The Witch Tree Symbol (Nancy Drew Mystery Stories, No 33) [Hardcover]

Carolyn Keene (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up | Series: Nancy Drew

An unusual hex sign leads Nancy Drew to Pennsylvania Dutch country in pursuit of a thief who stops at nothing to get rid of her.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Grosset & Dunlap; Revised edition (1955)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0448095335
• ISBN-13: 978-0448095332
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #130,347 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #35 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( K ) > Keene, Carolyn

More About the Author

Carolyn Keene and Franklin W. Dixon are the pseudonyms under which many ghostwriters penned the Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys series, respectively. Both series were created by Edward Stratemeyer, founder of the Stratemeyer Syndicate book packaging firm, in the late 1920s and early 1930s.

Stratemeyer's daughter, Harriet, and syndicate writer Mildred Wirt Benson were the two people primarily responsible for bringing the iconic character of Nancy Drew to life in the minds and hearts of millions of readers around the world.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Witchtree Symbol, December 29, 2002

By 

Mandy Johnson (Ocean Springs, MS United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Witch Tree Symbol (Nancy Drew Mystery Stories, No 33) (Hardcover)

Of Nancy's many stories that take place away from her home town of River Heights, this one has got to be the BEST! She and her good friends Bess and George embark on a journey through the Amish farms of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Caroline Keene not only provides an exciting mystery, she also paints a fasinating portrait of life in the Pennsylvania Dutch county, complete with cultural foods and festivals. As a nine year old girl, I read the Nancy Drew series starting with the first book so that the events in Nancy's life would make chronological sense to me. Today, twenty-seven years later, I would advise any budding Nancy fan to start with "The Secret of the Old Clock" and then go directly to this thrilling mystery. They won't be disappointed!

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nancy Drew the witch tree symbol (really good book!), March 17, 2006

A Kid's Review

This review is from: The Witch Tree Symbol (Nancy Drew Mystery Stories, No 33) (Hardcover)

Hi,
my name is Selia. I am 12 and I really enjoyed this book! This is my first Nancy Drew book (my parents convinced me to start reding them because they read them all!) and I thought it was really good! I would recomend this book to friends because I can say it's just as good as Harry Potter. It is really interesting and I found it neat how George can also be a girl name! Anyway if you go to a library or a book store, take a look at this book and I garuntee you'll like it! (Unless you are crazy!)
Sincerely,
Selia a Nancy FAN!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Given the portrayal of women in the popular media of the time, this is a breath of fresh air, September 13, 2006

By 

Charles Ashbacher (Marion, Iowa United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This adventure takes Nancy Drew and her friends Bess and George into Amish country. To them, the ways, dress and speech of the Amish are strange but they adapt quickly. They make some friends, but they also make some enemies among the more superstitious of the Amish. Nancy is accused of being a witch, which lends a layer of unreality to the story. Even the most superstitious people would not seriously believe that a young girl is a witch, even though she is around such symbols.
The book opens with the theft of some antiques and the trail leads Nancy to the Amish areas. While there, they eat a lot, learn some Amish ways and track down the thief and his wife, who are posing as Amish. The man grew up in that area, so he knows the language and mannerisms. Of course, Nancy solves the mystery, learning the primary reasons why the thief was so interested in the antique furniture.
To date, I have read a few Nancy Drew books, making comparisons between the different time frames. This story was written in 1955, so it was interesting to contrast it to an earlier one that I read that was written decades earlier. Nancy is much more courageous in this one, relying much less on males to assist her. When it appears that the thief is in the attic above them, she does not hesitate to climb up to investigate. It was easy for me to see how Nancy would be such a heroine to young girls, she is bright, brave and independent. While she has a boy in her life, he is not a major factor in the plot and she certainly does not rely on him to "do the man's work." Given the portrayal of women in the television and radio shows of the fifties, this was a breath of fresh air.