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Type of bind: Hardcover
EAN num: 9780448089478
ISBN number: 0448089475
Label: Grosset & Dunlap
Manufacturer: Grosset & Dunlap
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 192
Printing Date: December 01, 1967
Publishing house: Grosset & Dunlap
Age index: Ages 4-8
Sale Popularity Level: 369465
Studio: Grosset & Dunlap
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Rated by buyers -
This book is the 47th book in the original Hardy Boys series. This book follows "The Secret Agent on Flight 101." The subsequent book in the series is "The Arctic Patrol Mystery."
The Hardy Boys gave up their James Bond ways from the previous book to become involved in a stuffed whale mystery. The owner of a carnival hires Frank and Joe Hardy to protect carnival customers from pickpockets. The boys learn soon after that Mr. Prito, father of their friend Tony, discovered a stuffed whale while constructing a new shopping center. The whale was apparently in good condition because of the oil cloths protecting it.
Tony Prito puts the whale on display, taking customers away from the carnival and causing the carnival's employees to become very angry with Tony. After attempts to get at the whale, it disappears during a storm. Frank, Joe and Tony assume that members of the carnival had something to do with the whale's disappearance, but there is more of a mystery than Hardys yet suspect. The Hardys are also puzzled as to how someone was able to move the whale without anyone seeing it.
The investigation takes Frank and Joe to New York, Los Angeles and then back to the area around Bayport. As the investigation progresses the boys are also aware of a mystery their father is investigating involving a stolen ivory idol.
Where did the whale go? Did it just fly up from where Tony Prito had it on display? Who stole the ivory idol? What is the Society of the Whale and who are the members? Does the Society of the Whale have something to do with the missing stuffed whale? What does the ivory idol have to do with any of these questions? A reader has many things to discover in this Hardy Boys mystery.
I enjoyed this book in spite of several absurdities in the plot. I was most fascinated by how the whale was stolen and how Frank and Joe found the missing whale. This book had enough blue herrings that I was unable to solve the mystery together until the answers unfolded at the end of the book. Some of the silliness in this book involved Chet Morton and an eating challenge and Chet Morton as a clown. Chet Morton does more than his share of comic relief in this Hardy Boys book. I thought this book was better than the average book for this series and one that I would recommend to a first-time reader of the Hardy Boys, though the very first ten books in the series are a better place to start.
The publisher recommends the Hardy Boys series for ages 9 to 12 because the series is relatively tame for the previous target audience of ages 10 to 14. Though the Hardy Boys series contains archaic information, as reading material for an increasingly younger audience they are fine. Once a child has reached age 12 or so the stories may be of less interest, but given the combination of mystery and action, these books remain good safe choices for parents who want to know what their children are reading.
Enjoy!
Rated by buyers -
One of the key elements of the plot is a stuffed whale. That is a bit absurd, but it gets even worse when the whale is unearthed by Tony Prito's construction company. No mention is made of the condition of the whale, but it is hard to believe that it would be intact after having been buried for some time. The story is that it was part of a carnival that went bankrupt and they just buried the whale where it was.
The whale contains a carved ivory statute and there is a gang trying to recover it. They all have a tattoo of a whale, so that is the origin of the title. There is also a modern carnival, some heroics by Chet Morton in rescuing the kidnapped Hardy's and significant contributions by Fenton Hardy. The best part of the book stars Chet Morton. He consumes a record number of ice cream sundaes, which was made funny by him having a set of admirers. When Chet is preparing to consume the last sundae, he jogs around the block, followed by two admiring boys.
The remainder of the plot of the book does not remain viable. The names of the people are somewhat artificial, for example Fenton Hardy poses as a seaman and takes the name Spike Marlin. This is a flip of marlinspike, a tool used by sailors. Knocker Felsen is a tough guy who takes on the Hardy's and gets beat up. Therefore, while there are high points to the book, they are not enough to make the book better than weak.
Rated by buyers 
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The book has some good action, but overall it's poorly written. It has some small plot holes, illogical action by Fank & Joe, and some big coincidences. I have read every Hardy Boy book more than once, and I'd have to put this one near the bottom. I gave it two stars becuase there is some good atmosphere, and the outline and concept are pretty good, but some of the story is just too unrealistic, illogical, and coincidental. 2 Stars.
Rated by buyers -
This was a pretty decent book about a mystery at a carnival. The brothers are surrounded with danger never knowing who is friend or foe. I liked that aspect of the book which only few seem to have. Cover at in 1968 of the originals began their demise with this volume. It is worth reading and ranks among the best of the higher volumes. RATED B-
Rated by buyers 
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A job catching pick-pockets at the local carnival, a stuffed whale being exhibited by Tony Prito and Biff Hooper and Mr. Hardy's latest case concerning a stolen ivory idol, send Frank and Joe onto a surprisingly exciting case. This mystery is filled with action and it has a rather interesting and well-thought-out plot. The Hardys are constantly coming into contact with the criminals during the course of the book and you are not always sure who is good and who is a member of the gang. One thing that I particularly like about this book is that, unlike many of the higher volumes, it remembers that Frank and Joe have friends and they are well-used in the book. It's not the greatest book, but I consider it to be one of the better of the higher volumes.
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