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The Nancys

The Nancys, is a 2019 debut fiction novel written by R.W.R. McDonald, a Melbourne-based New Zealand author..[1][2]

The narrative revolves around an eleven year old school girl, Tippy Chan and her babysitting Uncle Pike and his boyfriend Devon, who together form a secret amateur detective club "The Nancys" to try and solve Tippy's teacher's murder in her small town over one summer. [1][2]

Plot

Tippy Chan is eleven and lives in a small town in New Zealand - the place her Uncle Pike escaped from the first chance he got as a teenager. Her Uncle Pike returns with his new boyfriend Devon to babysit Tippy over summer while her mum's on a cruise.

Tippy loves her uncles old Nancy Drewbooks, especially the early ones where Nancy was sixteen and did whatever she wanted. Tippy wants to be Nancy and she is desperate to solve a real mystery. When her teacher's body is found beside Riverstone's only traffic light, Tippy's moment has arrived. She, Uncle Pike and Devon form "The Nancys", a secret amateur detective club.[3][4][5][6]

But what starts as a bonding and sightseeing adventure quickly morphs into something far more dangerous. A wrongful arrest, a close call with the murderer, and an intervention from Tippy's mum all conspire against The Nancys. But regardless of their own safety, and despite the constant distraction of questionable fashion choices in the town that style forgot, The Nancys know only they can stop the killer from striking again. [3]

Publication History

Published in Australia and New Zealand by Allen and Unwin, June 2019, ISBN 9781760527334, paperback. [3]

Developmental History

R.W.R. McDonald wrote the first draft of The Nancys while at Faber Academy, Melbourne under the tutelage of award winning authors Toni Jordan and Paddy O'Reilly [7][8]

McDonald credits his tutors and mentors for "talking him off the ledge" halfway through writing the The Nancys and "sticking with it" when he was going to pull out of the course and writing due to outside pressures. [8][7]

Reception

The Nancys early reviews have been positive with the novel being described as "Cheerfully scattered, this glittering, occasionally grisly and highly original novel ... stands proudly on its own." [4] and "a stunning debut, one of those very special books that enthrals from its opening, and leaves you with pangs of regret, desperate to spend more time with its characters." [5] As well as "A gleeful crime fiction debut with a satisfying balance of campy warmth and murdery darkness..."[6]

The Nancys was Readings Crime Book of the month for June 2019[9], Better Read than Dead's June 2019 Book of the month[10], Sydney Morning Herald Fiction Pick of the week [11] and New Zealand Woman's Weekly Book of the Week [12]

“Rob McDonald” (http://2018.emergingwritersfestival.org.au/writer/rob-mcdonald/) 2018 Emerging Writers Festival “Unlikely heroes: R W R McDonald on ‘The Nancys’” (https://www.booksandpublishing.com.au/articles/2019/03/19/130055/unlikely-heroes-r-w-r-mcdonald-on-the-nancys/) Books + Publishing, 19 March 2019 “The Nancys R.W.R. McDonald 9781760527334” (https://www.allenandunwin.com/browse/books/fiction/The-Nancys-RWR-McDonald-9781760527334 ) Allen and Unwin Australia “The Nancys (R W R McDonald, A&U)” (https://www.booksandpublishing.com.au/articles/2019/04/26/130617/the-nancys-r-w-r-mcdonald-au/) Books + Publishing, 26 April 2019 “Review: The Nancys by R.W.R. McDonald” (https://writtenbysime.com/2019/03/18/review-the-nancys-by-r-w-r-mcdonald/) Writtenbysime.com, 18 March 2019 Kate Adams @kaddadams (https://www.instagram.com/p/BvlJjnBldRJ/) Instagram, 29 March 2019 “Rob McDonald and Toni Jordan writing your way up.” (https://mwf.com.au/blog/rob-mcdonald-and-toni-jordan-writing-your-way-up/ ) 2018 Melbourne Writers Festival Blog, 5 June 2018 “How Faber Writing Academy helped Rob McDonald write The Nancys” (http://thingsmadefromletters.com/blog/2019/01/23/how-faber-writing-academy-helped-rob-mcdonald-write-the-nancys/) thingsmadefromletters.com, Allen & Unwin Blog, 23 January 2019 “The best new crime reads in June” (https://www.readings.com.au/news/the-best-new-crime-reads-in-june) Readings, 6 June 2019 “The Nancys R.W.R. McDonald with Bri Lee.” https://www.betterreadevents.com/events/the-nancys-r-w-r-mcdonald-with-bri-lee) Better Read than Dead, 18 June 2019 “Fiction Reviews” (https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/fiction-reviews-the-nancys-by-r-w-r-mcdonald-and-three-other-novels-20190621-p5200o.html) The Sydney Morning Herald, 29-30 June 2019 “Luck of the Drew” (https://www.pressreader.com/new-zealand/new-zealand-womans-weekly/20190701/page/79) New Zealand Woman’s Weekly 1 July 2019

Author’s website (https://rwrmcdonald.com/ ) R.W.R. McDonald (https://twitter.com/rwrmcdonald ) on Twitter R.W.R. McDonald (https://www.instagram.com/rwrmcdonald/ ) on Instagram

The Nancys

"Rob McDonald". Emerging Writers' Festival. Retrieved 2019-07-18.
Mem: 34869104. "Unlikely heroes: R W R McDonald on 'The Nancys' | Books+Publishing". Retrieved 2019-07-18.
""The Nancys R.W.R. McDonald 9781760527334".
Mem: 34874208. "The Nancys (R W R McDonald, A&U) | Books+Publishing". Retrieved 2019-07-18.
McDonald, Simon (2019-03-17). "Review: The Nancys by R.W.R. McDonald". Simon McDonald. Retrieved 2019-07-18.
"Kate Adams on Instagram: "Just finished reading: The Nancys by R.W.R. McDonald. Goddamn, I love me a nutty murder mystery romp. ⠀ ⠀ Tippy Chan is our narrator — 11…"". Instagram. Retrieved 2019-07-18.
"Melbourne Writers Festival - Rob McDonald and Toni Jordan: Writing Your Way Up". Melbourne Writers Festival. Retrieved 2019-07-18.
Onions, The (2019-01-23). "How Faber Writing Academy helped Rob McDonald write The Nancys". Things Made From Letters: the Allen & Unwin blog. Retrieved 2019-07-18.
"The best new crime reads in June by Fiona Hardy". www.readings.com.au. Retrieved 2019-07-18.
"Events". Better Read Events. Retrieved 2019-07-18.
Goldsworthy, Kerryn (2019-06-28). "Fiction reviews: The Nancys by R.W.R. McDonald and three other novels". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2019-07-18.
"PressReader.com - Your favorite newspapers and magazines". www.pressreader.com. Retrieved 2019-07-18.
"The Award for an Unpublished Manuscript". The Wheeler Centre.