The TRIXIE BELDEN Library
(authors: Julie Campbell and
Kathryn Kenny)
“Would you like to - solve mysteries?
belong to a secret club?
Ride, swim, travel, go to parties with the best friends in the
world?
Then the wonderful adventures of Trixie Belden were written just for
you!
Don’t miss a single one. “ (From the back
cover of the deluxe editions.)
INTRODUCTION
While not nearly as well-known as the Nancy Drew series, the Trixie
Belden mystery series probably has even more devoted and passionate
readers. This tousle-haired tomboy, who would rather wear
jeans
than anything else, who had chores to do and a younger brother to
babysit, still managed to have lots of adventures - even if she
sometimes got scolded for staying out too long. What other
mystery series talks about who gets to take a shower first (and what
girl or boy growing up in a large family back in the 1950’s
when
most houses only had one bathroom couldn’t relate to the
line-up
for a bath)?
The series had an interesting genesis: In 1947, Julie
Campbell
Tatham was a freelance writer and she had a small literary
agency. Inspired by “Junior Achievement”
clubs she
had already developed the idea of the Ginny Gordon books.
When
Whitman put out a call for a new juvenile series, she sold them the
Ginny Gordon series and also came up with the Trixie Belden
series. All five books in the Ginny Gordon series and the
first
six in the Trixie Belden series were published under her maiden name,
Julie Campbell. As a literary agent, Campbell was able to negotiate a
contract where her rights to the characters were recognized and paid
for, even after she stopped writing the books. (Campbell also
wrote several of the Vicki Barr and Cherry Ames books while Helen Wells
took a break from them, as well as non-series books under her own
name.)
The Belden family farmhouse in the Hudson River Valley was based on the
home on Glen Road in which Campbell and her husband were living at the
time. She describes Bobby, Trixie’s kid
brother, as a
combination of her brother and her son.
In an interview published in 1988, Campbell said: “I wanted
Trixie to be different from Nancy Drew. ... The first rule should be
that the kids get themselves into the scrapes and get themselves out
without the assistance of adults. It's not a good book if you change
that concept. They have to be well plotted and well written. I felt
very strongly that they should be plausible—things that could
happen to any kid at any time.”
Each reader of the Trixie books probably has a different
favorite: I still remember the first three the
best. And
deep inside our bookhouse is a box marked in bold black letters
“NOT FOR SALE!” This contains my
daughter’s
collection, carefully put together during her childhood: a complete set
ranging from well-loved and read many times-over copies, barely hanging
together, to almost mint examples of the last 4 titles in the
series.
These books were very affordable: when I was a girl I used my
baby-sitting money to buy the early cellophane editions at the five and
dime - for 50c each. Later on, the series was issued in trade
paperback, with cover prices ranging from 95c to $1.95 (the price in
1986 when the last title in the series was issued.)
My
daughter bought most of her books herself, in the only example she has
shown, so far, of any book-collecting interest.
Now, however, collecting all of the Trixie Belden books involves
several challenges: First of all, they went out of print in
1986
and only returned in a new format, with a few titles being issued each
year, in 2003. Between 2003 and 2006, Random House reissued the first
15 titles in hardcover (and at a reasonable cover price of $6.99), but
they appear to be once again no longer being issued by the
publisher. Number 16 and up remain relatively hard to find,
with
the final five titles in the series (#35-39) by far the most difficult
and most expensive, since they were in print only between 1984-1986
(and for #39, only in 1986.)
Perhaps most significant is the difficulty of finding books in the
earlier formats in acceptable condition. Not only were these
books read and re-read, several of the formats were designed to be
appealing and inexpensive but not necessarily durable. The
glossy
cellophane binding is perhaps the most fragile of them all - but for
those of us who discovered the series in the 50’s, it is also
the
one most closely associated with the books. Finally, the
entire
series was never issued in one binding, so a collector has to decide
where to focus attention: on first editions, on the binding used
originally for each title, on just two or three bindings for the whole
series, on any binding (since these are to be read!) or on a complete
set with examples in every binding!
CHECKLIST of Titles, Authors and First Year of
Publication
#1-6 were written by Julie Campbell Tatham under the name Julie
Campbell; the remaining books were written by several
different
authors under the house name Kathryn Kenny. Several of the
different authors have been at least tentatively identified, and they
are shown below.
