Cherry Ames, Staff Nurse: Book 16 [Hardcover]

Helen Wells (Author)

Book Description

Cherry Ames is back, just as you remember her! The books are just as you remember them, retaining the same look, feel, and sense of adventure and patriotism as when they were first published. With fully illustrated color covers and a soft-finished hardcover format just like the originals, these books will transport you back to the days when you were reading about this spunky young nurse. Series editor and registered nurse Harriet Foreman was inspired by and remains a devoted fan of Cherry Ames: " ...I was going to follow in her footsteps and become a nurse-nothing else would do."

When Cherry Ames learns that the new patient in her ward is using the proceeds from her deceased husband's life insurance to speculate in stock, she judges her foolish. And when the young woman explains the Pell Corporation investment program, Cherry suspects that her patient is being swindled.

Even more serious, Peggy Wilmot is jeopardizing her health. For emotional tension over the delayed arrival of her weekly dividend check is retarding her recovery. But how can Cherry influence the headstrong young woman who seeks financial help from the wrong people? Find out the truth about the Pell Corporation, Cherry decides, and let the facts speak for themselves.

Some of the vital questions to which Cherry must find the answers are: What are the Pell Corporation's actual operations as distinguished from the fantastic claims made in its impressive brochures? Is the mysterious Cleveland Pell really the financial wizard he claims to be? Busy with ward duty and a training program for teen-age junior volunteers at Hilton Hospital, Cherry does not have much time for another extracurricular task. But the plight of Peggy Wilmot is too serious to be ignored.

What Cherry learns in the mysterious world of the "high finance" confidence game will surprise the reader as much as it does America's favorite nurse heroine.

Springer Publishing Company is delighted to be bringing Helen Wells's beloved heroine back into print for a new generation of younger readers (as well as a host of nostalgic older ones). The books are available as beautifully rendered facsimile hardcover editions and in boxed sets of four.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Cherry Ames is back, just as you remember her! The books are just as you remember them, retaining the same look, feel, and sense of adventure and patriotism as when they were first published. With fully illustrated color covers and a soft-finished hardcover format just like the originals, these books will transport you back to the days when you were reading about this spunky young nurse.

"I was and still am a fan of Cherry Ames. Her courageous dedication to her patients; her exciting escapades; her thirst for knowledge; her intelligent application of her nursing skills; and the respect she achieved as a registered nurse (RN) all made it clear to me that I was going to follow in her footsteps and become a nurse - nothing else would do. ..... Never once did I regret my decision to enter nursing."
---From the Foreword by Harriet Schulman Forman, RN, EdD

About the Author

Helen Wells, was a social worker turned full-time writer, and, like her most famous heroine, an Illinois native who loved New York City.

She was born Helen Weinstock on March 29, 1910, in Danville, Illinois. Her brother, Robert, has said that "Danville is pretty much the town that Cherry Ames lived in, and our house was her house." The family moved to New York City when Helen was about seven, and she loved New York. The family retained ties to Danville, however; almost every summer, they spent some time visiting relatives there. As a teenager, Wells studied painting at the Art Students League in New York City; she also studied music. At New York University, she became the first female editor of the school's literary quarterly. She graduated from NYU in 1934, with a major in philosophy and a minor in sociology and psychology. After graduation, she worked for a time as a social worker and began to write for magazines, and eventually turned to writing full-time after winning prizes in two short-story contests.

During World War II, she served as a volunteer with the State Department's Office of the Coordinator of Inter-American Affairs, escorting Latin American visitors in the United States. She traveled widely, visiting Brazil, Spain, France, Austria, Israel, Mexico, England, and several other countries. Among her other interests were reading, theater, ballet, and jazz. She also was a cat lover; two of her cats were Gigi, a blue Persian, and Crissy, an orange Angora. She was active in several author organizations, especially the Mystery Writers of America, and taught writing courses at the Institute of Children's Literature in Redding Ridge, Connecticut.

Helen Wells is best known for the Cherry Ames series, which was published in numerous countries besides the United States, including Canada, Great Britain, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Japan, France, Italy, Holland, and Bolivia. But Wells wrote two other series. Under her own name, she wrote the Vicki Barr books, about a young mystery-solving flight attendant--like Cherry Ames and Helen Wells herself, another Illinois-to-New York transplant. And, as Francine Lewis, she penned the short-lived Polly French series, published by Whitman in the early 1950s: Polly French of Whitford High, Polly French Takes Charge, and Polly French and the Surprising Stranger; these books, about a young teenager, are aimed at a younger readership.

Among her other books for young people were several so-called Career-Romances for Young Moderns--novels that featured a young woman pursuing a career, published by Julian Messner: The Girl in the White Coat (1953), A Flair for People (1955), Introducing Patti Lewis, Home Economist (1956), and Doctor Betty (1969). Wells also wrote Escape by Night: A Story of the Underground Railway (1953), a "Winston Adventure Book" for young people, based on a true story; and A City for Jean (1956), a novel about a young social worker, for Funk & Wagnalls; and Adam Gimbel, Pioneer Trader (1955) and Barnum, Showman of America (1957) for McKay.

Helen Wells died in New York City on February 10, 1986, and is buried in Danville, Illinois. The 1986 Juvenile Series Writers Conference in Corning, New York, was dedicated to her memory.

Springer Publishing Company is grateful to The Cherry Ames Page website for information on Helen Wells. Please visit www.netwrx1.com/CherryAmes

Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: Springer Publishing Company; 1 edition (August 22, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0826104274
• ISBN-13: 978-0826104274
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #927,388 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars great find, August 30, 2009

By 

Barbara Burlingame (Illinois) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Cherry Ames, Staff Nurse: Book 16 (Hardcover)

Happy to be able to complete the set that my parents started for me many years ago with a book that matches perfectly.