In 1936, Clair Blank, the author of the Beverly Gray mystery series, introduced readers to a group of girls who were, dare I say it, adventurous to their very core. Gale Howard, Carol Carter, Janet Gordon, Phyllis Elton, Madge Reynolds, and Valerie Wallace made up the six-girl group that had dubbed themselves “The Adventure Girls” because, as their first book tells us, while on school hikes and outings, they always managed to stir up some kind of excitement. Of the six girls, Gale Howard seems to be the main character, with the other five girls her friends and support. While the first volume gives a general introduction to the girls, the second and third volumes give more in-depth characterization, particularly for Gale and Phyllis. All three books were originally published by A.L. Burt Co., but when the series was later bought by Saalfield Publishing, the fourth book in the series, which was mentioned at the end of the third book and was to be titled Adventure Girls on Vacation, never saw the light of day.

The Adventure Girls at K-Bar-O

In this first book, we are introduced to these six lovable girls who have traveled to Arizona to visit Gale’s cousin, Virginia Wilson. They have arrived in Arizona for a fun-filled vacation, with the secret hope that the outdoors and dry weather will do good for Valerie’s ailing health. Scarcely have they arrived, however, when their adventures begin! While Virginia is in the bank in town, a robbery occurs! As the bandits are leaving the bank, Gale and Valerie, who had just made some purchases across the street, use a rope they purchased to trip the unsuspecting bandits. Gale grabs the gun of one of the bandits and aims it at them, while Valerie recovers the bag of money and returns it to the bank.

Hailed as heroes, the girls return to the ranch owned by Virginia’s father. Gale then begins practicing with the rope, learning from one of the ranch hands how to use it. Tired, she takes a short walk away from the ranch and falls sleep in the shade of a tree. Startled, she wakes up to find a rattlesnake curled around her right leg, staring up at her. Scared stiff, she is unsure what to do, knowing any movement might cause the snake to strike, thus killing her. Seconds seem like eternity, when suddenly there is a loud burst of gunfire, and the snake is killed. Jim, the same ranch hand teaching her how to use the rope, had seen her sleep and managed to arrive in time to kill the snake before it struck.

The next day, Mr. Wilson hands small caliber revolvers to both Gale and Phyllis, using the excuse that they may run into danger like the snake, or even the bank robbers again. But Gale cannot be fooled. She knows there is something else wrong. Unbeknownst to Mr. Wilson and his son, Tom, Gale and Valerie overhear them talking about the cattle rustlers that have been stealing cattle at neighboring ranches. Tom is insistent that they take the girls on a hike across the plains, and that Jim and Tom can use that opportunity to look for the rustlers. Mr. Wilson is reluctant at first, but Tom finally convinces him. Cattle rustlers! Gale and Valerie decide to keep their discovery to themselves, not wanting to frighten the other girls.

And thus, the Arizona adventures of the Adventure Girls takes off! A haunted cave, a ghost cabin, a landslide, a kidnapping, a daring escape and rescue, and the rustler’s revenge all add up to lots of excitement and adventure for the six girls from the East coast.

The Adventure Girls in the Air

When the six Adventure Girls see an airplane crash on an island just off the shores of Marchton, they eagerly begin their next big set of adventures. The girls rush to Cloudy Island with the help of their young male friends, Bruce Latimer and David Kimball. On the island is a small cabin that the young men and women used as a club house of sorts, and to that they take the injured pilot. When he wakes up, he discovers that his ankle is injured, and the Adventure Girls and their friends allow him to stay at the cabin. It turns out that the pilot’s name is Brent Stockton, and when she discusses it with the rest of the Adventure Girls, they realize that he is an inventor!

Confronting the pilot, he admits to being Brent Stockton, the inventor, and shows the girls his plans for a new engine that he was testing out on the plane that crashed. He swears them to secrecy, confessing that there are those who want to steal the plans for their own purposes! Brent tells them that he plans to use the new engine at an air show that is coming up, and asks Gale and Bruce to deliver the plans to his assistant, Stubby, under the cover of night in a secluded area of Marchton. They are nearly tricked by a shady individual who tries to take the plans forcefully from them, but the real Stubby shows up and rescues them and the plans.