1. The Secret of the Mansion (1948)
2. The Red Trailer Mystery (1950)
3. The Gatehouse Mystery (1951)
4. The Mysterious Visitor (1954)
5. The Mystery Off Glen Road (1956)
6. The Mystery in Arizona (1958)
7. The Mysterious Code (1961) - Nicolete M. M. Stack
8. The Black Jacket Mystery (1961) - Nicolete M. M. Stack
9. The Happy Valley Mystery (1962) - Nicolete M. M. Stack
10 .The Marshland Mystery (1962) - Nicolete M. M. Stack
11. The Mystery at Bob-White Cave (1963) - Nicolete M. M. Stack
12. The Mystery of the Blinking Eye (1963) - Nicolete M. M. Stack
13. The Mystery on Cobbett's Island (1964) -Virginia Bleecher McDonnell
14. The Mystery of the Emeralds (1965) - Virginia Bleecher McDonnell
15. The Mystery on the Mississippi (1965) - Nicolete M. M. Stack
16. The Mystery of the Missing Heiress (1970) - Nicolete M. M. Stack
17. The Mystery of the Uninvited Guest (1977) - Gladys Baker Bond
18. The Mystery of the Phantom Grasshopper (1977)
19. The Secret of the Unseen Treasure (1977) - Carl H. Rathjen
20. The Mystery off Old Telegraph Road (1978) - Laura French
21. The Mystery of the Castaway Children (1978) - Gladys Baker Bond
22. The Mystery on Mead's Mountain (1978) - Owenita H. Sanderlin
23. The Mystery of the Queen's Necklace (1979) - Owenita H. Sanderlin
24 .The Mystery at Saratoga (1979) - Laura French
25 .The Sasquatch Mystery (1979) - Gladys Baker Bond
26. The Mystery of the Headless Horseman (1979) - Joan Chase Bowden
27 .The Mystery of the Ghostly Galleon (1979) - Joan Chase Bowden
28. The Hudson River Mystery (1979) - Kathleen Krull
29. The Mystery of the Velvet Gown (1980) - Joan Chase Bowden
30. The Mystery of the Midnight Marauder (1980) - Joan Chase Bowden
31. The Mystery at Maypenny's (1980) - Joan Chase Bowden
32. The Mystery of the Whispering Witch (1980) - Joan Chase Bowden
33. The Mystery of the Vanishing Victim (1980) - Carl H.
Rathjen
34 .The Mystery of the Missing Millionaire (1980) - Laura French
35. The Mystery of the Memorial Day Fire (1984)
36. The Mystery of the Antique Doll (1984) - Laura French
37. The Pet Show Mystery (1985) -Laura French
38 .The Indian Burial Ground Mystery (1985)
39. The Mystery of the Galloping Ghost (1986) -Laura French
Also: Mystery Quiz Book #1 (1980) and Mystery Quiz
Book #2 (1980)
DESCRIPTION
OF THE FORMATS
HARDCOVER formats:
Note: while different publishers are shown below,
they are
all imprints used by Western Publishing Company of Racine Wisconsin at
varying times (except for the final release by Random House.)
Also, even while the series remained “in print”
there were
gaps in the actual publication of books - so the books were not
continuously available.
1. WITH DUST JACKET (1948-1951 and 1959)
Only the first 3 titles were issued in dustjacket. The paper-covered
boards were rather plain, the books themselves were slightly larger and
thicker than later formats. The first book in the series had
two
different bindings in the original edition, and was the only one to be
reissued in 1959 in a very different binding and dustjacket.
A. Paper covered boards with a line drawing illustration on the
front, dust jackets had wraparound illustrations
Publisher: Whitman
Author: Julie Campbell
Illustrator: Mary Stevens
#1 Secret of the Mansion (1948), 248 pages, book
#2337 - -
a. red covers with white
printing
b. plain brown or dark green
cover (no illustration) and orange printing
#2 Red Trailer Mystery (1950), 248 pages, book #2353
- - beige covers
#3 Gatehouse Mystery (1951), 240 pages, book #2360
- - light blue covers
B. Variant diamond pattern edition - only 1 Trixie title in
this
format (this format was used for several different books - the first
Kathy Martin nurse book, Lassie, etc - although at
$1.00
they were more expensive and slightly more ‘deluxe’
than
the usual Whitman/Golden Press books) .
