My Favorite Books: The Hardy Boys-Shore Road Mystery

When I was a kid of about eight or nine, there were certain things that my world revolved around--the Dodgers & Dolphins, G.I. Joes, Matchbox & Hotwheels, baseball & football cards, bike riding, Bill Cosby comedy records, and books.

I read all kinds of books, but one series that really grabbed my attention was The Hardy Boys by Franklin W. Dixon. They led a really cool life. These were high schoolers Frank and Joe Hardy, sons of the great internationally famous detective Fenton Hardy, who were always stumbling upon mystery and intrigue in their own back yard.

The Shore Road Mystery is the sixth book in the series, but the first one I ever read. I really loved it. There were Frank and Joe riding their motorcycles (motorcycles--way cooler than my bike!) down Shore Road, overlooking the ocean. They get a report over their radio that a car has been stolen (you can see the radio on the cover). They have a short wave radio on their motorcycle? Wow, these guys were cool. I definitely wanted to hang with them!

That was all it took. I was hooked! They were cool. Everyone is stumped by the car thieves. Frank and Joe come up with a simple plan to catch the thieves. They buy this cool looking roadster as bait. Wow, these guys can afford to buy a car?! How awesome is that?

The Hardys have a friend named Chet. As a kid, I could relate to Chet. He didn't have a famous father, he couldn't afford to buy a roadster (what exactly was a roadster, anyway?), he was a little pudgy and awkward, and slightly timid. But he always tried his best to help the Hardys out, although he usually got left behind or messed up in some way. In spite of that, he always managed to help solve the crime--usually through a hobby he was into at the time. It was uncanny how the hobby related to that book's particular mystery. In The Shore Road Mystery, his interest in plant biology led the Hardys to an important discovery. I think these coincidences were lost on me as a kid, but it sure was entertaining.

What I didn't know at the time was that the original version of the book was written in 1928 (hence the reference to a roadster) by Leslie McFarlane. Franklin W. Dixon was his pen name. The series was repackaged and revised over 30 years later. Nevertheless, kids in my neighborhood--and many others--loved it. The Nancy Drew series was also out there, but I never paid it much attention because it featured a girl, and I knew that no girl could be as cool as the Hardy Boys. I learned otherwise a few years later!

Did You Know? Mary Poppins

Yesterday, we had the pleasure of speaking with Mary Poppins. Today in Did You Know? we'll be checking out some little known facts about the Mary Poppins series of books by P.L. Travers. Let's seee what we've got here...

Did you know...

• The first book, Mary Poppins, was published in 1934 and thee final book, Mary Poppins and the House Next Door was published in 1988? Overall, there were eight Mary Poppins books published in that 54 year period, all written by P.L. Travers.
• Jane and Michael Banks had two other siblings? In the books, younger twins John and Barbara share in the adventures. They were left out of the Disney film.
• The Disney film version depicted selected events from the first four Mary Poppins books?
• Bert the chimney sweep was also a compilation of several characters in those first four books?
• P.L. Travers was approached by Walt Disney about making a film version of Mary Poppins as early as 1938? She did not think that a film would do the book justice. She finally relented and agreed to a film version in 1961.
• P.L. Travers' real name was Helen Lyndon Goff? She was an actress in her younger days and adopted the Travers name as her stage name.
• P.L. stands for Pamela Lyndon?
• She admired Peter Pan creator J.M. Barrrie?
• P.L. Travers did not care for the Disney adaptation, particularly the animation sequences?
• Although she never married, she adopted a baby boy from Ireland?

Although Ms. Travers disliked the Disney film and animation, I happen to really like it. So, with all due respect to her, here is a classic clip from the film:

Monday Interview Series: Mary Poppins

With the east coast currently feeling the wrath of hurricane Sandy, I was at loose ends to secure an interview this week. I mean, between trips to the store for bottled water, charging up cell phones, laptops and sundry other devices, and securing everything in the yard, who had time? I hope everyone is riding out the storm safely. If the storm has hit your area, please stay safe indoors!

Luckily, the wind blew at least a little good fortune my way. Mary Poppins dropped in to save my bacon and have a chat. It was a practically perfect bit of serendipity!

 Greg:  Welcome Mary! Thank you so much for coming by. Your timing was perfect.

Mary:  Naturally. I must say, what a perfectly blustery day it is. I haven't seen such wind since Bert the chimney sweep overdid it on the chutney at my Uncle Albert's. Frightful!

Greg:  Yes, well this weather has been frightful for many people around here. But let's forget about that for a while. Tell us all a little bit about your charges at number 17, Cherry Tree Lane.

Mary:  The Banks? Marvelous family, simply marvelous! Mind you, they were in a frightful state when I first encountered them.

Greg:  Really? What was the matter?

Mary:  Well, where to start? The head of the family, Mr. George Banks, was positively too involved with work. He never had any time for his family. His wife, Winifred, had absolutely no head for managing a household. I don't know how they made it as far as they did before I came along.

Greg:  What about the children?

