I started reading Nancy Drew books sometime around the third grade. Her first mystery, The Secret of the Old Clock introduced me to the exciting world of River Heights and its colorful characters. There was Nancy Drew, the smart and brave ‘titian-haired’ girl-detective; Bess Marvin and George Fayne, cousins and total opposites as well as best friends of Nancy; Carson Drew, Nancy’s father and a local lawyer; and Ned Nickerson, Nancy’s college boyfriend. I was hooked on these stories and characters immediately, and I have yet to forget them.
I’d check out ten Nancy Drew books at a time, breeze through them well before the due date, then beg my mom to take me back to the library. I spent long, lazy summer afternoons reading book after book; and during the school year, there was nothing I looked forward to more than coming home and curling up with Nancy’s latest mystery. I read in the car, outside in the grass, in my bed, at school and pretty much everywhere I went. I read every single Nancy Drew book that my library carried (well over 100 books) in a few short years. I still pick up a Nancy Drew book now and again to transport myself back to my childhood, when nothing made me happier than solving an intriguing mystery alongside my favorite girl detective.
Once I had consumed nearly every Nancy Drew mystery that my local library could offer, I moved onto Nancy Drew computer games. Yes, there are Nancy Drew computer games, and they are fantastic. Now, not only could I read about Nancy’s adventures, I could be Nancy Drew. I could solve mysteries, just like her. I had my own little notebook to document evidence and take notes of suspicious activity and clues that I witnessed in the games. In the thirty-odd Nancy Drew computer games that I played over the years (and which I still play—yes, I am 22), I questioned suspects, discovered countless secret passageways, decoded ciphers, broke into safes and solved puzzles. I moonlighted as a chemist, a dancer, a maid, a chef, a storm chaser, an Egyptologist and an entomologist while undercover. I learned about Greek plays, German fairytales, Marie Antoinette, Morse code, Mayan civilization, petroglyphs and Nikola Tesla. I died from hypothermia, from falling into lava, from falling into deep dark holes, from suffocation, from drowning, from explosions, from electric shock, from fires. I died a lot. I took too much joy in killing Nancy off, I think, but I always got second chances.
I learned so much from Nancy Drew, in the books that I read about her and the computer games in which I became her. Looking back, the character of Nancy Drew has profoundly shaped my life.
Nancy was never afraid to try new experiences and go to new places. Her mysteries took her all over the world, from Belgium to Tokyo to Kenya to Colombia. In the computer games, I traveled from Iceland to Paris to Hawaii to New Zealand. I learned about new cultures and histories and legends that I never would have encountered otherwise. I developed a sense of wonder and curiosity about the world outside from inside my small Nebraskan home.
I learned how to develop critical thinking and reasoning skills from Nancy Drew, which I honestly believe may have made me smarter, or at least more adept at solving math and logic problems in my high school and college classes. Solving all those ciphers and codes and logic puzzles in the computer games challenged me to think in new ways and solve problems creatively. Going through the process of evaluating evidence and clues alongside Nancy in her investigations taught me how to analyze and understand the world around me, which I think gave me a strong basis for studying science in college.
Nancy Drew also taught me to be brave—to never, ever let fear stand in my way. From intimidation and threatening to kidnapping, Nancy Drew had her fair share of scary experiences, but her faith in herself and her friends never wavered. She was confident that she could handle any problem that came her way. She refused to let anyone tell her that she was “just a girl” or that she wasn’t qualified to investigate mysteries or crimes. In the face of fear, Nancy Drew remained level-headed and demonstrated courage. She also relied on her friends and family, and never hesitated to reach out to them for help when solving a case. She wasn’t afraid to go to adults in her life, like her father or the Chief of Police, if she was in danger or in over her head. While I personally don’t regularly face down crazy kidnappers and mafias, I still try to confront any new or scary situation as bravely as Nancy would.
There has been no other literary character who has influenced my life as much as Nancy Drew. I still want to be her when I grow up. I would encourage anyone, especially young girls, to read Nancy Drew books. She is an incredible role model and reading about and solving mysteries alongside her has been one of the greatest joys of my short life.
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