REVIEW: The Mystery at Bob-White Cave

The Mystery at Bob-White Cave (Trixie Belden)
Author: Kathryn Kenny

I grew up reading the Trixie Belden series. Trixie, her brothers and their friends solve mysteries, have adventures and help others around their home in Sleepyside, NY. I remember doing yard work and babysitting my nephew to earn money to buy new Trixie books. And I was really happy when some new books came out in the 80s. This was by far my favorite book series when I was 12 or so....I ended up with the entire series in matching covers (the beige 1980s versions). Before I left for college, I sold them all to a neighbor girl at a garage sale. I hope she enjoyed them as much as I did!

The Mystery at Bob-White Cave is the 11th book in the series. Trixie and the gang travel to the Ozarks to visit her Uncle Andrew. The kids' club, The Bob-Whites, want to do some cave exploration during the trip. A magazine has offered a $500 reward for anyone who can locate several different types of cave fish -- ones that have no eyes and are all white in color. Trixie is really determined to find the fish because the club wants to donate the $500 to help buy a station wagon to transport handicapped kids to school in Sleepyside. As usual the kids find themselves in the middle of mysterious goings on -- stolen fish, arson and a strange ghost man in the woods. Will the kids find the fish and get the money? And who is the strange man in the woods?

While this isn't one of the best books in the series, it is an enjoyable story. Trixie is a bit high-strung in this adventure. Let's chalk it up to teenage angst and give her a break. :) There were some exciting moments in this book involving wildcats, flash floods and a strange man lurking in the woods.

There are 39 books in the Trixie Belden series, written from 1948 to 1986. The stories are a bit dated, but still very enjoyable and readable. Since I absolutely adored this book series as a kid, I decided to reread all the books. I'm glad I did! I'm really enjoying revisiting my favorite group of fictional teens from NY state! I smile every time Trixie exclaims "Gleeps!'' ha ha