#trixie belden

[skelavender]

in retrospect i think i liked trixie belden because she and honey were obviously gay together

[sleepyside]

Am I creeping through the Trixie Belden tag liking 5+ year old posts?

Yes, yes I am

Tumblr is so damn confusing anymore. Is it dead or isn’t it? The amount of abandoned blogs is astounding. And then I find a blog that’s been active for 13 years and I’m astounded again

[scopostims]

trixie belden books inspired stimboard for anon :•]

[ID: A 3x3 stimboard of 8 GIFs surrounding a central image.

GIF 1: Someone flipping through the pages of a book with occasional biology diagrams in the pages.

GIF 2: Footage in a train as it goes through a tunnel, the cabin lit by sun then suddenly becoming consumed by darkness.

GIF 3: First person POV of walking between library shelves.

GIF 4: Light-skinned hands pasting a cutout of a book page into a scrapbook.

Image: 7 trixie belden books laid out, all of them about various mysteries.

GIF 5: A closeup of someone writing in cursive on lined paper with a calligraphy pen.

GIF 6: First person POV of walking between library shelves, the place lit by warm yellow lights.

GIF 7: First person POV of walking through an abandoned but clean mall.

GIF 8: A light-skinned hand moving a magnifying glass over a book page.

End ID]

[julieverne]

Maura read a lot. The television was locked up in the visitor's longue room, and mostly they were documentaries they watched as a family. The occasionally Katherine Hepburn. Tall. Brash. Cuttingly sharp. Maura loved Sunday afternoons on days it was too rainy to take the horses or the boats out. Just her and Katherine Hepburn.

She read the books her mother gave her. Books from another country, from another time. A world which the war had shaken. A lot of them were terribly outdated. Where only the boys got to have any fun and the girls were left alone to - what, bake? Clean? Sew? She gave up on those. She loved George Kirrin fiercely. The illustrations in the books always portrayed her as a little prettier than Maura liked to imagine her; in her mind she gave her thick brows, a strong jaw. The kind of face that would make a stranger falter for their pronouns before addressing her. And she was fearless and devoted to her friends and her beloved Timmy, of course. Maura loved Bass, but she wouldn't face a man with a gun if he were in imminent danger. No one would shoot a tortoise anyway.

She saw herself as more of an Anne, just dragged along for the ride, often terrified and completely impotent. Maura did martial arts, and horseriding, gymnastics and fencing. She could play the violin but she didn't like to. She could take care of herself. But poor little Anne was always getting dragged into dangerous situations. No one listened to her voice of reason. And if the villains they'd faced had been a different sort, the sort that rarely featured in kids books, she'd have been the most at risk. George herself was protective, but the two brothers should have been ashamed of themselves.

Still, she read all twenty one books in the series, and she longed for the salt of the sea, the wind on her face bicycling through the countryside, the sound of laughter on a summer morning.

She longed for friendship.

She tried Nancy Drew, but she found them a little too simplistic, a little too rushed. A list of things that happened with no tension building to make the reader concerned for Nancy or her friends. Another female George who was boyish, though. Smart and sporty, easily able to tackle criminals.

And the Trixie and Honey in upstate New York. So close to home, and yet so far. A spoiled rich girl, an only child. Rich and awkward. And the rambunctious neighbour girl, who thought her strange but didn't let that bother her for a single moment, didn't deter her from making the best friend either of them could ever have. The sleepovers. The sharing of clothes and food, riding through the woods. She could almost smell the pine. She could see how Trixie noticed how vulnerable and scared Honey was and how she tried - in her own clumsy way - to make her feel safe and welcome. And Honey was so sensible and feminine and Trixie was all scraped knees and skinned knuckles and Maura wanted that. She wanted a Trixie. She wanted someone to tell her she was okay as she was, someone who saw her and knew she was enough.

But no matter how long she hung out in the woods by herself, no one ever came. Her parents' estate was too large, and her parents' friends didn't have children, or had ones much older than her that babied her.

