Aunt Jane's Nieces on Vacation
Encyclopedia
Aunt Jane's Nieces on Vacation is a 1912 novel by L.Frank Baum, writing under the name "Edith Van Dyne". Baum's intended title was the more accurate Aunt Jane's Nieces in Journalism, but the publisher changed it without telling him, to his consternation.
The title is true enough to begin with. John Merrick
and his nieces, return to their vacation home in Millville, in upstate New York
, where they are known as Nabob
s. The three girls, Patsy Doyle, Beth De Graf, and Louise Merrick Weldon, become bored with vacationing and want to participate more in town life. Beth is a regular reader of newspapers, so with Uncle John's money, they decide to establish a newspaper
of their own, with stereotype plates from the wire service liberally peppered with local news and gossip. The latter is primarily handled by Louise. Her husband, Arthur Weldon, has his name highest on the masthead (as was common with female-run organizations at the time), which gets him forced into a duel with one of the yokels.
The main plot, however, comes from the problems introduced by greedy mill owners in the area attempting to scam the town. Most of the employees are white ethnic
s whom the locals hold in contempt.
Baum fills the town with colorful characters, and the girls realize that all people are unique and quirky, and not to be judged as "the masses." He also brings back the character of private detective Quintus Fogerty, introduced in Aunt Jane's Nieces in Society
, to help resolve plot complications.
The title is true enough to begin with. John Merrick
John Merrick
John Merrick may refer to:* John Merrick , English ambassador to Russia* John Merrick , African-American founder of North Carolina Mutual & Provident Insurance Company in Durham, North Carolina...
and his nieces, return to their vacation home in Millville, in upstate New York
Upstate New York
Upstate New York is the region of the U.S. state of New York that is located north of the core of the New York metropolitan area.-Definition:There is no clear or official boundary between Upstate New York and Downstate New York...
, where they are known as Nabob
Nawab
A Nawab or Nawaab is an honorific title given to Muslim rulers of princely states in South Asia. It is the Muslim equivalent of the term "maharaja" that was granted to Hindu rulers....
s. The three girls, Patsy Doyle, Beth De Graf, and Louise Merrick Weldon, become bored with vacationing and want to participate more in town life. Beth is a regular reader of newspapers, so with Uncle John's money, they decide to establish a newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
of their own, with stereotype plates from the wire service liberally peppered with local news and gossip. The latter is primarily handled by Louise. Her husband, Arthur Weldon, has his name highest on the masthead (as was common with female-run organizations at the time), which gets him forced into a duel with one of the yokels.
The main plot, however, comes from the problems introduced by greedy mill owners in the area attempting to scam the town. Most of the employees are white ethnic
White ethnic
White ethnic is a term used in United States sociology to refer to whites who are not of European Protestant background. They consist of a number of distinct groups, and within the United States make up approximately 9.4% of the population...
s whom the locals hold in contempt.
Baum fills the town with colorful characters, and the girls realize that all people are unique and quirky, and not to be judged as "the masses." He also brings back the character of private detective Quintus Fogerty, introduced in Aunt Jane's Nieces in Society
Aunt Jane's Nieces in Society
Aunt Jane's Nieces in Society is a young-adult novel written by L. Frank Baum, famous as the creator of the Land of Oz. First published in 1910, the book is the fifth volume in the Aunt Jane's Nieces series, which was the second-greatest success of Baum's literary career, after the Oz books...
, to help resolve plot complications.