The next thing they know, however, Stubby is requesting they take him to Brent, since there are problems with the plane! Under the cover of night once again, they assist Brent in getting secretly to the airport where his plane is waiting. Gale, who has slowly been falling for the handsome pilot, finally tries to admit her feelings for him, but is crushed when he tells her that the feelings are not mutual. She leaves, only to come rushing back to warn him when she overhears the voices of men threatening to steal the engine from Brent! There is an intense scuffle, but right prevails and the mysterious men escape.

Brent and Stubby continue to work on the engine over the next few days, and when Gale’s father must make a trip to Quebec, Brent volunteers to fly him there. Gale anxiously asks to go with them and experiences her first flight in an airplane--which ultimately turns to disaster on the trip back when the plane crashes! Brent wakes up only to find Gale is unconscious and trapped in her seat by a tree limb. He runs through the snow to try and find help, but when he ultimately returns she is gone!

Thus, the search--and the adventures--begin! A parachute jump for Janet and Phyllis, a desperate search for the missing Gale, an amnesiac Gale, a winter storm, a fall from a cliff, a daring rescue, an island shipwreck, and a last ditch effort to get Phyllis’ aunt to allow her to attend Briarhurst college all add up to plenty of excitement and adventure for the Adventure Girls. All this, and Gale receives a startling proposal from Brent!

The Adventure Girls at Happiness House

In this third and last book in the series, the six Adventure Girls have finished high school and are now freshmen at Briarhurst College. From the ride on a dilapidated old bus up to the school grounds, the girls know they are in for an exciting year. As they arrive, they are shocked to discover there is a new dean at the college--Dean Travis - and no one seems to like her ideas to make some changes in the college! Gale and Phyllis are ushered into the Omega Chi sorority house where they have been placed, while Janet, Valeria, Madge, and Carol are separated to another dorm.

Gale takes a leisurely walk around the property and comes across a lake to discover a boater whose canoe was cut loose from the docks and racing every so rapidly towards deadly falls! Acting quickly, Gale jumps in a nearby motor boat and saves the women in the canoe. As luck would have it, the woman is the new Dean, who is immediately impressed with Gale’s courage and quick thinking. That night, Gale and Phyllis are welcomed into “Happiness House,” which is the name the Omega Chi have given their dorm.

Quickly, however, events begin to happen that lead to a road of change for one of the Adventure Girls! The new Dean is being threatened at every turn--acid thrown at her from a second story window, lumber pushed down onto her, poisoned candy sent to her office. Gale and her friends realize someone is out to get rid of the new Dean, and they secretly make a pact to find out who.

In the meantime, during a hockey game, Phyllis is seriously injured when Marcia strikes her with her hockey stick! Just as her leg begins to heal, she is injured yet again when she attempts to rescue Gale and the new Dean from the falling lumber! To make matters worse, her leg will never heal properly again unless she has surgery--which surgery can only be done by an expert surgeon at a cost of more money that the girls have. Gale contacts Phyllis’ aunt, who comes only with bad news--she cannot do anything to help Phyllis. She made a promise years ago, and she must abide by it.

Confused, Gale sets out, with the help of Phyllis’ suitor, David, as well as her own fiance, Brent, to find out exactly what’s going on. They confront Phyllis’ aunt over Christmas break, and Brent convinces Miss Fields to admit the truth - Phyllis was not really her niece! As fate would have it, Phyllis’s real father turns out to be not only alive, but the famed surgeon, Dr. Philip Elton! While Gale returns to school, the young men go off in search of Dr. Elton. Gale keeps the news of Phyllis’ parentage to herself, hoping to keep it as a surprise for the young girl who has been suffering for so long.

When the truth finally comes out, it is a joyous occasion for not only is father and daughter reunited, but he is able to repair the damage to her legs allowing her to use her legs to their fullest extent again! But the adventures don’t end there. After a mysterious note is given to Gale to mind her own business, she and the rest of the Adventure Girls set out to find the person behind the attacks on the Dean--and uncover the truth just in the nick of time! As the freshman year at Briarhurst comes to a close, the girls anxiously await the news of whether they will become full members of Omega Chi--and wonder what their summer adventures will bring them!

The Adventure Girls on Vacation

Alas, this phantom title never saw print, and so we never found out what exciting adventures lay ahead for these six young ladies during their summer break from Briarhurst.

While these three books weren’t the typical mystery books in the tradition of Nancy Drew, Kay Tracey, or Penny Parker, they were full of adventure and free-spirited young girls. They are a fun read, and if you happen to come across a copy, pick it up and set out on some new adventures!

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