But it was the boarding schools that got her in the end. She read hungrily about midnight feasts and swimming competitions and school pantomimes. She read about stolid, stable Darrell Rivers, headstrong and certain of herself. And by her side, Sally Hope, less certain, a little resentful, not as nice in the first books but blossoming into a fine young lady by the end. At her best friend's side. All the little interactions that young women had - all the spiteful little tricks, all the jabs and jeers and exclusions. It helped her to understand a little the social quagmire of her schooling days. She'd not been a success, at school. Academically she was very gifted. But socially she suffered. She chose Paris because she felt like her foibles might be seen as exotic, and she gave her parents the brochures.

But it was fruitless. While she wasn't bullied at boarding school - she was too smart to be openly derided, and she would do anyone's homework if they sat with her, but also even with all her studies on human behaviour she rarely noticed when someone tried to insult her - she never did find her Darrell Rivers. Her bosom friend, her companion. She gave up, after that. Adults had acquaintances, not friends. She threw herself into her studies and took the jobs offered her.

And then someone tall and dark with strong brows and a firm jaw was calling her 'sista' and Maura knew she'd been slighted. But a few months later the detective had bounced into her morgue, looking over the body. At least she didn't vomit, like some of them. It was fortunate Maura, despite being a super taster, didn't mind most smells. But Jane had come in, her curly hair tied back, business shirt and slacks. And she grinned at Maura, her smile cheeky and knowing, like she knew her, like they were friends already. And it was like if Katherine Hepburn had been a detective. It was like George Kirrin grown up and taking on the world with her quick brain and quicker smile. It was George Frayne on horseback, reaching her hand down to a damsel in distress. It was like Trixie Belden had stumbled through the woods to her mansion and stood outside waiting to play. It was like Darrell Rivers with her hot temper but warm nature had come to life from a book and seen her Sally Hope.

+++

"I don't know who any of them are," Jane said when Maura told her this, years later, curled up on the couch together. "Well, I read some Nancy Drew but she was a bit of a wimp in the early books. Trixie - she was the one - oh yeah, I liked those! She was always running through the woods and filthy. She was great! And you think of me as her?"

"Remember when you tackled a Federal Agent in a creek?" Maura asked, laughing.

Jane chuckled and pulled Maura closer.

"The point is, I always read about women having close friendships. About women like you - strong and masculine, protective and loyal. And their useless little sidekicks."

"Here's one for you then. Xena and Gabrielle. Gabby wasn't useless though. She had spunk, and she could fight too. You're not a useless sidekick, Maura. You're a fierce warrior in your own right."

Maura crinkled her brow as though she was trying to remember.

"I've seen your DVD boxset, Maura." Maura blushed; her roommate in college had watched the show religiously, and Maura had too, loving the dynamic of the women. The tall, strong brunette. The short, smart blonde. Visually striking together, perfectly suited. The way they were so protective of each other. So thoroughly loyal.

"They - they weren't just friends though." Maura had kind of known at the time, but as more years passed she saw how blatant it had been.

"Are we just friends?" Jane's voice dropped, and Maura looked up sharply at her.

"We're friends. Aren't we?" Maura looked terrified for a moment and Jane reached out to reassure her.

"We are," Jane said, rubbing her hand over Maura's shoulder. "But we could be more, couldn't we?"

"That's up to you," Maura said uncertainly, and like headstrong Darrell Rivers, like impetuous Trixie Belden or crusading Xena, Jane leaned in and kissed Maura.

And Maura knew what female friendship was about. She had female friends now; Nina and Susie and Angela. People who knew who she was and liked her.

But a bosom friend was a friend that touched your bosom. And that was Jane, all over.

[lalunearts]

Idk how old my copies of the books are, theyre all in paperback(except the one copy of book 5 i got at a thrift shop about a year ago)

But these might be some of the oldest books i own

I am very careful especially with this one bc its falling apart and well loved.

