Trixie Belden, amateur detective, is on a mission to save her club, the Bob-Whites of the Glen, from being forced to disband by the school board because of vandalism. The beginning was confusing, because I didn't know anything about their club. I began to follow the story, but I couldn't really relate. As we follow Trixie and the other Bob-Whites through the process of organizing an antique show to prove their club's worthiness, I noticed that the author, Kathryn Kenny, in what looked like an attempt to clarify information, made the dialogue excessively unrealistic. The characters spoke in a way that most obviously was a way of conscious explanation to an audience, the reader.  

Prior to receiving this book, I had read a flattering recommendation of the series in a magazine, I was excited when I noticed it had been distributed to me to review, but the excitement quickly dissolved as I read into the world of Sleepyside village. It seemed as though the author had no idea what it was like to be a teen in the early sixties or any time period at all, for that matter.  

The Trixie Belden book reminded me of both Nancy Drew and the Boxcar Children. Both other books are sort of cheesy and involve detectives being nearly dependent on convenient coincidences. Before any minor problem can arise in Trixie Belden's plans, someone in some way related to Trixie or her two conveniently rich best friends has taken care of it.  

I was also a bit disappointed in the book because there were no plot twists. As soon as a suspicious character entered the story, I, as the reader, knew instantly whether or not they had been involved in the crimes the story centered around. Unlike most good detective stories, these early hunches were nearly always right on target. I was hoping constantly to see a character with downplayed motive to emerge as the perpetrator. This is something any talented author can make happen for their readers who have grown to expect it. I might, however, still recommend this book to a bright third or fourth grader who doesn't yet depend on plot twists, but can stand a rather tedious book.