honey and Jim invite the Beldens to spend the whole weekend, so they can hopefully catch the thief. Lots of swimming, eating, and horseback riding follows. The kids keep tossing around theories based on the clues they have so far. The diamond, the footprints, tire tracks down by the cottage, Dick’s strange behavior. Trixie is convinced he’s guilty, but Jim points out that he had a letter of recommendation from one of Mr. Wheeler’s old friends. Later, Trixie shows Honey how easy it is to forge a signature with some carbon paper. Honey admits that she forgot to get the mail a few days ago, and Dick could have lifted a letter and forged the signature on his recommendation letter.

Also during all of this, the gang comes up with the idea to form a secret club. “The Bob-Whites of the Glen” is born. They will use the bob-white whistle Jim taught Trixie and Honey back in book #1 as their signal. And they want to fix up the gatehouse for their clubhouse. They make a rule that all money they use for the repairs must be earned. They come up with various job ideas. Mowing, weeding, gardening, mending. Honey is excited by the opportunity to earn her own money, which is really cool of her. I’m jealous of her mad sewing skills. I’m trying to learn right now, and it’s a slow process.

Dick finally comes back from the doctor the next day. Regan promptly puts him to work. Dick does agree to give Jim a driving lesson that afternoon. He seems dead-set on keeping it. After the lesson, Dick comes back alone. He tells them that Jim went into town to get a haircut and something to eat and will meet them at the movies later that evening.

As the evening goes on, Trixie gets more and more worried. Jim doesn’t show up at the movies. She takes a cab back to Manor House in time to see someone sneaking into Honey’s room. Suprise suprise, it’s Dick, looking for the diamond. Trixie confronts him but quickly realizes she is alone and no one can hear her if she screams. She keeps Dick talking, hoping to figure a way out. Dick says he knocked Jim out and tied him up in the woods. He snuck back to the house and cut the phone lines. He’s about to knock her out too, when Jim and Regan show up with a hunting rifle. Jim wiggled free from the ropes and called the police from a neighbor’s house. They show up just in time to take Dick (aka “Dapper Dick,” the big New York City pickpocket) to jail. There is a reward for the recovery of the diamond. Regan tells Trixie she must use it to buy Susie (a small black mare) “for Miss Trask.” (Even though Trix will pretty much be riding her and taking care of her all the time). Trixie agrees, and says she will use the money she had been saving for a colt to pay for a new roof for the clubhouse. Oh, and Tom Delanoy becomes the Wheelers new chauffer. He’s a cool guy, and will show up throughout the series. They should have hired him in the first place, and skipped all this nonsense with Dick the Dip.

I know I said I wasn’t going to do these recaps in order, but I feel it important to introduce all the main characters before moving on. These early books really do set up the foundation of the rest of the series. So I’ll be doing #4 The Mysterious Visitor next to introduce Diana, then probably skip ahead to #8 to get Dan’s origins. Then we’ll mix it up from there.

Picture Time

I'm almost finished with The Gatehouse Mystery recap, but I wanted to make a seperate post to share something with you all. Illustrations!
Of course, after I said I would stick with the oval editions, I had to get the newest edition of #3 because I didn't have it in my collection. Although the covers are new, the publishers have included the old illustrations from the original editions. They're totally vintage and retro and all that.







From left to right: Jim, Honey, Brian, Trixie, Mart. Mart, I love you, but you totally look like Beavis.








Honey and Trixie looking for the jewel box. Love Trixie's ginormous swimming skirt.

Trixie and Honey at the movies, talking to Tom Delanoy, who will eventually become the Wheeler's chauffer.

These kind of clash with the images I have of the characters in my head, but they were interesting to see nonetheless. I should be finished with the recap in the next few days.

A Word on the Editions

Trixie Belden books have been published and re-published many times throughout the years. Trixie's look usually changes a bit with each new printing.


I'm not sure of the exact dates on all of these, but I think this is the first. Notice Trixie's midriff-baring top. Scandalous!

These are called the "Deluxe" editions, but I see nothing deluxe about them. They're plain and a bit ugly. I have #6 in this edition, and on it, Trixie looks like a scruffy boy in a dress.



















"Cameo" editions. I think Trixie and Honey look really cute in this one.




















Fans call these the "short and ugly" editions. You can probably tell why. I really don't get this particular cover. What is Trixie looking at? Herself? In a bed, in the mansion? And there is a hand behind her, and everything is purple. Somehow, I don't remember that chapter in the book.


