[queerauntie]

February Reads

Trixie Belden: The Gatehouse Mystery by Julie Campbell

Stone Butch Blues by Leslie Feinberg

Solito by Javier Zamora

Trixie Belden: The Mysterious Visitor by Julie Campbell

Pet by Akwaeke Emezi

This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone

Are You Listening? by Tillie Walden

The Kindred by Alechia Dow

So This is Ever After by F.T. Lukens

Wow Wow WOW what a month of reading! It's been a crazy month, too! My new job is so delightful I could cry (and have lowkey) tears of joy! The reads have been phenomenal companions on my drives and while out of town helping a friend recover from surgery! So let's get into it:

What can I say about the Trixie Belden books I haven't already? They're so quaint and enjoyable. I continuously compare them to chewing gum, they are stimulating without being exhausting and they have a fun flavor every time! Unfortunately, I ran out of audiobooks this month, the library only carried the 1st four in the series so I have not decided yet how I want to proceed. Get more invested with like 3 more ebooks and then go cold turkey, or just cut my losses now... We'll have to see.

Stone Butch Blues was really impactful and a story I will not quickly forget. It took me almost 2 months to read this one, all of January and a decent chunk of February. Each chapter is a whole story beginning to end that you need to grieve and sit with, it was not a story to be binged, it demanded your time and respect. And that I gave it. This was also the first book I "annotated" (I took notes in my journal bc I was reading the digital edition) which I am so glad I did. Now, the experience will be forever embedded in my journal for future versions of myself to remember!

This next book was what I read on the way to visit my friends. It's about a 4-hour drive one way so I love queuing up a good book (at 2x the speed I can get through some big bois on a round trip) and this was a hauntingly good choice. In Solito, Javier Zamora remembers his terrifying and deadly journey to America to join his parents. At 9 years old this child travels from El Salvador to Mexico and Zamora's ability to recapture what it was like... I know we as readers must only be experiencing a fraction of the stress and fear that so many go through just for a chance at safety, at freedom. This book should be required reading and I recommend it to all of you!

Finally, I have gotten a taste of Akwaeke Emezi! I've heard about their work for a long time now, and my favorite source of book inspo (teacher twitter) has long been raving about their collections. I am thrilled PET was my first novel because it was phenomenal. Emezi has the power that few people have which is to discuss violence with kindness and empathy. It brought me joy to know this book is taught by teachers equipping their students with crucial knowledge. It's going into my required reading for my commune in our intro to restorative justice because WHEW it made me realize just how much more unlearning growing I had to do myself!

This next book was selected for my book club! I joined a book club in January in hopes of having some more intentional reading sessions. Audiobooks are my fave but I still dissociate sometimes and notice I sometimes miss out on themes when I'm not looking for them. So with book club books I am reading physical copies to force myself to slow down and journaling between sessions to reflect back on when the whole thing is read! Reading This Is How You Lose the Time War was a book I am SO GLAD I read in this way! The tension building was so effective this way and the yearning, the yearning oooh I was living for these characters! What a legendary novel! The authors did a phenomenal job putting you into these characters' heads and creating a story that wasn't overwhelming and difficult to understand, but surreal and vast. You knew of the world, but because of who the characters are, you aren't entirely in it. The creativity of this book feels like reading a world where metaphors become literal. It's magical and heartbreaking. It's an instant classic. And you already know it, a must-read!

Damn February was BUSY!! (Okay fair a couple were started in January, but STILL!) We are almost at the end of the month (damn the shortest month to how did I DO this!?) and being the neuro spicy dork that I am, the close to the end of an imaginary deadline means crunch time! That brings us to are you listening? by Tillie Walden. When visiting bestie, they let me borrow a whole bunch of books (I'm counting 9 including this one) and so now I have a lovely intimidating stack on top of my bookshelf I want to slowly widdle down, and this is what we started with! I was definitely not prepared for the undertones of this book, emotionally I was on edge the whole time but very uncertain why. The colors in this story do a magnificent job of making you spend time in the shadows, looking at the edges and focusing on small details. By the end, I was in tears and felt the whiplash of a short but powerful journey. Bestie's given me a bunch more of Walden's works too so you'll be seeing more of those too, I'm sure they'll be just as devastatingly beautiful!

