I started reading my Trixie Beldens again, right from where I left off at #10 (which despite some people not liking, I quite liked. A lot more than this one). And I must say this one is quite a disappointment. I did some research and this book is supposed to be written by Nicolete Meredith Stack, one of the ghostwriters of Trixie Belden, or an unknown author who also wrote the next book in the series "The Mystery of the Blinking Eye". And I completely disagree because I've started the Blinking Eye and even in chapter 2 it's shaping up to be a great mystery with spot-on characters, whilst this one was a bit hopeless.
So the Bob-Whites are at another property of Uncle Andrew (they went to his sheep farm in Iowa in #9) in the Missouris (I think...I never pay much attention to locales which is bad of me >_<) It's raining and Trixie is complaining in a way that is completely new for her. I mean sure, impatience is her middle name, but Trixie has never been bratty before. She flips through a magazine and finds an article about ghost fish, which some scientists are willing to offer $500 for 3 specimens of, all in different stages of change. I would like to point out here that I don't believe in evolution. I know that God created the world, and what people commonly refer to as evidence for evolution is the change in animals behaviour and characteristics, like the ghost fish that spend years underground and their eyes disappear. The Bible never shows that animals do change according to environment - after Noah's ark, God empowered animals to eat meat, whereas before they were all herbivores, which is why Noah was able to bring them on the ark without getting devoured. Anyways, I digress.
Trixie has a completely one-track mind about the fish. She keeps harping at everyone to go explore the caves as soon as possible, because she wants the $500 for a vehicle for disabled children. Even while they go fishing and catch a whole lot of fish, she doesn't forget. At one point, she almost gets attacked by a wildcat but an unknown shot kills it. It's the beginning of the mystery. What I hate about this book is how Trixie is like a caricature, the author totally gets her wrong and magnifies her bad points until she becomes some sort of brat that you want to slap. She reduces Honey to her pre-#1 personality where she was afraid of literally everything. Honey has grown so much through the series, it's like the author didn't even read the ones before hand. Her most useful contribution was making curtains in the entire book! The whole out-of-characterisation thing almost killed the book for me.
Anyways, eventually Trixie gets her way and they set out to explore a cave on Uncle Andrew's property after he buys a whole lot of expensive equipment and hires a guide for them. Slim is a first-class retard and the Bob-Whites don't get along with him. In the first day, they get one ghostfish, but they still need two more.
There's a lot of talk about ghosts in the book, because the people living in the area genuinely believe in them. So when the Bob-Whites rescue a drowning man (before they find the fish) and they discover he's living in the "haunted" cabin, there's a big scare. Uncle Andrew's housekeeper Mrs. Moore's husband died years ago so she na dher daughter have been through some hard times that perhaps compounds their belief.
Eventually, the Bob-Whites get rid of Slim because he's really mean. He throws a rock at the bats in the cave and they all fly out and get attacked by eagles, so the Bob-Whites are through with him. So when someone steals the ghost-fish they left in a bucket in the cave, they think it's Slim. Also, after a party Mrs. Moore has for the Bob-Whites, complete with great food and dancing, a deliberate fire is set that almost burns down the property and the surrounding properties. And Trixie thinks it's Slim.
But they see a crazy looking stranger around with long white whiskers, and he could be a suspect too. And the man they rescued from drowning (theres gratitude for you) because he has kerosene soaked rags in the cabin. It's a mystery, although it never feels like a mystery, just a few patchy who-dunnits, which is where the failure of the book comes in.
Anyways, Trixie has a few near-escapes from death and danger during ghost-fish-hunting so Uncle Andrew makes a hired man, Bill Hawkins, go with them. Except while he's outside keeping the dangerous Slim away (only he doesn't seem dangerous, just a jerk - again, another bad characterisation), Trixie goes down a well-hole in the cave where there's plenty of fish. She hauls some up, but then there's a sudden downpour of rain outside which fills the well-hole and she's in danger of drowning. Saved at the last moment by Jim and his "strong arms", which almost made me retch. I don't like the Trixie-Jim innuendo. She's only 14. It's natural to admire him because he's responsible and a great person, and Brian and Mart are her brothers and Dan is practically non-existent, but no puppy-love please! Bill Hawkins is shocked that Trixie almost drowned under his care, and Uncle Andrew is really upset, but Trixie just blows it all off in a hey-don't-worry-I'm-safe way that is characteristic of her enough, but somehow doesn't quite work here. It turns out they've got another ghost fish they need, but there's still one more.
Uncle Andrew accompanies them for the last time. Their visit is being cut short because their mum needs them back home as she's going away to visit a sick relative. This time, they get the fish they need, and they also catch Slim, trying to hurt the crazy guy with the white whiskers. They capture Slim, in this unbelievable scene where Jim is practically boxing him (that doesn't quite work either...as if the rest of them would stand around watching the show =_=) and rescue the man who's been dealt a blow on the head. They take him home to Mrs. Moore to rest him, and it turns out he's her husband, back from the dead. No, kidding, he never died, someone tried to attack him and they both fell down the cliff and the man died. Matthew (the husband) got amnesia (where would we be if amnesia had never been invented?) and the blow on the head has done miracles for his memory. Everyone's reuinited and happily ever after.
Except the Bob-Whites, because the fish they've got aren't the real thing. But...wait for it, they've got something even more rare that promises more money. So everyone really is happily ever after.
