The Mystery of Cabin Island #8 (The Hardy Boys)

I actually bought this book for the cover art. I am a Hardy Boys collector and I like to collect all the different cover art (and text) versions. This the fourth cover art version since the title was originally published in 1929. A photo of all four cover versions should be attached to this review.

Readers should be aware that the current text (copyright 1964) is a major revision to the original text published in 1929. It is roughly 17% shorter (178 vs 214 text pages). While the core plotline generally follows that of the original text, the action is much faster paced, fitting several additional plot elements into the shorter book. Most of the text was rewritten. Sacrificed were some of the beautiful descriptions of a snowy winter holiday and much of the witty dialog between Frank, Joe, Chet and Biff. The original 1929 Cabin Island was outlined by the Hardy Boys creator Edward Stratemeyer, and written by the Hardy Boys first ghostwriter, Leslie McFarlane. The story was revised by Andrew Svenson. Many Hardy Boys collectors consider the original Cabin Island to be one of the best Hardy Boys ever written; it is usually available on EBAY, just be sure to check the number of pages to make sure it's the version that you want (the older text has 25 chapters, the newer text has 20).
The newer story is one of the better of the revised texts; I would give it 3.5 stars and the original five stars.