tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post3229733918512972161..comments2024-03-14T18:09:09.667-05:00Comments on Do Some Damage: Say It Ain't So, Joe (and Frank Hardy)Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-9431092198019718192017-11-10T12:15:01.283-05:002017-11-10T12:15:01.283-05:00THE HARDY BOYS books were great for children, when...THE HARDY BOYS books were great for children, when they were written.<br />They were a product of their time, for their time.<br />This is like saying horses are an inefficient means of transport in the 21st century.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-88443851177740862472017-11-09T12:42:39.016-05:002017-11-09T12:42:39.016-05:00I read the Hardy Boys when I was a youth and enjoy...I read the Hardy Boys when I was a youth and enjoyed them. They are pure pulp fun and probably not meant to stand up to adult scrutiny. But I really enjoyed The Three Investigators. They were more modern. I even fashioned a hideout similar to theirs. I think all these series were to give kids a sense of their own power, a la Peanuts. Scott D. Parkerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15293540073601809197noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-67038076798532076122017-11-09T12:27:32.033-05:002017-11-09T12:27:32.033-05:00All of this is true, but let's not forget thes...All of this is true, but let's not forget these were written for kids, and kids not nearly as sophisticated as kids are today. They're also written for the kids to be able to read themselves and keep track of everything. What they did was show a lot of kids (me, for example) that reading was fun, and that there was a world beyond what we had exposure to pre-cable and pre-Internet.<br /><br />And if I catch any adult who waits with bated breath for the next superhero flick to come out say anything derogatory about The Hardy Boys, he'd better be prepared to throw down.Dana Kinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01350344882342624735noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-44068343198203927992017-11-09T09:11:23.405-05:002017-11-09T09:11:23.405-05:00I read some of these when I was a kid, but early o...I read some of these when I was a kid, but early on recognized these guys weren't like anyone I knew. They had cars, motorcycles, speedboats, and went on vacations skiing, and to the islands.<br /><br />Having this kind of money makes characters difficult to take seriously.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16279364974890487397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7119990365479009764.post-58292447764783677502017-11-09T09:04:29.792-05:002017-11-09T09:04:29.792-05:00I think I only read one Hardy Boys book when I was...I think I only read one Hardy Boys book when I was a kid and then never another one. However, I read as many Nancy Drews as I could find. When I mentioned this to Margaret Maron, she said that's because the Nancy Drew novels were better written. That may be true, but rereading--and, I'll stress, teaching them--today, there's indeed a lot of wooden prose and far-fetched plot twists. But what's fascinating is the glimpse of an era's values, a publisher's savvy, and an icon that still has resonance. So basically I end up teaching ABOUT Nancy Drew as much as Nancy Drew the books themselves. Havne't tried reading one to our son, but.... we'll see how it goes if I do. Art Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02409008167752619352noreply@blogger.com