The Purple Fingerprint is the 44th book in the Nancy Drew Notebooks series. It was first published on October 1st, 2001. The eBook was published by Aladdin and released June 20, 2002. The book tagline says “Can Nancy Save her Favorite TV show from going off the air?”
Back of the Book Summary:
Nancy gets the big picture from a really tiny clue!
Nancy and her friends love Mr. Lizard’s Funhouse–it’s their favorite TV show. But now Mr. Lizard is going to be replaced–by a cooking show! Nancy gets the kids in school to sign a petition to save the show, but when she brings it to the TV station, it says in big purple letters, “Get rid of Mr. Lizard!”
From the lunch lady to a science whiz kid, anyone in school could have written the nasty note. Then Nancy’s father gives her a special gift–a magnifying glass. It’s just the thing for an up-close look at her best clue–a distinctive purple fingerprint!
Inside Teaser:
“Save Mr. Lizard! Save Mr. Lizard!”
“We have something special for Mr. Lizard,” Karen Koombs said to the security guard at the TV station. She held out the envelope containing the petition.
“I’ll take it,” a woman said. “I’m Jane, the producer of the show.”
“And I’m that other guy,” a man with bright red hair said with a wink.
“It’s him!” Bess squealed under her breath. “It’s Mr. Lizard.”
Nancy and her friends hurried out of the station and onto the sidewalk. Nancy felt very proud–until the doors swung open and Mr. Lizard marched out.
“Is this some kind of joke?” Mr. Lizard asked. He reached into the envelope and pulled out a sheet of notebook paper. Everyone gasped. Written on it in big purple letters were the words “Get rid of Mr. Lizard!!”
Review:
Nancy, Bess, and George are all in Mrs. Reynold’s third-grade class at Carl Sandberg Elementary school. When their cover picture and title paper for their petition is replaced with an opposite message, the three friends investigate the kids at school who would want their favorite TV show canceled. They follow real clues, do some snooping, and question, everyone, on their suspect list. The title of the book, The Purple Fingerprint, refers to the fingerprint smudge on Nancy’s tampered petition papers and is the #1 clue for Nancy to investigate. The character motives and opportunities are also a large part of the case.
The book incorporates real detective sleuthing at an easy level, but only gives minimum leads for the reader to solve the case on their own. (Readers will not know which kids signed the petition until Nancy and her friends talk about it.)
The story ends with a culprit reveal and resolution for the TV show. The happy lesson at the end of the book is written in Nancy’s blue notebook: about the value of teamwork. As a long-time Nancy Drew fan, I would recommend this story to young readers!
Nancy Drew Canon Observations:
Nancy is described as having reddish-blond hair with bangs. She keeps a blue notebook for her sleuthing. In this story, her dad, Carson Drew, gifts Nancy a silver magnifying glass to examine a clue more closely. In this story, Nancy has a female chocolate lab puppy named Chocolate Chip.
George’s real name is Georgia, and is described as having curly dark hair and brown eyes.
Bess, George’s cousin, has long blonde hair and blue eyes. Bess’s mom, Mrs. Marvin, drives a red minivan.
Brenda Carlton is a prime character in the story. Her dad owns a newspaper, and Brenda plays reporter, writing her own newspaper called the Carlton News.
Extra Notes:
Published for Minstrel by Pocket Books, a division of Simon & Schuster.
Cover art by Joanie Schwarz. Inside pages are illustrated by Jan Naimo Jones.
Length: 72 story pages. (About 80 with the title page, series lists, and ads).
There is an ad for Nancy Drew: Message in a Haunted Mansion in the back of the book:
