Trixie Seeks to Bring a Family Together in The Mystery of the Castaway Children

A baby turning up in a doghouse is an inherently peculiar situation. When that doghouse happens to belong to the family of teen sleuth Trixie Belden, it’s the beginning of another mystery. Was the baby kidnapped? Abandoned by his parents? Could there be some other explanation? In between taking turns caring for the infant that has charmed them all, spunky Trixie and her fellow Bob-Whites are determined to find some answers in The Mystery of the Castaway Children, the 21st book in the Trixie Belden mystery series.

This book, written by a ghostwriter under the name of Kathryn Kenny, is especially warm-hearted as Trixie and her friends and family rally around this infant, growing more attached all the time but also yearning to reunite this wayward child whom they have dubbed Moses with his parents. It’s a mystery in several steps, and Trixie is very methodical about gathering new clues as parts of it are unveiled. While she throws caution to the wind a couple times, her dedication to the case is admirable, and some of her deductions are quite clever.

As is generally the case, Trixie’s best friend Honey is right by her side to help her, and this time, they have an unusual ally in their efforts. Usually, Sergeant Molinson of the local police department warns Trixie off of her sleuthing, but this time, he actually requests that she and Honey work with him. This adds a neat twist to the story and makes Trixie feel like her dream of being a professional detective is more within reach than ever. It also allows readers to see this frequently antagonistic side character in a more encouraging and kind-hearted light.

All seven of the Bob-Whites – the others being Trixie’s older brothers Mart and Brian, Honey’s adopted brother Jim and their friends Diana and Dan – are involved in this story and eagerly share the responsibilities of caring for a baby. It’s fun to see them all turning to mush over this newcomer, even the normally snarky Mart. Of course, the title indicates more than one castaway, and when Trixie and her friends learn of a second missing child, it adds a whole new dimension to the mystery and allows for her little brother Bobby to have a key role to play in the proceedings.

Woven throughout the story is a lesson on the importance of financial responsibility, as well as several pointers on how to take care of a baby. Mostly, though, this is just a solid story of teamwork and ingenuity as a close-knit group of friends try to figure out how an infant ended up in their care and how to reunite his broken family.