Guess what fred flare’s Keith and Lulu did on their summer vacation. Why, they
read Nancy Drew, of course! Join them in this month’s discussion of Episode 3,
The Bungalow Mystery.

Keith: Well I must say the third time is a CHARM!!!

Lulu: Yes! The Bungalow Mystery has been my favorite so far!! It’s high energy
immediately!! Nancy and Helen are enjoying a summer afternoon in their red
motorboat while vacationing at Twin Lakes. Suddenly, there’s a blinding storm!

K: Naturally, the two girls put their raincoats on right away…

L: Just before a floating log tears a hole into the side of their boat! While Helen is
bailing water Nancy tears off her raincoat and stuffs it into the hole to try and stop
the water. She is so MacGyver!

K: That’s using fashion to its fullest potential, which I must say this book does
brillantly! They do a much better job describing her looks in this one. They actually
tell you what color she is wearing which is key.

L: Absolutely. A perfect example of this is when Nancy decides to wear a forest-
green cotton dress and flat-heeled brown play shoes. Later in the chapter as she’s
sleuthing in the woods she comments to herself, "I’m glad I wore this green dress.
It’s good camouflage!" There are so many great outfits in this episode. Don’t you
think so?

K: So many! Fashion plays an important role in this mystery. Accessories, especially.
Let’s not forget Laura Pendleton’s jewels! Did you notice how the housekeeper
Hannah’s sprained ankle is magically healed after viewing them? But I’m jumping
ahead… Let’s finish our plot synopsis for our readers.

L: Okay, so Nancy and Helen are flung overboard as their boat sinks. They’re
trying to swim to shore when a mysterious girl in a rowboat comes and rescues
them. That’s Laura Pendleton. She’s an heiress and she is glamorous! She’s also
an orphan.

K: They love orphans in Nancy Drew.

L: Right. She lost her father in a boating accident several years back. That’s why
she just had to try and save the girls from a similar fate. Well, the next day she
shows up at Nancy’s hotel – looking very Pretty in Pink – and asks Nancy for help.
There’s something shady about her new guardians. It turns out they’re impostors
trying to steal her jewels!

K: Ooh, this episode was so exciting!! So much to talk about! What else?

L: Well, let’s not forget that her father Carson Drew is working on that embezzlement
case. I love that the embezzler’s name turns out to be Stumpy Dowd!

K: Yeah, he even drives a black foreign sports car. Trouble. Things are pretty
reliable that way in Nancy’s world. The criminals are mean, ugly, rude and they
have awful fashion!

L: Nancy, on the other hand, always looks great.

K: I loved that part when she decides to stay overnight at a hotel for some late-night
investigation. We learn that she always carries an overnight case in the trunk of her
blue convertible. The case contains "pajamas and robe, two changes of clothing,
toilet articles, and, at this time of year, a bathing suit."

L: One of the items of clothing turns out to be a little black dress. Nancy wears it to
dinner. Keith, what does Nancy have for dinner again? That’s your department.

K: Steak, a baked potato and tossed salad.

L: Delicious! After dinner Nancy is on the porch watching couples dance when she
sees a red-haired young man walk towards her with an invitation to dance. She
hurries back to her room laughing to herself, "Romance and detective work won’t
mix tonight!" Nancy is so dedicated to her sleuthing!

K: Totally. After dinner she changes into walking shoes, sweater and skirt and begins
her late-night investigation. This part was so scary! She climbs a rose trellis into
Laura’s bedroom window and is almost discovered by Stumpy.

L: But she hides in a closet again.

K: Thank goodness! But then she goes out into the woods to investigate that old
shack and just as she discovers a man bound and gagged in the cellar her flashlight
dies. I was terrified!

L: That is so very unlike Nancy Drew not to have extra batteries in the convertible.

K: Yes, but SO dramatic! Then Nancy is discovered by Stumpy and tied up herself!
She escapes and there’s a terrific car chase! Oh, there’s just so much! But we should
probably wrap it up. Chris always complains we go on too long about Nancy…

L: Can you imagine?

K: I know! Anyway, this does all lead up to my totally favorite part of the whole
book. Here she’s been up all night long and has been through so much. As all the
pieces of the mystery come together Nancy almost loses her life trying to save
Laura’s fortune and yet she still manages to pull the criminals from their burning car!
They thank her and tell her that even though she’s just a kid, she’s really taught
them a lesson.

L: I love how at that moment the sun rises, filling the sky with brilliant color and
Nancy’s overcome with emotion. This was the best ending ever!

K: This episode rocked! I can’t wait for the next one, The Mystery at Lilac Inn!

08/2002