Now, I could never despise or even not enjoy Trixie Beldens, because she's awesome and has a lot of childhood significance for me, but this is probably my least favourite.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Trixie Belden #11: The Mystery at Bob-White Cave
I started reading my Trixie Beldens again, right from where I left off at #10 (which despite some people not liking, I quite liked. A lot more than this one). And I must say this one is quite a disappointment. I did some research and this book is supposed to be written by Nicolete Meredith Stack, one of the ghostwriters of Trixie Belden, or an unknown author who also wrote the next book in the series "The Mystery of the Blinking Eye". And I completely disagree because I've started the Blinking Eye and even in chapter 2 it's shaping up to be a great mystery with spot-on characters, whilst this one was a bit hopeless.
So the Bob-Whites are at another property of Uncle Andrew (they went to his sheep farm in Iowa in #9) in the Missouris (I think...I never pay much attention to locales which is bad of me >_<) It's raining and Trixie is complaining in a way that is completely new for her. I mean sure, impatience is her middle name, but Trixie has never been bratty before. She flips through a magazine and finds an article about ghost fish, which some scientists are willing to offer $500 for 3 specimens of, all in different stages of change. I would like to point out here that I don't believe in evolution. I know that God created the world, and what people commonly refer to as evidence for evolution is the change in animals behaviour and characteristics, like the ghost fish that spend years underground and their eyes disappear. The Bible never shows that animals do change according to environment - after Noah's ark, God empowered animals to eat meat, whereas before they were all herbivores, which is why Noah was able to bring them on the ark without getting devoured. Anyways, I digress.
Trixie has a completely one-track mind about the fish. She keeps harping at everyone to go explore the caves as soon as possible, because she wants the $500 for a vehicle for disabled children. Even while they go fishing and catch a whole lot of fish, she doesn't forget. At one point, she almost gets attacked by a wildcat but an unknown shot kills it. It's the beginning of the mystery. What I hate about this book is how Trixie is like a caricature, the author totally gets her wrong and magnifies her bad points until she becomes some sort of brat that you want to slap. She reduces Honey to her pre-#1 personality where she was afraid of literally everything. Honey has grown so much through the series, it's like the author didn't even read the ones before hand. Her most useful contribution was making curtains in the entire book! The whole out-of-characterisation thing almost killed the book for me.
Anyways, eventually Trixie gets her way and they set out to explore a cave on Uncle Andrew's property after he buys a whole lot of expensive equipment and hires a guide for them. Slim is a first-class retard and the Bob-Whites don't get along with him. In the first day, they get one ghostfish, but they still need two more.
There's a lot of talk about ghosts in the book, because the people living in the area genuinely believe in them. So when the Bob-Whites rescue a drowning man (before they find the fish) and they discover he's living in the "haunted" cabin, there's a big scare. Uncle Andrew's housekeeper Mrs. Moore's husband died years ago so she na dher daughter have been through some hard times that perhaps compounds their belief.
Eventually, the Bob-Whites get rid of Slim because he's really mean. He throws a rock at the bats in the cave and they all fly out and get attacked by eagles, so the Bob-Whites are through with him. So when someone steals the ghost-fish they left in a bucket in the cave, they think it's Slim. Also, after a party Mrs. Moore has for the Bob-Whites, complete with great food and dancing, a deliberate fire is set that almost burns down the property and the surrounding properties. And Trixie thinks it's Slim.
But they see a crazy looking stranger around with long white whiskers, and he could be a suspect too. And the man they rescued from drowning (theres gratitude for you) because he has kerosene soaked rags in the cabin. It's a mystery, although it never feels like a mystery, just a few patchy who-dunnits, which is where the failure of the book comes in.
Anyways, Trixie has a few near-escapes from death and danger during ghost-fish-hunting so Uncle Andrew makes a hired man, Bill Hawkins, go with them. Except while he's outside keeping the dangerous Slim away (only he doesn't seem dangerous, just a jerk - again, another bad characterisation), Trixie goes down a well-hole in the cave where there's plenty of fish. She hauls some up, but then there's a sudden downpour of rain outside which fills the well-hole and she's in danger of drowning. Saved at the last moment by Jim and his "strong arms", which almost made me retch. I don't like the Trixie-Jim innuendo. She's only 14. It's natural to admire him because he's responsible and a great person, and Brian and Mart are her brothers and Dan is practically non-existent, but no puppy-love please! Bill Hawkins is shocked that Trixie almost drowned under his care, and Uncle Andrew is really upset, but Trixie just blows it all off in a hey-don't-worry-I'm-safe way that is characteristic of her enough, but somehow doesn't quite work here. It turns out they've got another ghost fish they need, but there's still one more.
Uncle Andrew accompanies them for the last time. Their visit is being cut short because their mum needs them back home as she's going away to visit a sick relative. This time, they get the fish they need, and they also catch Slim, trying to hurt the crazy guy with the white whiskers. They capture Slim, in this unbelievable scene where Jim is practically boxing him (that doesn't quite work either...as if the rest of them would stand around watching the show =_=) and rescue the man who's been dealt a blow on the head. They take him home to Mrs. Moore to rest him, and it turns out he's her husband, back from the dead. No, kidding, he never died, someone tried to attack him and they both fell down the cliff and the man died. Matthew (the husband) got amnesia (where would we be if amnesia had never been invented?) and the blow on the head has done miracles for his memory. Everyone's reuinited and happily ever after.
Except the Bob-Whites, because the fish they've got aren't the real thing. But...wait for it, they've got something even more rare that promises more money. So everyone really is happily ever after.
Now, I could never despise or even not enjoy Trixie Beldens, because she's awesome and has a lot of childhood significance for me, but this is probably my least favourite.
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Have you read Trixie Belden's The Sasquach Mystery? That was my least favorite. It didn't even sound like a Trxie book for the first 10 chapters. Lucky I followed it up with The Hudson River mystery that was a great book full of Trixisms, gleeps!
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