The Slumber Party Secret

August 29, 1994
If Nancy Drew isn't a born detective, she at least acquired her sleuthing skills at an early age--age eight, to be exact. Such is the premise of this inaugural book in the Nancy Drew Notebooks, which, in the tradition of the Sweet Valley series, turns back the clock to reveal a familiar heroine in her childhood. In this sweet if somewhat insipid tale, Nancy, a spunky third-grader, plans to attend her first sleep-over party. But when--horrors!--the invitations disappear from the hostess's kitchen, the stage is set for Nancy to crack her very first case. Faithfully recording clues in a notebook her father provides, she pieces together the puzzle and announces her solution to her admiring pals (including Bess and George). Told that she sounds like a detective, Nancy is pleased as punch and muses that ``she would love to solve mysteries when she grew up.'' But she'll have a chance to do so even before that: due for simultaneous release is the series' second installment, The Lost Locket . There isn't likely to be a lot of suspense in these mysteries, but most beginning readers won't expect it. Ages 5-8.