The newest editions, released in 2003. Trixie looks very modern and cute, but it just doesn't seem quite right to me. She's almost too pretty.















Though fans like to debate over which covers are the best, in this blog, you will be seeing the oval editions unless I can't find a good picture of them. These are the ones my older cousins had, and the ones I read when I was young. In fact, they're the only editions I've ever read. This is what Trixie looks like to me (except with normal flesh tones). She and all the Bob-Whites are firmly rooted in the 60's in my mind. I may post a few of the other covers just for comparison's sake, or to make fun of them. :)

With all that said, I will admit that some of the older covers are really intricate and have a lot of cool pictures and details. Some of the older editions have illustrations that the oval paperbacks don't have. You can check them out here. http://trixie-belden.com/books/editions.htm

Still working on The Red Trailer Mystery recap, but it shouldn't be too much longer. I got a bit distracted because my husband gave me
Watchmen to read. I never read graphic novels, but I have to admit that one is pretty good.

On The Road Again: Trixie Belden #2 "The Red Trailer Mystery"

Do you remember the 50's? When people freely roamed the country in RV's and campers? Some even lived in their trailers permanently. Rest stops and RV parks didn't conjure up images of scary transients and shady drug deals like they do today. Oh, and trailers didn't come equipped with televisions and air conditioners and posturpedic mattresses. Those were the days.

The Red Trailer Mystery, Trixie, Honey, and Miss Trask set off to track and find Jim to tell him about his inheritance. They take the Wheelers camper,
the Silver Swan. You will notice that the trailer on the cover is not the Silver Swan, but The Robin. The Robin will become a permanent fixture in later books.

This book is all about travelling, tracking, seeking, and finding. The characters (Trixie and Honey, Jim, the Darnells, Jeff the Waiter, and the bushy-haired man) kind of intertwine throughout. They keep ending up in the same places at the same time. It comes off as kind of coincidental, but I guess the area they are travelling in isn't really that big. It makes for an intricate, if mildly confusing, plot.

Trixie, Honey, and Miss Trask get off to a late start, so they first stop at a campsite in Poughkeepsie for the night. They're ultimately heading for a place called Autoville, which is like a mini-village for RV's. It has a restaurant, pool, stables, the works. From there, they can ride out to the four camps that Jim might possibly be working at. In Poughkeepsie, the Swan ends up parked next to large expensive-looking red trailer. It's The Robin! This doesn't mean much to the girls at the time, but I'm already looking forward to its re-appearance in The Mysterious Visitor.

Ahem. Anyway, the girls notice that the occupants of The Robin have the shades pulled already, even though it's early in the evening. They let the dogs out, and a little girl comes out of the red trailer and picks up Bud. Her name is Sally, and she wants to keep Bud. Her mother and siblings come out of the trailer. Mom wants Sally to go back inside and leave the puppy with Honey. She seems afraid to have anyone see them. The girls note the frayed and worn condition of the family's clothes, and how sick and half-starved they look. There is an eleven year-old girl, Joanne, with them. About this time, the family's father appears and makes them all go back in the trailer. He has bushy black hair and a bushy black beard. Take note, reader- you will hear a lot about bushy hair in this book.

During the night, Trixie hears voices coming from the red trailer. The woman (Sarah) and man (Darney) are arguing. He says "it has to be this way" and that his family is turning against him. Sarah says he "has to take it back." After the argument ceases, Trixie hears the man sobbing.

In the morning, the girls and Miss Trask go to eat breakfast. They leave the dogs in the trailer, but Buddy is gone when they get back. They can't find him and eventually have to leave for Autoville. The way the dogs are treated in this book annoys me. They let them out to run around in a strange place, no chains or leashes, and then go off and leave them when they can't find them. Maybe it's just me; I mean, my dog would be gone for good if I let him off the leash in the woods.

When they stop for lunch, the girls are surprised to see The Robin is also parked there. Joanne shows up and brings Buddy back to Honey. Apparently, Sally climbed into the Swan and took him. Kind-hearted Honey offers to let Sally keep the dog, but Joanne says they couldn't afford to feed him. She runs off into the woods, crying. Before they leave, Joanne's father comes up and asks the girls if they have seen her. They tell Mr. Darnell about Joanne running into the woods. The father indicates that she ran away on purpose. The family goes ahead and leaves! Dogs, kids- everyone gets left in this book!

