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Title: The Secret of Terror Castle by Robert Arthur ISBN: 0-679-81176-1 Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers Pub. Date: 21 May, 1991 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $3.99 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.96 (49 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: The Best Series for Young Readers!
Comment: At one time I used to own the first 23 titles of AH & The Three Investigators. As I've grown older, I've lost titles until I recently realized I only had two left. I've lamented to my wife, after searching used book stores high and low for the other titles and not finding them, that this was a great blow against childhood reading. I was so glad that they are still being printed and read! The format may be different and Alfred Hitchcock is lamentably missing, but they are still as readable and enjoyable as they were when I was a child!
I highly recommend this series for young readers who dream of adventure and suspense. They invigorated my youth and helped interest me in reading and writing. I hope to God that there are more coming out!
And for those of us who remember Alfred Hitchcock, maybe Random House could put out a collectors series of the books as they were originally released - covers, illustrations and all. I would certainly snap them up!
Rating: 5
Summary: This book, and series, belongs on any kid's bookshelf!
Comment: I'm happy to hear the Three Investigators are making a comeback. "The Secret of Terror Castle" was the first in the series, and in my opinion, the best. I've not read the reissue, only the original, but I hope that Harry Kane's wonderful illustrations have been retained. They date the book, as do some of the expressions used, many of the plot details in the story (walkie-talkies were the latest technological breakthrough, for crying out loud!), and the general tone (think G-rated, pre-adolescent Austin Powers, as this series was developed in the sixties) but I find that's part of the charm.
Nostalgia aside, however, this book is still a terrific read. Robert Arthur knows how to write for kids/young adults without talking down to them; there are some genuine scary bits, like the mysterious, fear-inducing pipe organ; and it's great to see how pompous but razor-sharp Jupiter and his friends solve the case, using his keen mind and an array of nifty homemade gadgets.
The charming/wacky details extraneous to the actual mystery, like the gold-trimmed Rolls Royce and the crazy junkyard Jupiter's family runs, add to the fun of a good mystery. I can't stress it enough: nineties kids may think they're too sophisticated for this stuff, but get it for them anyway and prove them wrong. Get the whole series, in fact!
Rating: 4
Summary: A great series with a few annoying lapses
Comment: What I liked about this series:
1. The way the cases always have such neat and clever endings (with the possible exception of the flaming footprints).
2. The very original and inventive plots.
3. The occasional twists: the person you thought was bad suddenly turns good.
4. The ghost-to-ghost hook up. I think that's really clever.
What I didn't like about this series:
1. I find it very annoying that the 3 main characters are boys. All right, I know that it was written in the sixties, but being a next generation female, this is the greatest problem. I can't think of any girl that is involved in any of their cases.
2. The club house. Kind of cliched, don't you think? Also, the secret passageways into the junkyard. How did those come about? How did they fix up the printer and the darkroom and all that? None of them seem to show any kind of electrical prowess.
3. The way the boys always have everything they need at their disposal, through the junkyard, thecompetition in which Jupiter won the Rolls, etc, etc.
4. Why is Bob always stuck in records and research? it's infuriating the way he never does anything exciting.
5. Jupiter's pompous and know-it-all manner. How can his friends stand it? How can he have friends?
6. Skinny Norris is another stereotype. The bully who gets in the hero's way.
As you can see, there's a lot more bad than good, but seriously, I do like these books. They're so original and imaginitive.
I do think that kids these days aren't really going to get into these books. They're too old fashioned. Hey, I only read them because I have the weirdest and most varied taste in books I've ever come across.
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Title: The Mystery of the Whispering Mummy by ROBERT ARTHUR ISBN: 0394864034 Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers Pub. Date: 12 September, 1985 List Price(USD): $3.99 |
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Title: The Three Investigators in the Secret of Skeleton Island by Robert Arthur ISBN: 0394864069 Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers Pub. Date: 01 June, 1985 List Price(USD): $4.99 |
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