Publisher: Golden Press
Author: Julie Campbell
Inside Illustrator: Mary Stevens
Dust Jacket: Herbert Tauss
Book cover is red and deep pink diamond pattern, rear cover
of
dust jacket has pictures of the first 8 books in what is described as a
new fiction series for boys and girls. Spine of dustjacket
has a
diamond pattern.
#1 Secret of the Mansion (1959), 248 pages, book #205, price
on dustjacket $1.00
2. CELLOPHANE or GLOSSY
(1954-1962)
#4-10 were first issued in this format. The dates indicate
the
years in which the new titles were first published. Covers
had
wraparound illustrations laminated with clear cellophane for a glossy
effect. The first 3 titles used the same art as the
dustjackets
on the original editions. Several different endpaper designs
were
used in the following sequence: border, snapshot, and plaid;
illustrations in duotone: small illustrations at the beginning of each
chapter; full page pictures scattered throughout the text.
This
format is very prone to wear: as the covers become de-laminated, the
paper underneath tears easily. Poor quality paper results in
significant toning. All of the books in this series had 282
numbered pages, followed by 2 pages of advertising.
Publisher: Whitman, starting in 1954
Author: #1-6 Julie Campbell, #7-10 Kathryn Kenny
Illustrator: #1-6 Mary Stevens, #7-10 Paul Frame
#1 - book #1556
#2 - book #1561
#3 - book #1562
#4 (1954) - book #1560
#5 (1956) - book #1563
#6 (1958) - book #1565
#7 (1961) - book #1558
#8 (1961) - book #1578
#9 (1962) - book #1543
#10 (1962) - book #1533
3. CAMEO (1963-1964)
#11-13 were first issued in this format. All new
cover
illustrations. Each cover had a small cameo of Trixie in the upper left
corner; each cameo was different. There was a matte finish to
the
covers and they were much sturdier than the cellophane binding,
Duotone chain design endpapers. The interior
illustrations
and the pagination remained the same, but new book numbers were
assigned. They were slightly thinner than the earlier
cellophanes. A very attractive format, but somewhat hard to
find,
since they were only issued for 2 years.
Publisher: Whitman, starting in 1963
Author: #1-6 Julie Campbell, #7-13 Kathryn Kenny
Illustrator: #1-6 Mary Stevens, #7-13 Paul Frame
#1 282 pages, book #2318
#2 282 pages, book #2361
#3 282 pages, book #2362
#4 282 pages, book #2360
#5 282 pages, book #2363
#6 282 pages, book #2365
#7 282 pages, book #2354
#8 282 pages, book #2378
#9 282 pages, book #2307
#10 282 pages, book #2308
#11 (1963) 280 pages, book #2315
#12 (1963) 282 pages, book #2327
#13 (1964) 280 pages, book #2319
4. DELUXE (1965-1967)
#14-15 were first issued in this format. New front cover
illustrations; each back cover had a different small color illustration
and the same blurb about ‘The Trixie Belden
library.” Matte
finish on covers, slightly larger size, sturdy binding. The
endpapers are printed on colored stock (red, blue, green) with full
color cameos of Trixie and Honey centered on the left and right sides
respectively. The most attractive and best-produced format.
Full color and duo-tone, full-page illustrations scattered throughout
the books. There are no small illustrations as chapter
headers.
Publisher: Whitman 1965-66, Golden 1966-67
Author: #1-6 Julie Campbell , #7-15 Kathryn Kenny
All covers were done by Paul Frame
#1 252 pages, book #2318 (same book number as Cameo edition),
illustrator Paul Frame
#2 254 pages, book #2361 (same book number as Cameo edition),
illustrator Paul Frame
#3 254 pages, book #2369 - illustrator Marvin Besunder
#4 252 pages, book #2368 - illustrator Marvin Besunder
#5 252 pages, book #2370 - illustrator Paul Frame
#6 252 pages, book #2371 - illustrator Paul Frame
#7 252 pages, book #2355 - illustrator Haris Petie
#8 252 pages, book #2364 - illustrator Paul Frame
#9 254 pages, book #2357 - illustrator Haris Petie
#10 254 pages, book #2358 - illustrator Paul Frame
#11 254 pages, book #2355 - illustrator Paul Frame
#12 252 pages, book #2359 - illustrator Paul Frame
#13 254 pages, book #2356 - illustrator Haris Petie
#14 (1965) 254 pages, book #2366 - illustrator Paul Frame
#15 (1965) 254 pages, book #2367 - illustrator
Haris Petie
5. PLAIN or THIN FORMAT (1970-1971)
#16 was the only title first issued in this format.
