Lonely Girls Solving Mysteries

Ah, who doesn't love this trope? What good would it be for a girl in a book to be surrounded by a supportive family and helpful friends? Sure, you have your March sisters, the Penderwicks, the Wright 3, and the Three Rancheros - supportive groups all - but people love to root for the lonely child, who perseveres against her loneliness and, in the process, makes life better for everyone.

One of my favorite childhood books features such a girl. Robin, the heroine of Zilpha Keatley Snider's "The Velvet Room," first published in 1965, likes to wander off on her own. Her two capable brothers, movie-star obsessed older sister, and clingy, sickly younger sister aren't very agreeable companions. Plus, it's the Great Depression, and her family is traveling in their car looking for work. Opportunities to be alone are few and far between. When they finally settle into a modest house while doing work for a California apricot farm, Robin takes every opportunity to sneak off and be by herself. While wandering, she finds an abandoned mansion and meets a witch-like old woman who lives in the cottage behind it. Her wandering now has a purpose, and soon, she discovers there is a mystery to do with the old house - and the old woman. As a girl, I felt a kinship with dreamy Robin and her secret hideaway tower room.  

Just recently, I read a book that reminded me of The Velvet Room, if not precisely in plot, then in atmosphere and feeling. The Secret of Nightingale Wood, by Lucy Strange, takes place in England between the two World Wars, and follows Henrietta, known as Henry, as she traipses about the woods of her new home. There has been a family tragedy; mother is ill, father is working abroad, and it's just Henry, Nanny Jane, and her baby sister, nicknamed Piglet. But there is a sinister plot afoot - an ambitious doctor wants to have Henry's mother committed to a sanitarium so he can try out an experimental treatment, and there is some mystery as to the fate of the home's previous owner. Henry has no one to rely on but herself and, like Robin in The Velvet Room, a witch-like lady who lives in an old caravan in the woods. 

Both girls are forced to be more brave, bold and self-confident than they ever thought they could. They discover wells of strength in themselves that enable them to do hard things. And do they both succeed? I shouldn't give it away, but what good is a middle grade book without a happily ever after? Both Robin and Henry reap benefits for their entire family with their courageous actions. Besides, knowing the outcome doesn't take away from the intricacies and enjoyment of the journey. 

There truly is nothing new under the sun when it comes to books, and yet even familiar tropes can be enjoyable in the hands of a skilled storyteller.