What I need is for the emerging book genre, New Age, to become more prominent and specified because some of these books are there, they're THERE, but a lot of them still get pushed into the YA pg-13 section which is so limiting! I think The Kindred by Alechia Dow is a great example of this where it could've given me more but it was appealing to a younger audience so we had to keep it innocent, which is sweet, but these are two characters I know would be doing it down and dirty if they were just aged up ever so slightly! It's a good story, a fun way to talk about the issues that our country struggles with. It's definitely because of the way the author approaches these human rights topics that definitely feels rooted in YA so maybe it was always meant to be there! The young YA yearning is cute too, it's just not seamy in the way that adult romance is, and maybe I want a little bit of both! Sue me!

Admittedly, I do not learn my lesson from The Kindred and continue reading YA romances! I don't know how it happened, I think I just put a bunch of books on hold, and wham!, here we are a mini sprint of sci-fi romance! And after reading So This is Ever After I was not complaining!! These boys are SO cute! I loved how the story started, seemingly picking up where the gang left off- post-slaying the big evil monster and fulfilling their prophecy. It really gagged me and made me feel like I was reading a sequel, but of course, that is the intention, as we are now in the "ever after". Our protagonist and hero, now King, must do his best to fulfill his new role, which of course comes with its own plot twist problems to solve! The writing in this was really sweet and entertaining. I loved the scenarios the characters are put in, I will always be a slut for an ensemble cast, so this was a really enjoyable read! Unlike The Kindred though, I thought this book was perfectly aged as their shenanigans could only have been concocted by immature insecure, and communication-skills-lacking teens! It was a good time!

I did it! That's February everyone, I hope you enjoyed my ramblings if you read through it all, I always have fun writing these and if nothing maybe you'll see a book you want to read from my tags and it'll be the push you need to go for it!

Yearly Book Count: 16/?? Yearly Reading Goal: 50 Books

[bargainsleuthbooks]

#ARC #CharlotteIllesIsNotADetective by #KatieSiegel #NetGalley #CozyMystery #LGBT #Humor #Contemporary #BookReview #KensingtonBooks

Imagine being a teen sleuth like #NancyDrew but grow up and want to move past that? For #CharlotteIlles, it's not that easy. #KatieSiegel #NetGalley #BookReview #kensingtonbooks #cozymystery #teensleuth #teendetective #June2023Books #newbooks #ARCReview

As a kid, Charlotte Illes’ uncanny sleuthing abilities made her a minor celebrity. But in high school, she hung up her detective’s hat and stashed away the signature blue landline in her “office”—aka garage—convinced that finding her adult purpose would be as easy as tracking down missing pudding cups or locating stolen diamonds. Now twenty-five, Charlotte has a nagging fear that she hit her peak…

[hanakogames]

Trixie/Honey is way too old and obscure to find anything much on tumblr to reblog, the closest to fanart is this ONE sketch on ao3 and there's a tiny couple of fics to go with it.

[cultivating-wildflowers]

met a childhood friend at the little free library

[idiomagic]

I loved the Narnia books, but Trixie Belden was my catnip.

[hopefulcanary]

like the hardy boys

just with way more bickering

and y'know, copious amounts of life-affirming smut 🍑

[lalunearts]

all my favorite books i own are second hand probably because my mom used to by me her childhood series for me to make sure i had them i think im one of the few people who has the entire series of Trixie Belden on a shelf in my house.

[queerauntie]

January Reads

This month was a GREAT kick-off to the 2023 reading year! As always, I can't thank my local library enough for access to all these wonderful books. While I have been exclusively using the library's audiobook collection, this year I've decided I want to start reading some physical books too, but remember: all forms of story telling is valid and no medium is better/superior to another!

I was very excited for the near year, specifically on twitter where i follow a LOT of educators. Why? Because of their TBR lists of course! And they had a LOT! This year, for those who aren't on twitter, it was a popular trend to finish the books on your shelf before buying new books. So like a book scavenger, I took screenshots and added every book I saw on my TL to my own TBR (I use The Story Graph app). Besides the Trixie Belden books, this month is full of those unknowing recommendations!