Each
cover has a head and shoulders picture of Trixie in the lower left-hand
corner, art has been updated, and Trixie appears as a somewhat older
teenager - thinner format than the earlier hardcover
editions.
The type is somewhat smaller and the lines are more closely spaced than
in the earlier editions (perhaps also done to appeal to slightly older
readers.) A semi-glossy finish to the covers, but the binding is
similar to that used in the cellophane editions, and very prone to
cracking, breaking or tearing.
On some copies, the format is described on the back covers as
“available now with a brand new look.”
(other copies
just have a very brief excerpt from the story.) Two endpaper designs.
The earlier titles have a a head and shoulders picture of Trixie on the
left hand side, and a slightly smaller one of Honey off-center on the
right. The other endpaper design has the same picture of Trixie on the
left , but Honey is now centered on the right and the other B.W.G.s
(Bob-Whites of the Glen, the name of the club they formed) are in each
corner surrounding the drawing of Honey. In various colors (green,
orange, etc.) on a white background. No
illustrations in
the text.
Although all of the books in this format are
“thinner” than
the earlier hardcover formats, the quality of the paper (and the
thickness) also varied. Some were on a thin, but smooth and
better quality paper, less prone to toning; these are approximately 1.5
cm thick. Others are printed on coarser paper, very prone to yellowing
with age; these copies are slightly over 2 cm thick.
Publisher: Whitman, starting in 1970
Author: #1-6 Julie Campbell, #7-16 Kathryn Kenny
Illustrator (covers and endpapers): Larry Frederick
#1 236 pages, book #1524
#2 236 pages, book #1525
#3 234 pages, book #1526
#4 236 pages, book #1532
#5 236 pages, book #1534
#6 234 pages, book #1533
#7 236 pages, book #1540
#8 236 pages, book #1541
#9 212 pages, book #1577
#10 212 pages, book #1578
#11 212 pages, book #1586
#12 212 pages, book #1587
#13 234 pages, book #1521
#14 236 pages, book #1522
#15 234 pages, book #1523
#16 (1970) 236 pages, book #1542
Trade paperback editions were also issued using the same cover
illustration found on the hardcovers, but are very uncommon.
SOFTCOVER FORMATS
6. OVAL PAPERBACKS (1977-1980)
For those who read the series in the late 70’s and the
80’s
this is the format most closely associated with the Trixie
books.
It is the most frequently found, and it has the advantage of being the
format used on the most titles. Beige colored background and
illustration within an oval on the front cover. All covers by Jack
Wacker; no interior illustrations. All were
published under
the Golden Book imprint.
#17-34 were first issued in this format
#1 236 pages, book #21524
#2 236 pages, book #21525
#3 234 pages, book #21526
#4 236 pages, book #21532
#5 236 pages, book #21534
#6 234 pages, book #21533
#7 236 pages, book #21540
#8 236 pages, book #21541
#9 212 pages, book #21577
#10 212 pages, book #21578
#11 212 pages, book #21586
#12 212 pages, book #21587
#13 234 pages, book #21521
#14 236 pages, book #21522
#15 234 pages, book #21523
#16 236 pages, book #21542
#17 (1977) 212 pages, book #21588
#18 (1977) 210 pages, book #21589
#19 (1977) 210 pages, book #21590
#20 (1978) 212 pages, book #21591
#21 (1978) 213 pages, book #21592
#22 (1978) 210 pages, book #21593
#23 (1979) 212 pages, book #21594
#24 (1979) 210 pages, book #21595
#25 (1979) 211 pages, book #21596
#26 (1979) 213 pages, book #21597
#27 (1979) 211 pages, book #21598
#28 (1979) 210 pages, book #21599
#29 (1980) 213 pages, book #21550
#30 (1980) 211 pages, book #21551
#31 (1980) 210 pages, book #21552
#32 (1980) 210 pages, book #21553
#33 (1980) 210 pages, book #21554
#34 (1980) 210 pages, book #21555
All these were issued as trade paperbacks, but a limited number were
also published in hardcover, primarily for libraries.
Some of these titles were also issued in hardcover in the UK
by
Dean & Son of London, as slim volumes with the same cover
illustrations.
