Ruth Fielding Down in Dixie; Or, Great Times in the Land of Cotton

Two friends, one steamer, and a boy who may or may not be a fugitive. That's how it begins for Ruth Fielding and Helen Cameron in this spirited adventure from the golden age of girls' series fiction. Freshly graduated from boarding school, they're bound for the sun-drenched plantations of the Deep South to visit friends. But somewhere between New York and Virginia, a police boat intercepts their steamer, and Ruth recognizes the boy they're hunting: Curly, the mischievous grandson of the kind woman who once took her in after a dormitory fire. He's vanished into thin air. Ruth knows in her bones the boy is innocent, but the police disagree. What follows is a winding journey through a romanticized Old South, where magnolia blossoms scent the air, cotton fields stretch to the horizon, and a flood and fire test the girls' courage and loyalty. It's a time capsule of early twentieth-century adventure writing, complete with plucky heroines, hidden identities, and the unshakeable belief that friendship can solve any mystery. Perfect for readers who enjoy vintage children's fiction with a sense of innocent peril.