The Secret of Skull Mountain (Hardy Boys, Book 27) [Hardcover]

Franklin W. Dixon (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

There is a crisis in Bayport. Soon the city will be without water. Every night water strangely disappears from the new reservoir near Skull Mountain. Frank and Joe Hardy join forces with a team of skilled engineers to solve the baffling mystery. Author: Franklin W. Dixon Reading Level: Ages 8 to 14 years Publisher: Penguin Group USA Format: Hardcover, 192 pages ISBN: 9780448089270

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap; New edition edition (January 1, 1948)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0448089270
• ISBN-13: 978-0448089270
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #119,938 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #29 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Series > Mystery & Detective > Hardy Boys
  • #29 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( D ) > Dixon, Franklin W.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Action Mystery, July 6, 2005

By 

Lonnie E. Holder "The Review's the Thing" (Columbus, Indiana, United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Secret of Skull Mountain (Hardy Boys, Book 27) (Hardcover)

After several of the previous books in this series were somewhat disappointing, this book was a welcome improvement. The author paced the action better and formulated the mystery better than in the books just prior to this book. While I rated this book at four stars, when I compare this book with other books in the series I think it is one of the better books in this series.

Frank and Joe Hardy become involved in a mystery surrounding a new reservoir for Bayport. The reservoir is complete, but the water level is not rising. To be more specific, the water level rises during the daytime, but then drops during the night. If authorities are unable to solve the mystery, Bayport may soon be out of water.

Some of the Hardy Boys mysteries are very convoluted and complicated. This story has a much simpler, focused story. The story still has multiple facets, but everything revolves around why the reservoir will not fill. Because the story has focus, it is easier to follow, and I think it is also more interesting. I also think that because of the focus, the main story line has more detail than many of the previous books in this series, particularly those with multiple overlapping mysteries that the author often explains minimally.

This story also has fewer science elements, which many of the previous books handle poorly. This story focuses on the mystery and uses as little science as possible to establish the story and the mystery. Because of the focus and the minimal reliance on science, this story is easier to read and easier to believe. Because the author focused this story more tightly focused than previous stories, it is also more enjoyable. I look forward to the next mysteries in this series to see if the author maintained the quality of the story line exhibited by this book.

The Hardy Boys series is recommended for ages 8 to 12 because the series is relatively tame for the previous target audience of ages 10 to 14. However, the series still contains some interesting moments and will keep most readers guessing the answers to the mysteries until the final solution is revealed.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hardy Boys Forever....!!!!, June 4, 2002

By 

Daniel Firli (Sydney, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Secret of Skull Mountain (Hardy Boys, Book 27) (Hardcover)

Bayport is suffering a water shortage due to water from a newly constructed reservoir mysteriously disappearing at night. Deciding to take on this 'mystery' for a bit of fun, Frank and Joe Hardy along with their best friend Chet, soon find themselves the target of a sequence of deadly attacks to get them off the case.

You might find the writing style of the book a bit dated due to the age of the novel, but you will soon get 'sucked in' to the story disregarding the 'cornyness' of the style. It follows the basic layout of a Hardy Boy story, the most noticable being the case they are working on has something to do with the case their famous detective father, Fenton Hardy, is also working on in Chicago. Great for young readers and nostalgic value. RECOMMENDED TO ALL!!!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Book, December 13, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The Secret of Skull Mountain (Hardy Boys, Book 27) (Hardcover)

This review concerns the original 1948 edition and the revised 1966 edition. The revised edition follows the plot of the original and only had some events cut to eliminate some pages. Bayport is facing a water shortage when the newly constructed reservoir on Skull Mountain will not fill with water. The funny thing is that the water level in the reservoir rises during the day, but then it falls again at night. Frank, Joe and Chet camp out on Skull Mountain with two engineers to try to solve the mystery. Both editions are really great books; the original is well-written (the revised edition lost much of the rich language of the original, for that reason I'd rate it 4 stars), both have lots of interesting characters, a lot of action and an intriguing mystery. This book is what the series needed to get back on track following the extremely disappointing "The Phantom Freighter". Both books are really good; although, if possible, I'd recommend reading the original. I can't think that any Hardy Boys fan would find either of these books boring.