7. SQUARE PAPERBACKS (1984-1986)
#35-39 were first issued in this format, and many (but not
all)
of the earlier titles were reissued with the new covers which featured
a scene from the story in a square frame with an arched top, and the
number in a small square box on the spine.
Publisher: Golden, starting in 1984
Covers: #7,9,15,21,23,26 Jerry Harston, #29,30,31 Ben Otero, all others
Jody Lee
#35-39 only - black and white inside illustrations by Jim Spence
#1 236 pages, book #21524-5
#2 236 pages, book #21525-5
#3 234 pages, book #21526-5
#4 236 pages, book #21532-5
#5 236 pages, book #21534-5
#6 234 pages, book #21533-5
#7 236 pages, book #21540-5
#8 236 pages, book #21541-5
#9 212 pages, book #21577-5
#15 234 pages, book #21523-5
#20 212 pages, book #21591-5
#21 213 pages, book #21592-5
#23 212 pages, book #21594-5
#26 213 pages, book #21597-5
#29 213 pages, book #21550-5
#30 211 pages, book #21551-5
#32 210 pages, book #21553-5
#33 210 pages, book #21554-5
#34 210 pages, book #21555-5
#35 (1984) 190 pages, book #21556-5
#36 (1984) 188 pages, book #21557-5
#37 (1985) 189 pages, book #21560-5
#38 (1985) 189 pages, book #21561-5
#39 (1986) 189 pages, book #21562-5
Again, limited copies of these were issued in hardcover bindings for
library use.
8 HARDCOVER Format (2003-2006)
#1 through #15 were reissued by Random House with updated covers by
Michael Koelsch but the original art inside. Slightly larger format, in
sturdy glossy covers. Cover price $6.99.
Unlike many series (notably Nancy Drew, Hardy Boys and Bobbsey Twins),
these books were not re-written upon republication. A notice on the
copyright page mentions that there have been very few changes, other
than adding consistency to the spelling. In an interview, Jennifer
Arena, the Random House editor responsible for bringing these back in
print, explained that they “scanned in the text from the
earliest
editions of the books, which for the first three was the jacketed
hardcover and for the next seven was the cellophane editions. However,
while we were editing them, we realized there were some differences
between the first editions and later ones. In The Gatehouse Mystery,
for example, part of Chapter 17 was rewritten to include Trixie in a
scene she hadn't been in before. I went back and forth before I decided
to go with the second edition text in this case, figuring that such a
significant rewrite probably came from Julie Campbell, not an
editor.”
IDENTIFYING FIRST PRINTINGS
As noted above, all of the different formats by Western Publishing had
“first printings” of various titles. In
addition,
several titles were often issued simultaneously (this is especially
true with the oval cover trade paperbacks where the list of titles will
have “new” besides 2 to 6 titles. The
dates on the
copyright pages only refer to the actual copyright date, and not to the
year of printing. However, all dates for first printings are in Arabic
numerals - for example, 1970. If the date is in Roman numerals, the
book is definitely not a first printing; however, not all copies with
dates in Arabic numerals are firsts, so that is only one
clue.
Other significant factors are the endpapers (for the cellophane
editions), the price on the cover (for the trade paperback editions)
and the lists of previous titles. There are also differences in the
positioning of the price on the cover, of the logo and book numbers on
the spine, etc, but these are usually not significant in identifying
first printings.
AVAILABILITY OF TRIXIE BOOKS
We offer one of the most extensive selections of Trixie Belden books
available anywhere! We try to keep as many of the titles in
stock, in different formats, and in acceptably good to fine condition.
However, our actual stock will vary considerably: sometimes we are only
able to purchase an isolated copy, other times we will pick up a number
of different books at one time or an almost complete
collection.
Many of the titles in stock can be found on our website
Bookfever.com, but we usually have more titles than are listed.
If you are interested in completing your collection, let us know which
ones you are looking for, and we will give you advance notice when new
books come in. You can either call us at 1-877-266-5338
(BOOKFEV)
or contact us by email at chris@bookfever.com.
If you are ordering several titles, we combine shipping to keep costs
as low as possible, and we give discounts to our regular customers or
on large multiple book orders. We also offer free gift wrapping, on
request.
We are interested in buying these books in very good condition,
especially the later titles in the series and promotional items like
paper dolls, the t-shirt, gift sets, etc.
copyright 2002-2008 by Christine M. Volk
Note: Trixie Belden® is a registered trademark of Western
Publishing Co (Golden Books)
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