Without further ado, the books of January:

How the Word Is Passed by Clint Smith

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

The Twelve Tribes of Hattie by Ayana Mathis

Conjure Women by Afia Atakora

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn

Trixie Belden: The Secret Mansion by Julie Campbell

Trixie Belden: The Red Trailor Mystery by Julie Campbell

Let's talk about the first book of the year, How The Word is Passed by Clint Smith. Smith did a really great job with this book, his perspective extremely potent. This book is a collection of Smiths experience visiting cities with ties to chattel slavery in America as he shares his thoughts and experiences at each location as well as the various degrees to which these sights share or skew (or in some cases, rewrite) their role in slavery. While some places do their best to preserve and share the full depth of what went on those 400+ years, some cities and memorials prefer to white wash over the history and tell their own, more "acceptable" version of events. What I thought made this book so impactful was Smith's personal accounts of his emotions and the consideration for every space he entered. It really stuck with me how he would contextualize the sizes of quarters and cells that enslaved Africans were trapped in. He holds space for the humanity that millions of people were denied. It was an honor to see the history through his eyes and learn even more about the effective blind spots we as white people have for the extent of racism. I highly recommend this book.

Book number two was recommended to me by a friend, and she had little faith that I would get around to it so I had to prove her wrong. I'm glad I did too because this book was surprisingly really good! The story follows Nora, a depressed young woman who can't find the will to live. She makes the decision to end her life, but instead she finds herself in the in between, suspended in time, surrounded by books. The Midnight Library, she discovers, contains every possible life she could've lived, every decision she didn't make, every path she didn't take. Nora is given the chance to find a book, a life, where she deems worthy of living. The journey Nora goes on is one of learning to love herself and seeing her value in life, not her potential, but her impact just as she is. It was a good ride, and definitely appealed to my short attention span as you get to jump through life after life with Nora, and just as you start to get bored, so does she. Then it starts all over!

Wow, this next book was another huge turn! This month honestly gave me so much reading whiplash, but in a good way, like the spinning teacups ride! The Twelve Tribes Of Hattie by Ayana Mathis was a love letter to Black Mothers everywhere. This book tells moms, "I see you and I understand." The Twelve Tribes of Hattie are about the 12 lives that a woman, Hattie, raised and cared for over her life. In a culture that demands so much of women, even more from mothers, it was very poignant that this book tells you the story of Hattie's life through the narrow lens of her role and relationship with her children and grandchild. Every family has a Hattie, had a Hattie, comes from a Hattie. This was a love letter truly and Mathis does a beautiful job, I was in tears throughout. A wonderful addition to any library.

Speaking of books I will be adding to my library, Conjure Women was a phenomenal book I also discovered thanks to the brilliant teachers of twitter! This story follows the lives of 3 women, a mother and daughter who are enslaved and the daughter of the white man that's enslaved them. The mother, Miss May Belle, was a midwife and healer who taught her daughter, Rue, everything she knew. Varina, the daughter of Miss May Belle and Rue's enslaver, grows fond of Rue at an early age and thus is also entangled in Rue's story. I really enjoyed this story because of its storytelling format. It's the kind of book that just opens a window into time and space, lets you observe for a little while, and then the window closes. It was beautiful and I will definitely be reading it again! This feels like a book you'll catch different things with each watch!

Holy CRAP y'all. I knew Legenborn was going to be good, great even. But I was not prepared for just how fucking mind blown it was going to leave me!! The story picks up right away and does not let you catch your breath! The writing is impeccable, and the characters are so amazing. Our protagonist, Bree, is a brilliantly developed character. This books weaves a story of grief, monsters, racism, magic, and the power of ancestors all in one wild ride! It was everything I loved about the fantasy of my teens without the weird incest (iykyk) and forced plots. I can't wait to get my hands on the sequel and I really hope it becomes a trilogy that gets a prequel trilogy that keeps growing because this world is a really great one I want to learn more about! If you haven't heard of Legendborn or haven't made your mind up about it, you run and enjoy the journey of a lifetime!

