Synopsis
“When a neighbor asks Nancy Drew to accompany her to an old uninhabited mansion, a new mystery opens up, and danger lurks on the second floor. Nancy finds a witch tree symbol that leads her to Pennsylvania Dutch country in pursuit of a cunning and ruthless thief. The friendly welcome the young detective and her friends Bess and George receive from the Amish people soon changes to hostility when it is rumored that Nancy is a witch! Superstition helps her adversary in his attempt to get her off his trail, but Nancy does not give up. Persistently she uncovers one clue after another. Nancy’s intelligence and sleuthing ability finally lead to the fascinating solution of this puzzling case.”
-Synopsis from inside front cover
Review
The Witch Tree Symbol is book thirty-three in the Nancy Drew series by Carolyn Keene. It has been years since I read this series and I was delighted to have a chance to return to it for the Rory Gilmore Book Club, being hosted by Jules over at The Literary Lifestyle. This was my pick for January, the prompt of which was to read a short book (under 200 pages).
This was such a blast from the past. I completely forgot about Nancy’s friends, Bess and George, and her housekeeper, Hannah (what a great name!). I learned more about Pennsylvania Dutch country in the span of this book than I ever thought possible. I really have to hand it to the authors encompassing the pseudonym Carolyn Keene for their thorough research of these books. While I can’t speak to the entire series, I can say I was well and truly convinced while reading this book and can only imagine the affect it had on young readers at the time.
I’m so glad I decided to read this for the book club this month. I don’t think I would have picked it up otherwise and it was such a delightful read.
Hannah's Library 