Mary:  I'm afraid the children, Jane and Michael, were in the worst state of all. They were always acting up. They went through so many nannies trying to get their parents' attention that they had developed quite a nasty reputation among London's domestic class.

Naturally, it was only a matter of time before they came to my attention, and I had to take matters into my own hands.

Greg:  It sounds just like calling in the Marines, or maybe the paratroopers.

Mary:  Quite so. I descended on them with the East Wind. Naturally, the parents put up a little bit of a fuss, but I managed to maneuver around them quite nicely. Grownups can be a frightful bore without even putting their minds to it, and I must say that those two put half a mind to it at least. I'm not sure what that means exactly, but it sounds good.

However, Jane and Michael were another story. Children are frightfully clever, and no one gives them any credit in that regard, or just about any other for that matter. They were veterans of thee Nanny Wars, and were determined not to surrender. I knew perfectly well what was going on in their little heads, so I laid the cards on thee table, spit spot. 

Greg:  What did you do?

I started pulling all sorts of things out of my carpet bag. That got their attention. It told them that here was someone out of the ordinary who was not to be trifled with. Thee next step was to alter their way of thinking. They looked at work as, well, work. I taught them to make a game out of it. That way, they got their work done and had a bit of fun at the same time.

Of course Bert was a big help. He can be very charming when he wants to be.

Greg:  Bert? Oh yes, good-natured, jack of all trades chap. What's the story with you two? In the film, it looked like sparks were flying.

A Writer's Week #42: Good Stuff

It was another good week. Things continue to move forward on all fronts, and I'm looking forward to seeing these projects come to fruition. The big news this week is audio book related. So far, I've received the first 11 chapters of the book. It's really sounding great, and Jimm Singer's doing a fantastic job!

Cover for the audio book version of Sharky and the Jewel

I also received the newly formatted cover for the audio book from graphic designer Ana Vogel. Here it iis on the left. Unlike a book, the audio book cover has to be square, and you can't do that by just scrunching it down or slapping a border on either side of it.

Ana did a fantastic job of retaining all the elements of the original book cover. I think I can also use this for some other things. It gives me everything in a more compact package.

I continue to make progress on the editing of The Deliverers 2: Order of the Crystal Lion. It's been smooth going so far, but I'm getting to a point in the book where changes will have to be made to reflect new ideas that came along as the book grew. The next week looks to be a little more challenging.

Meanwhile, over the past weekend, I managed to find time to film and edit an interview with myself. I've been to a bunch of author websites, and was really taken with some of the author interviews that I saw on some of them. I thought, hey, I could do that. So I gave it a shot. While not strictly professional grade, I have to say it turned out rather nicely, despite the repeated hemming and hawing of the interviewee! Here it is:

Oh yes, one more thing. I'm going to be selling my book at the annual Run For the Turkeys in New Fairfield, CT on Sunday November 18th. Contrary to what you might think, I am not the turkey who will be running. Actually, it's an annual road race sponsored by the town I live in. They were nice enough to let me set up shop, so if you're in the area, stop on by to say hi.

So this week held a lot of good stuff. I'll let you know how things are going and if Hurricane Sandy puts a crimp in things next week!

My Favorite Books: The American Heritage History of the Civil War

It's been a while since I wrote about some of my favorite books when I was growing up, so I thought it was time for me to share another one with you. When it comes to reading, my favorite subjects have always been fantasy (middle grade, YA and adult), science fiction, sports history, history (American Revolution, Civil War & WWII), historical fiction, and biographies.

I was exposed to these genres and others at my local library. I first came across The American Heritage Picture History of the Civil War at the library, and fell in love with it. I checked it out over and over again when I was 10 or 11. I pored over the pictures, maps and illustrations which brought the Civil War to life. Bruce Catton's narrative (he wasn't credited as an author because it was a picture history) also made the times and circumstances come to life vividly.

This book was huge to me at that age. It was a real coffee table book. It was a hardcover with over 600 pages. I really loved the paintings of the battles, and the diagrams of the battles were paintings of scenes themselves. Today, these diagrams look to me like screen shots of computer war games--very ahead of their time. Anyhow, this book really captured my imagination and made the history come alive.

I loved so much, that I managed to scrimp and save my pennies, forgoing the purchase of baseball and football cards, so that I could purchase a copy of the book. I could not find it in a bookstore, so I actually ordered it from the publisher. I came in the mail or UPS or whatever, and I was so excited to get it. This was long before the days of Amazon and ordering online (yes, my children, I know that this must be an inconceivable concept)!

I still have the book today. The price on the dust jacket is $24.95, which was quite a princely sum back in the mid-1970's. I must have saved for quite a while, or else I had some long forgotten parental help. Hmmm, have to ask mom about that one of these days.

Maybe one day, you can go to your library and see if they have a copy of this venerable classic. Then you could check it out and see what I mean. If you're not into history, go to the library anyway, and check out whatever tickles your fancy. Remember, before the Internet and Amazon, and Kindles, there was the library. Check it out!