This next book was recommended by my bestie. They read Trixie Belden books as a kid and became fascinated with them, so a couple years ago they went online and worked hard to collect over 3/4th of the series- turns out these books were not popular and therefore it's actually pretty hard to find! Of the 39 books made, my library has the audiobooks for the first 4! I was quickly endeared to this series, Trixie Belden gives off major lesbian kid vibes- a tomboy who just has the closest female friendships... I will eat it up every time okay!! The stories feel like chewing bubble gum, stimulating and fun with minimal effort. They are engaging, vocabulary-expanding, delightful tales. The stories even have some ridiculously high stakes for this bright young teen and will keep you on the edge of your seat (but not for long!). And my favorite part has to be the alluding to the next book, which picks up almost right where you left off! A very comfy read!

Yearly Book Count: 7/?? Yearly Reading Goal: 50 Books

[jewishevelinebaker]

When you were a child did you ever think that one day youd have to suck the venom out of a snake bite and mentally prepared yourself for that

[sixth-light]

13 books tag game, tagged by @amemoryofwot

1) Last book I read:

Starter Villain by John Scalzi, in an effort to 1) get back on my Hugo nominee completionist bullshit and 2) give him a second go, since I was deeply unimpressed by the first one a few years ago. It was...you know the thing about how badly-written books can help you learn more about writing than well-written ones? That!

2) A book I recommend:

I am metaphorically grabbing everybody I know by the collar and telling them to read Some Desperate Glory, unless the subject matter isn't for them which is fair, but it's so good.

3) A book that I couldn’t put down:

I distinctly remember finishing Gideon the Ninth at like 11pm because I couldn't wait until morning, which must be seen in the context of me being asleep by 10pm every night of my life I get a choice in the matter.

4) A book I’ve read twice (or more)

I went through a solid decade of reading Hogfather every Christmas and I've probably got a few more left in me.

5) A book on my TBR

I've got Mary Beard's latest book, Emperor of Rome, on reserve at the library.

6) A book I’ve put down

Tried The Bone Shard Daughter by Andrea Stewart last year because it was blurbed well and I was in a fantasy mood, and got like...twenty pages in. It didn't leave enough of an impression for me to remember exactly why, just a general 'I don't care about these characters' vibe.

7) A book on my wish list

Kate Elliott is being very kind about progress updates in her newsletter and I want her to have the time she needs...but I am also chewing at the bit for Lady Chaos.

8) A favourite book from childhood

I was SO into Redwall as a kid. First fanfic I ever wrote.

9) A book you would give a friend

This is hard because I always want to rec specific books to specific people, I sincerely believe there's no generic book which is good for everybody. Um, maybe All Systems Red since Murderbot seems to resonate with a wide audience?

10) The most books you own by a single author

(Physical books only) An ACTUAL single author? Anne McCaffrey for sure. An alleged single author? I own 36 Trixie Belden Mysteries books.

11) A nonfiction book you own

Storm over Mono, which is a really interesting account of the fight to save Lake Mono in California, a scientifically interesting and historically and ecologically unique place.

12) what are you currently reading

Technically between books but I'm about to start The Imposition of Unnecessary Obstacles by Malka Older. I liked the first one fine but it didn't grab me grab me, so we'll see how it goes.

13) what are you planning on reading next?

My mostly-science book club is going retro and reading Surely You're Joking, Mr Feynman which I have been putting off because I have Heard Things about Richard Feynman...but also I gotta gird my loins and get onto it.

I have not been around Tumblr enough lately to think of who to tag but with 100% sincerity, if you see this and it starts the wheels turning in your head about books you've read lately and so on, you're it!

[tildeathiwillread]

She wasn't my first (that goes to Nancy Drew), but yes I loved the two (2) books that I got my hands on

Time for a new poll! I'm curious to see the spread of answers on this one (and hear any other series not on the list.) Tried to go for a range of older and newer series on here, more on the older end of the spectrum, but I can't cover everything with the limited poll options here, so I hope you'll share your answers! :)

Please reblog for a larger sample size, thank you!