TheSwan reaches Autoville before dark. There are two state troopers there, asking if they've seen a big red trailer. There have apparently been a rash of trailer thefts in the area. Plot point! Miss Trask says they did see a red trailer, but the girls point out that the driver had his family with him, so it probably wasn't stolen.

They have dinner in the Autoville restaurant. A waiter gets really, REALLY mad at Trixie for bumping into him and making him drop some dishes. He gets in trouble with his manager, and the waiter (Jeff) tells Trixie she will pay for it. Later, the girls hear and see Jeff talking to a bushy-haired man about "switching jobs." They cannot tell if the man is Joanne's father or not, but he looks similar.

The girls make several horseback trips to the local camps, but Jim isn't at any of them. He has stopped by asking for work, though, and he's apparently on a bicycle now. On the way back to Autoville, the girls find a van hidden in the woods. The girls think the van was probably used to haul away loot from the trailer robberies.
That evening, the girls hear Jeff and the bushy-haired man talking again. It involves hiding something in an old barn and orchard. Trixie also realized by watching Jeff in the restaurant that he eavesdrops on the customers' conversations. That's how he figures out where they're going and what they have with them.

On another ride, the girls notice an old barn and orchard, just like Jeff had talked about the night before. During the ride, the horses get spooked and run off, which gets the girls lost. They end up at a farmhouse owned by the Smith's. Kind-hearted Mrs. Smith brings them inside for lemonade and cookies. She's a chatterbox who calls everyone "lamb", and she tells the girls all about how they need help on the farm bringing in their bean crop. Luckily, a bushy-haired man and his family had happened by the day before and the Smiths hired him. The girls are sure it's the Darnells. Oh, and Mrs. Smith cut his hair so he wouldn't get too hot, so we now know Mr. Darnell isn't the Bushy Haired Man (or BHM) the girls heard talking with Jeff. They don't tell Mrs. Smith about the stolen trailer.

Trixie feels guilty, so she goes back the next morning to warn the Smiths about the possibly stolen trailer. She finds Mrs. Smith in tears. The Darnells apparently took off abruptly, after the girls had stopped by the day before. Mrs. Smith can't find her locket, either, and she thinks the Darnells "borrowed" it, like the trailer.

Later, Trixie and Honey come back to investigate the barn. They find the locket in a crow's nest (it's a long story), so they return it. Mrs. Smith is very happy, and she also says two boys showed up looking for work after Trixie left that morning. They're out picking beans right now. The girls go to the barn and find what is apparently the loot from the stolen trailers (TV's, radios, appliances, etc). They hide in the loft as two men come in. It's BHM and Jeff. In true dumb-crook fashion, the two lay out their entire scheme as the girls listen upstairs. They also say that someone let the air out of their tires in the woods, and that they caught a husky red-haired boy up in the barn loft the day before. Jim! Jim is repeatedly referred to as "husky" in this book. I always though of him as a farm boy type, lean and muscular. Maybe "husky" meant something different back then.

The crooks argue. BHM is about to double-cross Jeff when Honey sneezes. BHM climbs up and threatens to kidnap the girls and hole them for ransom. Trixie stays calm and tries to talk him down. BHM speculates that maybe the girls and Jim are part of a teenage gang of thieves. Honey tries to go gansta and shouts "This is our territory, see? Scram out of it, big boy, or you'll get hurt!" LOL!!!

Thankfully, the police arrive around this time. Someone had placed an anonymous call telling them of the thieves location. It wasn't Jim; it was a man's voice on the phone. The girls are remarkably calm after all this goes down.

Let's see- I need to wrap this up. The girls finally figure out that the "two boys" who are working at the Smith's are actually Jim and Joanne. They are reunited with Jim and tell him about the half-million dollars. The Darnells are reunited with Joanne. Mr. Darnell was the one who called the cops, and they're grateful for his help and let him off easy. Apparenly the Darnells are from Sleepyside, but they had fallen on hard times and "borrowed" the Robin. It belongs to Mr. Lynch, who said they are welcome to use it as long as they need to. Mrs. Smith says they must stay there and live with her, after they return the trailer. Honey gives Bud to Sally to keep, which is sweet of her. Back at Autoville, the Wheelers and Mr. Rainsford have arrived. Apparently, Mr. Wheeler knew Jim's father in school. They want Jim to come and live with them and will eventually adopt him. So it's a very sticky, sweet, happy, wholesome ending. Trixie even says "sometimes dreams DO come true." Gag.

Coming soon- #3 The Gatehouse Mystery Thanks for stopping by!